SkiftStats: Florida's 2012 tourism numbers set a new state record
Skift Take
It was a banner year for Florida tourism in 2012, as an additional 2 million people enjoyed the Sunshine State, setting the tourism industry up for its second consecutive record year.
An estimated 89.3 million people came to Florida in 2012, up 2.3 percent compared with a year earlier, according to preliminary estimates released Monday by Visit Florida, the state's tourism marketing agency. That beat out the previous record -- 87.3 million -- set in 2011.
The state saw particularly large gains in overseas visitors, as well as Canadians. Approximately 10.2 million overseas visitors came to Florida last year, which was an increase of 9 percent compared with a year earlier. About 3.6 million Canadians visited the state, an increase of 7.3 percent from the prior year.
"Surpassing the 10 million overseas visitor mark for the first time ever is a significant milestone for Florida's tourism industry," said Glenn Hastings, Visit Florida's chairman and executive director of the St. Johns County Tourist Development Council. "With over 10 percent of all Canadians traveling to Florida last year, we are exceedingly grateful for the loyalty of our friends and family to the North."
The added tourists resulted in record jobs as well. Visit Florida said direct travel-related jobs in the state grew to 1,030,600.
Gov. Rick Scott praised the industry's record year Monday. His administration has pledged to increase Visit Florida's public funding to $75 million next year, which he said will "continue to support even more economic growth."
(c)2013 The Orlando Sentinel (Orlando, Fla.). Distributed by MCT Information Services. 
FULL NUMBERS FROM VISITFLORIDA
|
Calendar Year Visitor Numbers for 2012* |
||||
| Visitors | Percent of Total | Most Recent | Value | Change |
| Total Visitors |
100.0% |
January-December |
89.3 million | 2.3% |
| Air Visitors |
51.9% |
January-December |
46.4 million | 1.6% |
| Non-Air Visitors |
48.1% |
January-December |
42.9 million | 2.9% |
| *preliminary | ||||
|
Quarter Four Visitor Numbers for 2012* |
||||
| Visitors | Percent of Total | Most Recent | Value | Change |
| Total Visitors |
100.0% |
October-December |
21.4 million | 1.8% |
| Air Visitors |
54.4% |
October-December |
11.6 million | 1.9% |
| Non-Air Visitors |
45.6% |
October-December |
9.8 million | 1.6% |
| *preliminary | ||||
|
Quarter Three Visitor Numbers for 2012** |
||||
| Visitors | Percent of Total | Most Recent | Value | Change |
| Total Visitors |
100.0% |
July-September |
22.1 million | 4.5% |
| Air Visitors |
45.4% |
July-September |
10.1 million | 0.8% |
| Non-Air Visitors |
54.6% |
July-September |
12.1 million | 7.8% |
| *preliminary revised | ||||
|
Quarter Two Visitor Numbers for 2012** |
||||
| Visitors | Percent of Total | Most Recent | Value | Change |
| Total Visitors |
100.0% |
April-June |
22.0 million | 1.1% |
| Air Visitors |
52.6% |
April-June |
11.6 million | 0.3% |
| Non-Air Visitors |
47.4% |
April-June |
10.5 million | 2.0% |
| **preliminary revised | ||||
|
Quarter One Visitor Numbers for 2012** |
||||
| Visitors | Percent of Total | Most Recent | Value | Change |
| Total Visitors |
100.0% |
January-March |
23.7 million | 1.8% |
| Air Visitors |
55.2% |
January-March |
13.1 million | 3.3% |
| Non-Air Visitors |
44.8% |
January-March |
10.6 million | -0.1% |
| **preliminary revised | ||||
|
Calendar Year Visitor Numbers for 2011 |
||||
| Visitors | Percent of Total | Most Recent | Value | Change |
