Open Jaw :: On The Town ::

with Martha Chapman
26MAR09

The always-chic Caroline Putnoki of
Maison de la France with the recently-released France Guide 2009

Bénédicte Duval and Adeline Piekham-Hsieh of Air France

Champagne, Picasso And The Fine Art Of “Doing Nothing”

Okay, so the view wasn’t onto the Champs Elysées or the Eiffel Tower. But the Toronto cityscape was still pretty impressive from the elegant rooftop resto at the Park Hyatt in Toronto as reps from Maison de la France – France’s tourist office – and Air France treated a gaggle of travel types to lunch.

Over mussels, sole and a crème brulée that would have stopped Napoleon in his tracks, we learned of France’s enduring popularity with us Canucks. “We polled the 160,000 Canadians who subscribe to our newsletter,” said Caroline Putnoki of Maison de la France, “and 50 per cent told us they plan to travel this year.” Even better, we travel in shoulder season, and stay usually two weeks, “which is really good for France!”

And what do we like to do? Apparently, our favourite activity is “no activity” – we like the food, cultural and urban tourism, but unstructured vacations seem to work best.

Worth noting is that this is going to be a big year for art lovers in France: it’ll be all Picasso, all the time with a host of exhibits across the country celebrating his years in France a half-century ago.

At Air France, they’re bullish on us too. As Bénédicte Duval, VP and GM of Air France for Canada told us, “We have increased our capacity 11 per cent between France and Canada – which means we’ll have four flights daily between Montreal and Paris, and we’ve doubled capacity between Toronto and Paris.”

Oh, and complimentary champagne, even for those of us who invariably fly in row 37. What a treat to send your clients on their way to a holiday of “doing nothing” in charming France!