The Olympic Games are one of the most eagerly awaited major sporting events in the world, attracting thousands of visitors to each edition. In 2024, with more than 15 million additional visitors expected in Paris, crowd management becomes a priority for the city. In this article, we'll explore tips and strategies for effectively managing crowds in Paris during the Olympic Games, optimising the visitor experience while minimising the problems associated with this unprecedented peak in visitor numbers.
Find out how you can make the most of this global event without being overwhelmed by the crowds.
Crowd management during the Paris 2024 Olympic games: advance planning for a smooth experience.
Whether it's the visitor or the city, end-to-end planning of the customer journey needs to be thought through and anticipated. A Destination France Plan is currently underway to make France a sustainable tourism destination, with the aim of welcoming tourists in the best possible conditions, with the arrival of the Olympic Games in 2024 in our sights.
The journey must be solid at every point of contact with the tourist and the destination: online first of all, by inspiring them according to their desires and helping them to prepare their visit, offline when they arrive in Paris and even on their return, post-stay, to be able to get their opinion on their experience.
A number of initiatives have already been taken in this direction, such as putting tickets for the Olympic Games online, as well as for the main tourist sites, and implementing a strategy for managing traffic, security and public transport.
Optimise flow management in Paris with innovative new technologies
Technology plays a crucial role in managing crowds during the Olympic Games: firstly, to help measure flows and have a detailed knowledge of the gauges - in particular to make decisions in terms of safety - and then to make this data widely available to the public.
For the authorities, this will make it possible to anticipate areas of high attendance and encourage the public to choose another place or time to go.
Affluences is working on a powerful data model based on AI and machine learning, which will use historical counting data from the sites we are equipping and external factors (web requests expressing visitor intentions, weather, transport) to display a trend in visitor numbers for each location, in addition to sites already equipped with counters.
Avoid the crowds and explore Paris in a different way with lesser-known sites
During the Olympic Games, some of Paris's iconic sites are likely to be overrun by visitors. To reduce overcrowding at these venues, it is important to promote the city's lesser-known but equally attractive sites. Highlight less-visited museums, less-famous parks and picturesque neighbourhoods that offer visitors a unique experience. This will help to spread visitor numbers throughout the city!
The importance of communication and awareness-raising during the Olympic Games
Effective communication with local residents, visitors and the media is essential to managing crowds during the Olympic Games and alleviating problems associated with them.
The more the public know about the expected crowds at certain venues, the more they will be able to choose another place to visit, take alternative routes or avoid peak times to come to the slower periods.
Over and above visitor numbers, the city of Paris is aiming for a policy of sustainable development and respect for the environment, which must include raising visitors' awareness of the rules of conduct, waste management and respect for the sites: a crucial point in maintaining a pleasant environment for all.
By implementing these strategies, Paris can offer visitors an exceptional experience while minimising the problems associated with overcrowding. It is important to capitalise on this global event while preserving the essence and charm of the city. By following these tips, Paris can position itself as a top tourist destination, even during busy periods like the Olympic Games!
The "Optimisation and fluidity of the passenger experience for major international events such as the 2024 Olympic Games" project
In 2023, Affluences won the call for expressions of interest launched by Atout France and the French Ministry for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises, along with 13 other tourism stakeholders, to develop a general solution for communicating visitor numbers at tourist sites affected by major events such as the 2024 Olympic Games.