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Tourism drops for first time since '01

In-state visits and travel from Canada rose in comparison to 2006.

By Steve Huettel, Times Staff Writer
Published February 23, 2008

Slightly fewer tourists traveled to Florida in 2007, the first year-to-year decline since 2001, the state's tourism marketing agency said Friday.

Florida attracted 82.4-million visitors last year, down 1.5-million, or 1.8 percent, from 2006, according to preliminary estimates by Visit Florida. The number of tourists driving to the Sunshine State was off 5.5 percent, while the number flying rose 2 percent.

"Trends suggest that some vacationers traveling by auto may be staying closer to home," said Bud Nocera, chief executive of Visit Florida. He pointed to a AAA survey in January in which 34 percent of members said they would consider a vacation near home if gasoline prices reached $3.25 per gallon. On Friday, average gas prices in Tampa Bay and statewide hit record highs and are expected to continue to rise.

Other reasons could have influenced their travel decisions as well, Nocera said, from fears about the economy to competition from other destinations.

Numbers from the fourth quarter won't be final for 45 days. But they indicate the last three months of 2007, when predictions of a possible recession intensified, was the weakest period of the year. Visitation was down 3.2 percent and drive traffic was off 8.3 percent from the year earlier.

There was some good news. Visits by Canadians were up 10 percent in 2007, driven by the weaker U.S. dollar. Also, Floridians took nearly 14-million leisure trips in the state, 7.3 percent more than in 2006.

"The fact of the matter is that 2006 was a record year," said Nocera. "Now (for 2007), we're saying 82.4-million. That's still really good."

Through the years
Tourism to Florida falls for the first time in six years.
Year    Total visitors    Percent change
2001   69.5-million    -4.5 percent
2002   73.9-million    4.4 percent
2003   74.3-million    0.9 percent
2004   79.4-million    6.9 percent
2005   83.6-million    5.3 percent
2006   83.9-million    0.4 percent
2007* 82.4-million    -1.8 percent
* 2007 total is preliminary
Source: Visit Florida

Steve Huettel can be reached at huettel@sptimes.com or (813) 226-3834  

[Last modified February 22, 2008, 22:54:12]