NEW YORK, June 13 (Reuters) - Luxury travel agencies in

the United States are so far seeing lackluster demand for the

Paris Olympics, as wealthier travelers instead opt for nearby

destinations in Europe.

Olympic hosts often see a boom in visitors, but travel

agents say the bookings for the July 26-Aug. 11 Olympics in

Paris are from more modest travelers. European luxury retailers

LVMH and Cartier have already said they're banking on more

business outside of France from rich travelers avoiding Paris

during the games.

As of late May, the U.S. is the origin market with the most

tickets issued for arrivals to Paris during the games, according

to Valencia, Spain-based Forward Keys, a flight ticketing data

firm. Tickets from the U.S. to Paris are on track to increase

37% year-over-year compared with the same period in 2023.

"We are definitely seeing people go to Paris," said luxury

travel agency Virtuoso spokesperson Misty Belles. "But is it as

robust as it could be? I can't say that it is."

Virtuoso's summer travel bookings for Paris are up 172%

year-over-year, but bookings for France as a whole are down 22%

from the year-earlier period. Their clients are flocking to

nearby Spain and the UK instead, where summer bookings are up

44% and 10%, respectively, from 2023.

Miami-based luxury travel concierge The Prelude said it has

received inquiries about Olympics tickets and packages but the

bookings aren't coming yet.

"Given the nature of the clients we deal with and the

Olympics not being until July, I expect we will start getting a

lot more requests closer towards mid to the end of June," said

Stefan Di-Finizio, founder of The Prelude.

The ultra-wealthy are not planning this far out, which is

reflected in hotel availability at top properties, including the

Four Seasons, he said. The Four Seasons Hotel George V in Paris

declined a request for comment.

However, Accor Group CEO Sebastien Bazin told an

audience at a New York industry conference in early June that

hotel bookings for the Olympics are not "extraordinary".

"In Paris, you are going to have a solid 85% occupancy but

it's not that different from the year before without the

Olympics... it's not going to be as extraordinary as we would

have expected," he said.

Hotel occupancy for luxury and upper upscale hotels in

August is expected to increase 9.1% from the year earlier,

according to CoStar, a commercial real estate data firm, as 11

days of games are scheduled during that time. Room rates are

expected to rise 73% in the same period.

CoStar forecasts July's occupancy will fall 0.5% from the

year prior.