Florida state tourism officials concede it’s been a rough go with the Omicron variant, but they’re optimistic that Canadians and other visitors will soon be heading south.
According to the News Service of Florida and the Tampa Bay Times, Visit Florida President and CEO Dana Young said Wednesday that her group continues to market the Sunshine State as a winter destination in the U.S., and that they’re not slowing international efforts.
Florida state economists last month slightly lowered expectations through the middle of 2022 for Canadian and overseas travellers, citing the Omicron variant as a potential brake on tourism growth.
Executive Committee member Dan Rowe, president and CEO of the Panama City Beach Convention and Visitors Bureau, said his organization has seen winter tourism numbers rise 25% to 40% higher than last year.
“I think you will see across the state that there will be an uptick in business from our friends from Canada, and also the Northeast and upper Midwest,” Rowe told the News Service of Florida.
Canada is the largest international market for Florida tourism. Three point six million Canadians visited the Sunshine State in 2019.
