News confirms La Reunion’s isolation. The opening by Emirates of a new air route linking Antananarivo international airport in Madagascar to Dubai airport in the United Arab Emirates is a major change for our region. From September 3, 4 flights a week are scheduled between the two capitals. A stopover is planned in the Seychelles.
4 times a week, a jumbo jet filled with high purchasing power passengers will land in our neighboring country. Madagascar joins Mauritius and the Seychelles as a destination served by Emirates. Every year, tens of millions of people pass through Dubai airport. They will now have direct access to the Big Island. Madagascar is targeting one million tourists. Emirates was sensitive to this argument.
Like Mauritius and Madagascar, our island officially relies on tourism to create jobs. On our island, public money is far more abundant than in Madagascar and Mauritius. Government subsidies and tax exemptions enable investors to make substantial profits. Public money is also used for training. The potential is therefore there in terms of human resources.

Paris decides who can enter La Réunion Island, not the Reunionese

But despite all this, La Reunion Island is not included in Emirates’ flight schedule. Madagascar and Mauritius are. The reason is simple. For Emirates, La Reunion is not a destination for tourists with high purchasing power. No wonder. Part of the explanation is the lack of tourist infrastructure to cater for this type of tourism. Its cause lies La Reunion’s integration into France. This integration has severed the links between La Réunion Island and its neighbors in the Indian Ocean and Africa. Paris decides who can and cannot enter La Reunion. The French administration imposes drastic conditions on potential tourists from countries outside the European Union. Europeans can enter without a visa and stay as long as they like. But our neighbors and non-EU nationals have to apply for a visa at a French consulate in their home country.
This entails considerable expense and waiting time. The visa may be refused at the discretion of the French consular authority: "insufficient guarantees". Fees are not refunded. This means that it is impossible for a tourist to purchase a visa on arrival in La Reunion simply by providing an address and a local contact. This can only scare off tourists with high purchasing power from Asia or Africa. Mauritius and Madagascar are right next door. These two countries are much more welcoming. Their tourist visas are issued on entry, with no need for an interview or proof of a minimum amount of money on hand or in the bank. It’s therefore logical that they prefer to spend their money in our two neighboring countries rather than in La Reunion Island.

Europeans find it cheaper than La Réunion elsewhere

Integration into France does not mean an influx of European tourists. The crisis in Europe is limiting purchasing power. Europeans are therefore turning to much less expensive destinations than La Reunion Island. The cost of air travel is the first obstacle. The second is a much higher cost of living than in France. As a result, the majority of outbound tourists are Reunionese returning to their families on vacation, or French nationals visiting friends. This financial contribution remains a minority compared to the primary clientele of La Reunion’s tourism professionals: residents.
As long as visa policy remains so restrictive, it will be very difficult to use tourism as a lever for La Reunion Island’s development. As a result, the effectiveness of substantial public subsidies will remain limited.

M.M.