Protests in France Disrupting Travel Industry

Travelers planning a trip to France should be ready for massive impacts on the travel industry as strikes and protests continue to break out across the country.

According to Sky News, trains around the nation were at a standstill and officials at the Eiffel Tower have issued a warning to visitors to stay away due to protests over the government’s retirement reform.

In Paris alone, over 6,000 police officers were ready to handle massive demonstrations scheduled for Thursday. The high number of protests around the nation have resulted in subway stations being shuttered.

France’s state-owned railway company announced that nine out of every 10 high-speed trains have been canceled, and officials from Air France revealed that around 30 percent of domestic flights have also been canceled.

Other carriers, including Easyjet, British Airways and Ryanair, have also opted to cancel many of their flights to and from France, while there are no tickets available on Eurostar trains until Tuesday.

With several major monuments in Paris and beyond closed ahead of the planned strikes, tourism officials in France said many travelers have started canceling their visits to the area. Railway and airport workers are among those joining the industrial action, which threatens to paralyze France for days.

In addition, the Louvre Museum said its opening on Thursday might be delayed and some of its rooms may be closed.