Saint-Louis agglo integrates professionals into its tourist attraction agency – Le Journal des Entreprises

In the shadow of the agglomeration of Basel and a stone’s throw from the rich German Baden-Württemberg, Saint-Louis agglomeration (SLA), in the Haut-Rhin, is ready to play its tourist “joker” card. At the end of 2022, the intermunicipality (40 municipalities, 80,000 inhabitants) set up a Tourist Attractiveness Agency (AAT). The new body should make it possible to develop the visibility of the territory and to structure its tourist offer.

Extend stays

“We are positioned on short-term tourism linked to the attractiveness of Basel. Our objective is for tourists to spend a longer stay in the Three Borders region. The Tourist Attractiveness Agency increases the skills of the ‘Tourist office to pick up these tourists, through territorial marketing and a multi-year strategy,’ explains Max Delmond, community advisor in charge of tourism. In 2022, 334,474 overnight stays were recorded in the territory (268,291 in 2021, a year marked by the effects of the health crisis), for 2,618 beds in 193 accommodations, including 16 hotels.

In addition to representatives of communities, institutions and tourism sectors and activities, the AAT has the particularity of hosting a college of six economic players, including at least two professional accommodation providers. “Political and economic times are different. A company needs the political framework, and politics needs the calendar of companies, which react faster”, pleads Max Delmond.

Cross-border mobility

The preparatory phase of the approach, launched in 2021, largely financed by the European Leader fund, resulted in the identification of four axes to be structured and developed, corresponding to the strengths of the territory, which guide the plan. of development: cycle tourism, boatingrural tourism and local urban and cultural offerings.

The actions are ranked by degree of priority, over three years. At the end of 2023, a website, a map and a video will be effective. Marketing actions will be gradually extended, from Alsace to destinations accessible in two to three hours by train, by 2025. A reflection on a cross-border tourist mobility offer is also underway.