PETER CRANIS: Economic Impact of Tourism on Brevard in 2023 Was $4.6 Billion, Visitor Spending $2.95 Billion

Florida saw 140.6 million visitors – a new record and a 2.3% growth over 2022

BREVARD COUNTY, FLORIDA – The State of Florida recently came out with their marketing plan for their FY 2024-25 year which runs from July to June. In it, there was some very interesting statistics I thought I would share about the state of the tourism industry in Florida.

It is not unlike what we have seen here on the Space Coast and sometimes it is useful to pull back and look at the macro numbers on a statewide basis.

First of all, the state saw 140.6 million visitors – a new record and a 2.3% growth over 2022. This total number of visitors was made up of 129.1 domestic visitors – an all time high – and 11.5 million international visitors which is down 16.9% from the high of 2019.

The state saw a tourism economic impact of $121.5 billion, creating 2 million tourism jobs, and saving every resident $1,840 in taxes. By the way, we have $4.6 billion in tourism economic impact just in our county. Also, Florida grew its market share among domestic travelers to 14.8%, a whole percent higher than the previous year. Florida’s share among overseas travelers was a respectable 25.2% and 15.5% among Canadian travelers.

From an air travel perspective, 56.2 million people traveled to Florida by air, an 8.6% increase from the prior year. Also, seat capacity to Florida was setting a record pace in the first 6 months of 2024 – up by 4.9 million seats, accounting for an 11.1% share of all domestic scheduled seat capacity. The new seats accounted for 22% of all new seat capacity nationwide.

Hotel demand declined by 2.6 million rooms or 2% and occupancy fell to 69.1% statewide while Average Daily Rate (ADR) was up slightly by .3% to $189. RevPar was down by 1.9% while hotel inventory stayed relatively flat, up only .1%. This was heavily driven by the inventory lost by Southwest Florida due to Hurricane Ian.

Guest nights at vacation rentals in Florida rose by 3% in 2023 compared to 2022, while combined guest nights booked through Airbnb and Vrbo increased by 4%. ADR softened somewhat by 7% to $291, driven by the 14% increase in supply and occupancy also dropped by 9% – resulting in a total drop in Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR) by 15% to $140.

Overall 2023 was a very strong year for the state, as it also was for us. Their marketing plan will continue to focus on key markets by promoting some of the lesser known areas of Florida and highlighting hiking and biking trails.

Visit Florida FY 2024-25 Marketing Plan

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION

– Peter Cranis, Space Coast Office of Tourism Executive Director

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