| Total Visitors |
100.0% |
January-December |
87.3 million | 6.1% |
| Air Visitors |
52.2% |
January-December |
45.6 million | 5.1% |
| Non-Air Visitors |
47.8% |
January-December |
41.7 million | 7.2% |
| **revised | ||||
|
Calendar Year Visitor Numbers for 2010** |
||||
| Visitors | Percent of Total | Most Recent | Value | Change |
| Total Visitors |
100.0% |
January-December |
82.3 million | 1.7% |
| Air Visitors |
52.7% |
January-December |
43.4 million | 4.5% |
| Non-Air Visitors |
47.3% |
January-December |
38.9 million | -1.2% |
| **revised | ||||
|
Historic Visitor Numbers (in millions) |
||||
|
Year |
Domestic |
Overseas |
Canadian |
Total |
|
2002 |
67.9 |
4.4 |
1.6 |
73.9 |
|
2003 |
68.7 |
4.2 |
1.7 |
74.6 |
|
2004 |
73.4 |
4.4 |
1.9 |
79.7 |
|
2005 |
77.2 |
4.4 |
2.0 |
83.6 |
|
2006 |
77.6 |
4.1 |
2.1 |
83.9 |
|
2007 |
77.3 |
4.7 |
2.5 |
84.5 |
|
2008 |
76.1 |
5.2 |
2.9 |
84.2 |
|
2009* |
71.2 |
7.0 |
2.6 |
80.9 |
|
2010 |
71.2 |
8.0 |
3.1 |
82.3 |
|
2011 |
74.7 |
9.3 |
3.3 |
87.3 |
|
2012** |
75.6 |
10.1 |
3.6 |
89.3 |
**Preliminary, subject to revision
*In 2009, VISIT FLORIDA changed its visitor estimation methodology; therefore, estimates made prior to that year are not directly comparable.
| Historic Economic Impact |
|
Total Tourism Spending (Tourism/Recreation Taxable Sales) 2002-2011: * Beginning in 2003, DOR revised this calculation to include 12 kind codes versus 14. |
|
Total State Sales Tax Revenues from Tourism 2002-2011: |
|
Number of Persons Directly Employed by Tourism Industry 2002-2011: |
Top Origin States - by Percentage of Total Domestic Visitors (2011):
|
Georgia |
10.6% |
Top International Markets by Number of Visitors (2011):
| Canada Brazil United Kingdom Mexico Argentina |
3.3 million 1.5 million 1.3 million 387,000 375,500 |
| *Preliminary, subject to revision |
Seasonality of Visitation to Florida by Quarter (2011):
| January to March (Quarter 1) April to June (Quarter 2) July to September (Quarter 3) October to December (Quarter 4) |
26.7% 25.0% 24.3% 24.1% |
Florida Travel Facts:
DOMESTIC VISITORS IN 20111
The major type of lodging used by domestic visitors was hotel/motel (54%).The average length of stay for a domestic visitor to Florida was 4.9 nights.
The top activities domestic visitors enjoyed while in Florida were shopping, beaches, touring/sightseeing, and going to a theme/amusement park.The top origin Designated Market Areas (DMAs) for total visitors to Florida were New York, Atlanta, and Chicago. Top origin DMAs for visitors who came to Florida by air were New York, Chicago, and Boston; for auto visitors to Florida, the top three origin DMAs were Atlanta, New York, and Chicago.
CANADIAN VISITORS IN 2011*2
The primary purpose for Canadians was Pleasure/Recreation/Holiday (82.1%).
The major type of lodging used by Canadian visitors was hotel (28.7%).
The average length of stay for Canadian visitors was 18.0 nights, but the median length of stay was 9.0 nights.
OVERSEAS VISITORS IN 2011*3
The primary trip purpose for overseas visitors was leisure/recreation/holiday (68.5%).
The major type of lodging used by overseas visitors was hotel/motel (75.7%).
The average length of stay for overseas visitors to Florida was 11.2 nights, while the median length of stay was of 8.0 nights.
Sources:
1 D.K. Shifflet and Associates; TNS TravelsAmerica, Travel Industry Association
2 Statistics Canada
3 U.S. Department of Commerce, ITA, Tourism Industries
4 Agency for Workforce Innovation
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