A summer of nominations
• Rudy Salles, deputy mayor in charge of tourism and international relations for the city of Nice, vice-president of the French parliament, vice-president of the Tourist Bureau and vice-president of the CANCA conurbation, was elected vice-president of France Congrès.
• Denis Zanon (picture) is our establishment’s new managing director. He comes to us from Courchevel, where he managed the Tourist and Convention Bureau, and his career has taken him to different alpine resorts where he focused more specifically on business tourism.

The summer season prolonged
After a month of July that remained stable and a rise in visitors in August, quite a feat this year when moroseness prevails elsewhere, September has demonstrated once again that summer doesn’t stop on the French Riviera. Leisure tourism goes hand in hand with business tourism, for which the season seems to have been well launched with prestige meetings (see above). It is interesting to note developments with respect to the origins of visitors: Russia and Eastern European countries has progressed markedly (+40%) like the Near East and Middle East, with a return of Germany (+13%). It could be due to the Rugby World Cup: the Pacific has been growing significantly in the past year (+36% in 2008). The return of a certain degree of economic stability in Latin America results in more visitors from this region (+6%).

Air travel
As with the movements of visitors mentioned above, the Nice Côte d’Azur International Airport presented its winter programme for 2008/2009. Although the overall figures have not actually changed, with 63 provenances from 25 pays, the destinations have changed, with a drop of standard European destinations and an increase and even the creation of new lines for such emerging markets as Eastern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East - Nice-Dubai in particular with 5 direct flights weekly to become the gateway to Asia, South Africa and the Pacific. Paris-Nice has added another 9 flights to this route.

New destinations :
• Athens on Baboo with 4 flights a week;
• Venice on Baboo with 6 flights a week;
• Tozeur on Tunisair with 2 flights a week;
• Riga on Air Baltic with 3 flights a week;
• Saint Petersburg on Rossiya with 1 flight a week.
Reinforced service:
• London City on British Airways with 12 flights a week;
• Paris CDG on Air France with 8 more flights, for a total of 50 flights a week

Our Operations
• The France.e.Motion exhibition organized by Maison de la France and accompanied by promotional operations, will take place in London from 14 to 18 October. Nice will be represented there by photographs of Phillip Reed, a student at the London College of Communication, along with 21 other French cities;
• A promotional contest has been launched on our websites. Participants must answer three questions on Nice to win two-night stays in Nice for two people... if their numbers come up of course. The hotels participating in this operation, which is open until 31 October, are the Negresco, Radisson SAS, Brice, Suisse and Victoria. (+)

Hotels & flavours
• Exedra, the Boscolo Group’s former Hôtel Atlantic, will open at the end of the year after two years of works and a record €18m investment. Entirely refurbished inside to be reborn as a 4-star luxury establishment, the hotel will surely become one of the flagships of hotels in Nice. (+)
• Lenôtre will be back in Nice just a stone’s throw from Place Masséna. Philippe Joannès his staff offer sweet and savoury fair to delight the most demanding palates, to be eaten in the shop or for takeaway. (+)
• Jouni’s chum Giuseppe opened a genuine Trattoria in the former Atelier du Goût, to offer the most refined great Italian cuisine. Something to be discovered! (+)

News briefs
• Inauguration of the Parc Départemental d’Estienne d’Orves, 15 hectares of parks and gardens in the city offering an exceptional panorama.
• Vélib’ (public bicycle rental service) will be available in Nice by 2009, with over 100 km of cycling paths opening in the coming months.
• Long-term projects: a second tramway line, westward from the city centre along Promenade des Anglais for 2013; LGV (high-speed railway line) between Nice and Paris in 3½ hours for 2017.
• Access to the beach for disabled persons or those with reduced mobility facilitated thanks to the Tiralo, which allows for almost effortless bathing in the sea.

Our Events
• Christmas Village: 6 December 2008 to 4 January 2009
• Carnival of Nice, Kind of Masquerades: 13 February to 1 March 2009 (+)

Other Event 
• Autour de Marie Bashkirtseff, November 2008. Parallel to the exhibition Hommage à Marie. Bashkirtseff, lectures, theatrical or musical productions and a contemporary look at the collection offer another approach to the Fine Arts Museum.

To read again NiceNews 16 : Launch of the "Nice Riviera Pass", Art in the city, Nice Jazz Festival, 5th meeting of professionals of tourism in Paris, Airport and connections ...

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