Rioting in France prompts alerts

AS France’s worst rioting in decades spread from the suburbs of Paris to scores of towns last week, the governments of several Western countries urged travelers to exercise caution.

But central Paris, home to the Eiffel Tower and other tourist sites, appeared to be unaffected, and the governments of the U.S., Britain, Canada and several other nations stopped short of warning against travel to France.

Leon Bertrand, the French tourism minister, in an interview last week with the Associated Press, said the international media was exaggerating the violence.

“You get the impression that France is awash with flames and blood, which is not at all the case,” he said, noting that “the places affected -- and affected only at night -- are not those frequented by tourists.”

The rioting, sparked by the deaths of two teenagers electrocuted while hiding from police in a power substation, started Oct. 27 in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, where many poor Arab and African immigrants live. It soon spread to Toulouse, Nice, Marseilles and many other cities.

French President Jacques Chirac on Tuesday declared a 12-day state of emergency, allowing the imposition of curfews on riot-torn areas, the closing of public spaces and other measures.

The U.S. State Department, in a public announcement Monday on its website, www.travel.state.gov, suggested that visitors take buses or taxis between Charles de Gaulle airport and downtown Paris because the train on that route “runs through an affected area and has occasionally been disrupted.”

The announcement also urged travelers to monitor news reports, avoid areas where riots have occurred and “exercise particular caution during evening and nighttime hours.”

Britain and Canada posted online updates, at www.fco.gov.uk and www.voyage.gc.ca, urging travelers to avoid riot areas and to use caution.

In the Paris area, early last week the unrest appeared localized. In this regard, some tour operators compared it to the Los Angeles riots of 1992.

In a telephone interview Monday from Paris, Beverly Biggerstaff, wife of John Biggerstaff, president of France Vacations, a Chatsworth-based budget tour operator, said she walked late Sunday night with her husband across central Paris, from Gare du Nord (a major train station) to the Luxembourg Gardens.

“Everyone was out and about,” she said. “It was business as normal. If you did not turn on French TV, you wouldn’t have a clue what was going on.”

France Vacations fielded inquires from worried clients and processed a few cancellations, sales manager Lisa Boyadjian said Monday. The company had about 300 tour-goers in Paris at the time.

Grand Circle Travel, a Boston-based tour operator that markets to older travelers, had about 150 clients in France last week, said Mark Frevert, executive vice president. “Nobody wants to come home.”

Grand Circle, which sends about 6,000 travelers to France each year, had logged a handful of cancellations for trips there by Tuesday, of which “maybe a couple” were due to the riots, Frevert added.

Several big tour operators, includeing Tauck World Discovery in Norwalk, Conn.; Globus, Cosmos and Monograms in Littleton, Colo.; and Brendan Worldwide Vacations in Chatsworth reported little effect because they are nearing the end of their peak travel season to France.

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Times wire services contributed to this report.