Florida’s rebound as a tourist center continues, shaping up to be the strongest in four years. But an Associated Press story notes that visitors have changed dramatically since 2000:
- Today’s Florida visitors are more likely to drive then fly.
- Visitors are less likely to rent a car and have a foreign accent than they did in 2000.
- Tourists will spend fewer days in the state than they have in the past.
- Visitors are more likely to be here for leisure purposes rather than business.
- Visitors probably made their plans closer to their travel date than they did four years ago.
Another change is in how fly-in visitors arrive. Low-cost carriers a few years ago made up only about 7% of the flights coming into Florida, but they now represent nearly a quarter of arrivals, according to Bud Nocera, president and CEO of Visit Florida.
The upsurge in Florida tourism was evident in the theme parks which were so busy at Easter that they had to turn visitors away, according to the AP.
Report by David Wilkening
