The season is open: in the wake of Brad Pitt, the Americans are back in Saint-Tropez and the Var

“When the traffic jams start again at the entrance to Saint-Tropez, it means that the season has started. » This reflection from a resident sums up well the start of the season, which starts early this year. “Usually, it is the big bridges in May that mark the launch. With the mild temperatures, we got a little head start. So much the better,” confides a trader.

Indeed, generous sun and calm sea: Saint-Tropez (Var) has everything to attract an early clientele like Sandra, Benoît and their son, escaped from their native Haute-Savoie for a few days of vacation in the South: “We always avoid Saint-Tropez in the summer because there are too many people. In spring, it is ideal. All businesses have reopened and people are accessible. It’s family-friendly, nice and not yet bling-bling,” they confide, sitting at the snack bar of Club 55, the legendary place where Brigitte Bardot came in her youth.

“For the Easter holidays, the hotels were full. Restaurants, a little less. Visitors prefer to buy a sandwich and take a walk or picnic on the beach. No more big lunch tables, notes Christiane Thibault, representative of independent hotel and catering industries for the South region. But the question this year is: will the price of gasoline influence reservations? »

“No,” replied François de Canson, vice-president of the Region in charge of attractiveness and tourism. We must remain cautious but we see that the European clientele is there and the local clientele, who wish to limit their travel because of the cost of fuel, too. » In Saint-Tropez, everything is being prepared for the “great tourist migration”. The tourist office has moved to larger premises on the port. Ready to “absorb” the 150,000 tourists who cross its threshold each year in search of good deals.

The “chefs” will take over the Place des Lices

This year, a general public event should officially launch the season on May 2: “Chefs celebrate producers”. It’s all there: culinary traditions, outdoor tastings and fresh rosé for everyone! On the famous Place des Lices, knives, spatulas and cooking pots will replace pétanque balls to discover the flavors of Provence, worked by gastronomic aces.

Then, it will be the big rush until September. Each year, Var, the leading tourist department in France, exceeds 80 million overnight stays on site. It’s more than Paris. And the small villages in the hinterland are also popular, like Cotignac (where Joe Dassin lived), which is today nicknamed the “Little Saint-Tropez of green Provence. » Just an hour’s drive from the rowdier Saint-Tropez.

Brad Pitt, who owns an estate in the region, passed through and brought in his wake the arrival of hundreds of Americans, seduced by the authentic touch of this village. This is the current trend: the massive return of Anglo-Saxons who had deserted the French Riviera after Covid. “Their basket today is 150 euros per day and per person compared to 85 euros for other tourists, particularly French,” according to specialists. All the spotlights are therefore focused on the South, in particular the Gulf of Saint-Tropez, where one of the most watched series in the world is currently being filmed: White Lotus. An unexpected publicity stunt to speed up reservations before summer.