“The first in the water wins! » Hardly had the siren announcing the start of the waves in the main pool sounded than Adam, 7, was already splashing around in the pool with the other children. “It’s the best day of the year “, he shouts, hoping his mother, Fatiah, hears him. In Aquaboulevard, in the 15e district of Paris, floats an air of holidays, this weekend of July 16. Outside, far from the din and the whistles of the lifeguards, it is difficult to find more than 2 free square meters to put down your towel.
Ile-de-France residents stormed the park. In the grass, on the deckchairs or with their feet in the sand, the adults bask in the sun while the youngest lengthen the queues for the slides. It’s hard to choose between the trampoline, the wave pool and jumping on the vine: the children run from attraction to attraction, excited at the idea of testing everything. A parenthesis for those who cannot afford to go on vacation: 46% of French people could not afford it in 2021, according to figures of the Research Center for the Study and Observation of Living Conditions.
In 2022, between the drop in purchasing power, the explosion in fuel prices and the surge from those of train or plane tickets, households on a tight budget have had to review their plans. “After two years of Covid-19, there is a very strong desire to go on vacation. The inflation that affects France has not broken it, but has reshaped it: we leave less far, less time and on the spot, we consume less”, analyzes Jean Viard, sociologist and director of research at the CNRS. Amir, a 24-year-old active young man who came to spend the day at the water’s edge with his friends, has changed his program for this summer.
“It is out of the question that my children do not benefit”
“I would have liked to go to Egypt, but I should have spent at least 2,000 euros. I will try to leave anyway, but in France and in September,” he details. Others were forced to abandon their plans. “We used to go to Morocco every two years to see our family. This summer, we will not go. It takes an average of 500 euros per person round trip and there are five of us, not counting the costs on site, ” sorry Fatiah. Even without travel “it is out of the question that my children do not take advantage of their two summer months”, she confides.
One in three young people does not go away in the summer, according to Secours Populaire. “Holidays are essential for their development: it allows them to open up to the world, to find self-confidence, to confront others. Not leaving means losing an enormous vector of sociability », explains Joëlle Bottalico, deputy director general of the association. But with a salary that does not exceed the minimum wage (1,302.64 euros net per month), Fatiah had to adapt. Accompanied by her friend Rachida, this carer came from Clichy (Hauts-de-Seine) for a day to allow the five children to cut off from daily life..
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