TAMPA, Fla — It probably comes as no surprise that tourism is down drastically this year due to COVID-19.
On Wednesday, Hillsborough County Commissioners had to delay a sobering report of just how dire the situation is, but the CEO of Visit Tampa Bay shared some numbers which, as disheartening as they may appear, are still better than what they are facing in other regions.
Tampa’s top tourism workers say hotel occupancy was down 53 percent in the fourth quarter, even with hotel rates down nearly 28 percent. Revenues were off by a staggering 66 percent.
“It’s a difficult number to look at and it’s even more difficult when you attach the lives that it has impacted,” Visit Tampa Bay CEO Santiago Corrada said. “And, I’ve got to tell you, being at 50 percent occupancy in about 50 percent revenue, we’ve got a ways to go, but we’re actually in a better position than some other destinations throughout the US and Florida.”
The numbers matter, not only because of jobs and businesses lost to the pandemic, but also tax dollars.
In a normal month, Visit Tampa Bay says Hillsborough County brings in nearly $3 million in bed taxes which help pay for all sorts of county services all of us depend on. That’s just a fraction of what tourists spend once they’re here.
Historically, to offset those losses, either taxes go up or services suffer.
“When they buy something while they’re here there’s an added tax for education. There’s an added tax for transportation,” Corrada said. “There’s a sales tax. All of those taxes support other things that we enjoy where we live in our community.”
One bright spot, the Super Bowl will be here in ten weeks, but with far fewer people, hotel stays, and restaurant visits than anticipated a few months ago.
The county gave Visit Tampa Bay more money for targeted advertising in markets that can travel to Florida-- and that appears to be working. Corrada says for each dollar spent they’ve seen a return of $28 spent on hotel stays.
“When we are monitoring states that are locking down or putting in quarantine measures then we are able to pause marketing there until they’re ready again and then restart,” he said.
Tourism experts say we need to concentrate on a plan going forward to bring back the lucrative events, meetings and conventions that helped put money in the county’s coffers before COVID-19. They also recommend positioning our area to snap back faster as a vaccine becomes available and people regain confidence.
Visit Tampa Bay says it plans to spend nearly four times as much in marketing the Tampa Bay region over the next 10 months. Not just nationally, but internationally as well.
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