Sport and tourism - An Effective Cooperation: Canoeing and Mountaineering in France before the First World War

International audienceIn the second half of the nineteenth century, sport and tourism developed simultaneously under British inspiration. The models of the Alpine Club and the Touring Club set examples which were emulated in France, thus benefiting the development of physical activities and the planning of places of interest. While private commercial initiatives were only slowly emerging, the French Alpine Club and Canoe Club, effectively assisted by the Touring Club de France, promoted tourist expansion. This paper shows how the cooperation orchestrated between the sports and tourist societies played a driving role in the development of the tourist economy in France. To support this project, this case study uses the comparative analysis of two tourist areas: the banks of the River Marne, taken over by Parisian water sport enthusiasts, and the Dauphiné Alps, favoured by English mountai- neers as early as the 1860s. Comparing two different geographical areas and two different activities allows us to highlight the common process which accounts for the joint development of sports and tourist activities. Our analyses, which are based on a precise chronology and a detailed cartography, underline the progressive structuring of sports sites and development of tourist infrastructures needed to accommodate sportsmen and -women. This work is founded on an analysis of the archives and publications of the above-mentioned organizations. The tourist develop- ment of these areas is identified through cadastral maps and tourist guides