BRADENTON – Local tourism is on the increase, according to Ann Wittine, of Tampa-based Research Data Services, who gave a report on Oct. 18 to the Manatee County Tourist Development Council (TDC).
The bi-monthly report outlines dozens of statistics that give county tourism officials an overview of visitor sentiment, length of stay, number of visitors, places likely to visit and more vital information.
Airline passenger data from the Transportation Security Administration from 2019 to present shows that patterns have nearly returned to pre-COVID levels, according to Wittine.
“Even with red tide, and even with (COVID-19) case numbers rising, we’re seeing a normal pattern. As case numbers drop, we see the number of people traveling through U.S. airports also going up,” she said.
The number of passengers passing through Sarasota Bradenton International Airport is higher than any other airport in Florida month over month, she said.
August visitation was up 12%, room nights were up 7% and the economic impact was up 17.1% from $43,613,000 to $51,051,700, according to Wittine. Those numbers are increases over 2019, which was prior to COVID-19.
The annual economic impact from 2020 to 2021 is up 38.5% from $867,630,800 to $1,201,878,400.
Wittine’s report shows that while August visitors from Florida were down 11.1% from last year, visitors from the northeast were up an impressive 113%. With Canada and much of Europe recently easing travel restrictions, it’s likely the flat numbers from those regions will rise significantly, she said.
Traveler sentiment
With each bi-monthly report, Research Data Services conducts a traveler sentiment survey that asks potential travelers from around the world questions about concerns related to travel to Anna Maria Island and other Manatee County destinations.
When asked what one word would best describe their feelings about travel right now, only 28% of respondents used a positive word. This number is the same as last month, so no change was recorded.
People surveyed were a little less confident about the economy, personal health and personal finances compared to September, but not by a significant amount. The number of green light travelers was at 48.9%, which is not a significant change from recent months. Green light travelers are those surveyed who are ready and willing to travel at this time. The red light travelers (people who are not willing to travel) are the same as last month at 25.1% and the number that has currently booked vacations stays virtually unchanged at 34.1%.
The survey also asked a question for the first time: “Are things back to normal?” The survey shows that 39% of people think conditions are back to normal.
