Sunshine Matters

As we wrap up what is likely to be a fifth consecutive record year for the Florida tourism industry, I would especially like to thank those who serve on VISIT FLORIDA’s Board of Directors and our various committees for their passionate leadership.  The strength of our organization and the success of our marketing initiatives are directly correlated to the active and engaged participation of our industry Partners.  Nowhere was that more apparent than earlier this month when more than 200 industry leaders participated in the VISIT FLORIDA Tourism Leadership Summit to help set the course for 2016 and beyond. Continue reading »

Today Governor Rick Scott released his 2016-17 “Florida First” budget.  I am happy to share that the Governor recommended an $80 million investment in VISIT FLORIDA.  With this funding, VISIT FLORIDA will focus on continuing to create successful integrated global marketing efforts that maximize the economic impact of travel and tourism to Florida. Continue reading »

I am pleased to share that today Governor Rick Scott announced Florida set another record in tourism by welcoming the highest amount of visitors of any nine months in the state’s history with 79.1 million visitors, according to VISIT FLORIDA.  This record amount of visitors represents a 5.5 percent increase over the previous year.  In the third quarter of 2015 (July-September), 25.5 million visitors came to the state, an increase of 6.8 percent over 2014 and Florida’s largest third quarter for visitation ever.  The average number of direct travel-related jobs in quarter three was also a record high, with 1,195,400 Floridians employed in the tourism industry – up 5.2 percent over the same period last year. Continue reading »

VISIT FLORIDA and twenty-two partners – including Florida DMO/CVBs, attractions and hoteliers – embarked on the first ever Digital Education Roadshow last week in Silicon Valley and San Fransciso.  For three days, staff and Partners met with key travel and tourism leaders at Google, Adara, Facebook, Airbnb, Twitter and TripAdvisor where they learned how to leverage each digital company or social platform for their own digital needs, while also being privy to up and coming trends and insights. Continue reading »

The VISIT FLORIDA Board of Directors set the bar high with the new 2020 Strategic Plan.  This new direction requires a new mindset that projects who we aspire to be as individual employees, as teammates and as a company.  After two months of gathering input from all levels of VISIT FLORIDA’s staff, the following three corporate values now serve as the foundation for our team and how we do business.  They guide our actions and inspire us to be better every day. Continue reading »