Florida’s Paradise Coast Sees Mixed Visitor Results

January produced 138,200 visitors traveling to Florida’s Paradise Coast, 29.9 percent traveling in-state. Hotel occupancy rates averaged at 61.2 percent. Visitor volume was at 149,100 in February, down 9.7 percent compared to February 2008.

Several bright spots in February’s report include a 6.5 percent increase in visitation by Florida residents and an increase of 5.5 percent by Europeans, which served to cushion the downward trend of traditional core segments.

Additionally, 31.1 percent of February visitors were in the destination for the first time. Southwest Florida International Airport January traffic is down 3.9 percent with a total of 732,851 passengers traveling through RSW. The top carriers were AirTran, Delta, Jet Blue, US Airways and Southwest.