Ashley McDermott
In France, the debate on childfree hotels, restaurants, campsites and resorts is coming to a head.
Children eating at a restaurant in Vezelay, France. Doug Pollard. CC BY-NC-SA 2.0
Are childfree establishments discriminatory? This question is at the forefront of French politics amid calls for a parliamentary debate on a proposed ban on childfree establishments.
Those opposed to childfree establishments, such as Socialist senator Laurence Rossignol, argue that the businesses are "institutionalizing intolerance" and are "fundamentally anti-humanity." She says, “We can’t organise society by separating children off from ourselves in the same way some establishments don’t take dogs. Children aren’t troublesome pets.”. Supporters of the ban worry that France, once thought to be one of the most family-friendly destinations in Europe, is becoming increasingly anti-child, citing the growing popularity of childfree venues in the country, a trend some say is growing in the post-Covid era.
To promote establishments seen as welcoming to families, the High Commissioner for Children, Sarah El Hairy, unveiled a program to mark establishments that were welcoming to families with a "Family Choice" label. The program solicits recommendations from families and awards the selected establishments red stickers, which feature the image of a stroller and the phrase, "Le Choix Des Familles 2025" (The Choice of Families 2025), to be placed in their windows. The government's press release regarding the program states that it is a move intended "to give children back their place in our society."
The anti-childfree position is in line with President Emmanuel Macron's pro-natalist "demographic rearmament," a series of policies aimed at increasing the birth rate in France by offering better parental leave and decreasing infertility rates. Changes to parental leave would potentially reduce the childcare burden, increase job retention and minimize career setbacks for women by offering better pay and allowing both parents to stay with their new child for six months. However, many have criticized the implications of policies combating infertility regarding women's bodily autonomy. "Women's bodies are not a weapon," says lawmaker Alexis Corbiere of the France Unbowed party.
Adults-only resorts and restaurants have been around for decades, especially in popular vacation spots, such as Mexico, Thailand and Greece. The primary trade union for the hospitality sector, UMIH, argues that in France, childfree hotels and resorts only comprise 3% to 5% of overall tourism, which is substantially less than in many other European countries.
Critics of the ban also suggest that businesses are merely trying to meet customer demands. Research demonstrates that those who visit childfree establishments do not seek them out because they dislike children. According to Vincent Lagarde, an associate professor of entrepreneurship and business at the University of Limoges, top reasons to choose a childfree venue include the need to rest, having a "romantic getaway" or because childfree resorts tend to be perceived as more luxurious.
Ashley McDermott
Ashley is a PhD candidate in Linguistic Anthropology at the University of Michigan. She is committed to making her research useful for the communities she works with. Her work explores how families navigate language use and language shift in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. When she’s not working on her research, you’ll find her adventuring with her toddler daughter, whose commentary keeps every day interesting.