Sunshine Matters

The end of VISIT FLORIDA’s 2014-2015 fiscal year on June 30 also marked the end of our successful year one partnership with the Original Florida Tourism Task Force.

The Original Florida Tourism Task Force, doing business as Natural North Florida, represents the North Central Florida Rural Area of Opportunity for VISIT FLORIDA in the promotion of the region to tourists. Comprised of 16 northern rural counties, the Task Force promotes and drives tourism and visitation to this off-the-beaten-path region of the Sunshine State.  As part of VISIT FLORIDA’s objectives, we want visitors to venture out and experience the diversity of the state and all the hidden gems it has to offer.

To drive visitor awareness, VISIT FLORIDA’s partnership allows the Task Force to attend consumer roadshows, selling the region’s nature-based products to individual consumers and trade professionals.  During the 2014-2015 fiscal year, representatives of the Task Force attended six out-of-state travel adventure shows and one international travel trade/consumer show.  They even attended consumer shows that VISIT FLORIDA was unable to attend.

The Task Force promoted the entire Florida product by setting up a booth designed by VISIT FLORIDA to help push our brand and distribute collateral material such as the Florida State Parks Guide.  They met with more than 305,000 attendees and distributed more than 13,000 guides and brochures.

The Original Florida Task Force immediately saw group bookings from the events they attended.  Results show that some of their counties had the busiest Spring ever, with an 8.5% increase in bed tax for January to March, which is on par with state trends.

To learn more about the group, visit NaturalNorthFlorida.com.