(The Center Square) — A report released this week by VISIT FLORIDA, the state’s tourism agency, says out-of-state visitors spent a record $131 billion in the state last year, up 5% from 2022.
That’s a nearly 52.2% increase from 2016, when visitor spending added up to $86.1 billion, according to the report by West Chester, Penn.-based Rockport Analytics, LLC.
Tourism revenues hit an eight-year low in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic at $63.7 billion.
Visitor spending was primarily on lodging (28%), up 8% from last year. Food and beverage accounted for 26%, while transportation accounted for 19%, shopping and retail for 14% and entertainment at 12%.
According to the report, 145.3 million visitors contributed $36.9 billion in local, state and federal tax revenue.
The number of visitors in 2023, 145.3 million, was up 0.2% compared to 2022 and up 35.7% from 2015, when 107.1 million tourists came to Florida.
International visitation continues to rebound from a low of 4.3 million in 2020, improving to 11.5 million in 2023. The numbers still haven’t reached the high-water mark of 2015, when 15.3 million visitors came from overseas.
“Florida can’t be beat,” Gov. Ron DeSantis said in a news release. “I’m proud of this new record set for the state. Everyone loves the free state of Florida.”
According to the report, tourism generated $127.7 billion in economic impact in 2023, a 5% increase compared to 2022.
The report says for every dollar spent by a tourist, the state’s economy kept 97 cents, with 58 cents going to worker salaries and 13 cents collected as state and local taxes.
Daily tourism spending averaged $359 million, while the industry was responsible for 9.5% of jobs in Florida, with the industry supporting 2.1 million jobs (up 3.8% compared to 2022) and providing $76.4 billion in wages and salaries. That adds up to one out of every seven private sector jobs in the Sunshine State.
The report also said tourism helped Floridians save $1,910 taxes per household.
The report used the methodology of visitor volume from several sources along with data from the Florida Department of Commerce, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the Bureau of Economic Analysis. The report also examined tax receipts from the Florida Department of Revenue and other sources as well.
