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Old Man Winter, once again, has been kind to the Sunshine State.
So good that the state set records in several key tourism metrics in 2012. That's partially from a cold winter in the Northeast, Midwest and Canada, which drove more visitors to Florida, and in some cases, made them stay longer, say several tourism industry officials. The rebound in the economy is another factor in the surge.
“People are feeling a little more comfortable spending money again,” says Erin Duggan, communications director at Visit Sarasota County. “I think every area in the state is doing really well.”
Anecdotal evidence for that theory abounds on the Gulf Coast. Mark Davis, innkeeper and manager at the Harrington House Bed & Breakfast on Anna Maria Island in Manatee County, for example, says “our island is back.”
Davis, whose parents, Frank and Jo Davis, own Harrington House, says he expects 2013 will be another strong year, both at the property and in the region. In addition to an improving economy, Davis cites Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau marketing efforts for the increase.
Whatever the reason, from weather to increased consumer confidence, Florida overall certainly has its tourism mojo going. Some key statistics in the rebound include:
-Visitors to the state spent $71.8 billon last year, an annual all-time high mark. That figure is a 6.8% bump over 2011, which was the previous all-time high, at $67.2 billion, according to Visit Florida data.
-A total of 89.3 million people visited Florida in 2012, up 2.3% from the 87.3 million people in 2011. The 2012 tally is the all-time high for Florida tourists.
-Jobs directly related to the tourism and hospitality industry surpassed 1 million for the first time in 2012, Visit Florida reports, with a total of 1.03 million. Plus, leisure and tourism jobs are now the fastest-growing employment category in the state.
-There were 10.2 million visitors from foreign countries in 2012, up 9% from 2011. The total amount of Canadian visitors, meanwhile, also reached an annual record, with 3.6 million, a 7.3% increase over 2011.
-Florida visitors spent more than 500 million vacation nights in the state in 2012, Visit Florida President and CEO Will Seccombe says. That was part of the reason behind a statewide 6.9% increase in tourism and recreation-related taxable sales.
“While it's still very early in 2013,” Seccombe says in a statement regarding the increase in money spent, “all indications are that Visit Florida is well positioned to build on the previous two years' momentum as we strive to make Florida the No. 1 travel destination in the world.”
Here's a glance at how three Florida hotels did in 2012, and how each plans to continue the momentum in 2013.
Sheraton Sand Key Resort, Clearwater Beach
The hotel, on 10 acres in the center of Clearwater Beach, is off to a stellar start in 2013, says General Manager Russ Kimball.
“It's been a really good year,” says Kimball, who has been with the property since it opened in 1975. “We just had a three-month run of being almost full every night.”
Kimball says the hotel's best year was 2007. That was right before the tourism industry suffered a string of well-documented setbacks, from the AIG Effect in lost corporate bookings to the BP oil spill. “We're not quite at 2007,” Kimball says, “but we are pretty darn close.”
Kimball has seen two recent trends among guests at the 390-room resort. One is an uptick in overseas guests, especially from Germany and Scandinavia. The second new happening is an increase in group and convention business from Midwest firms. “A lot of those companies are businesses we've never seen before,” says Kimball, “so that speaks well to the economy.”
Sheraton Sand Key officials, to further boost business, are touting a recent award the hotel won from Senses, a Berlin-based trade group and magazine that ranks hotels worldwide. Kimball flew to Berlin in March for the ceremony, where the hotel was named Best Beach Resort. It was the first property in North America to win the award since 2009.
The hotel also has a newly renovated lobby and first-floor restaurant, a $1.7 million project that was completed in January. It's part of an ongoing strategy to continuously update the property. “I tell everyone that the only one who should look old around here,” quips Kimball, “is me.”
Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club
Jason Parsons, general manager of the Naples Beach Hotel & Golf Club, says renovations are the lifeblood of that property's business model, too.
“The competition in this town is so fierce,” says Parsons. “For us to be able to make it, we have to make changes every year.”
The latest changes at the property include a new ballroom, renovated meeting rooms and a complete renovation of a dozen guest rooms — a $5 million project in total. The ballroom, hotel officials say, has panoramic views of the Gulf of Mexico and is one of the only beachfront ballrooms in Naples.
The project, moreover, comes on top of $40 million the resort has spent on improvement projects over the last five years. The 317-room hotel, on 125 acres, includes 34,000 square feet of meeting space. It's owned and operated by the Watkins family, which consists of three generations of hoteliers.
Parsons is optimistic about 2013, though he maintains a healthy dose of anxiety. “It's refreshing to see things going in the right direction,” says Parsons, “but it wasn't a perfect season.”
The golf and spa units, for example, says Parsons, could do better. Says Parsons: “People still see that as extras.”
Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota
To get those extras, management at the Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota, use a word not usually synonymous with luxury: approachable.
But Brad Jenks, named general manager in late 2011, has led some changes, both small and big, that have begun to pay off. One big one: The hotel closed the Verona restaurant and replaced it with a new eatery, Jack Dusty - Coastal Cuisine & Crafted Cocktails. A $3.1 million project, Jack Dusty opened in January to big crowds. The idea was to build something that can attract local residents, not only hotel guests.
“This was a new build, not a renovation,” says Jenks. “It has been very well received.”
So well received that Jenks has already added employees to the staff, to keep up with the demand. The manager of the 236-seat seafood-themed restaurant, with indoor and outdoor seating, is Patrick Bucko, who formerly held leadership roles at several prominent local spots, including Euphemia Haye and Beach Bistro. The restaurant's chef de cuisine is Jeff Thomas, who worked for Bobby Flay at Mesa Grille, in addition to Beach Bistro.
The hotel side of the business is also doing well so far in the first quarter, says Jenks. He says the volume of total guests dropped slightly in March over March 2012, but year-over-year revenues increased, because of a rate change.
Jenks projects more growth at the hotel this year, in addition to about an 8% increase in the total amount of local visitors. “The market can be fragile,” Jenks says, “but it seems to be doing much, much better.”
Florida's wild and crazy goal: No. 1 in the world
Will Seccombe has the timing thing down just right in his new gig as president and CEO of Visit Florida, the statewide tourism marketing agency.
Example one came in January, just three months after Seccombe was promoted from chief marketing officer. That's when Florida Gov. Rick Scott proposed a $75 million boost in public funds to support statewide tourism marketing efforts. Scott's request, part of his 2013-2014 budget proposal, was a 39% increase over the last budget.
The extra funds, not yet finalized, indicate how much confidence Scott and other tourism leaders have in Seccombe. It's also an indication of how important growth in tourism is to the entire Florida economy.
Seccombe joined Tallahassee-based Visit Florida, a nonprofit public/private partnership, in 2008. Before that he spent 20 years in the Colorado tourism industry, with the Denver Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau and private firms. He was named Visit Florida president and CEO in November, when he replaced Chris Thompson, who left to head Brand USA.
“With Will as our new president and CEO, Visit Florida's future is in great hands,” Visit Florida Chairman Glenn Hastings says in a release that announced the promotion. “In his four years as CMO, Will's vision and drive to succeed have elevated the state's tourism marketing efforts to an unprecedented level and have put Visit Florida in a very strong position to pursue our vision of establishing Florida as the No. 1 travel destination in the world.”
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