Monthly Tourist Development Council Report to the Industry (07/10/2009)
July 10, 2009
May 2009 statistics
The Beaches of Fort Myers & Sanibel hosted nearly 400,000 visitors during May 2009, down somewhat from May 2008 (-5.4 percent). Just under half of visitors stayed in paid accommodations while the remainder stayed with friends/relatives. The majority of those visitors who stayed in paid accommodations were from within the United States. May 2009 saw modest declines in average occupancy rates, ADR and RevPAR among Lee County properties year-over-year.

May 2009 Occupancy Summary

May 2009 Visitor Origins

Resort tax collection report
The resort tax collection for May 2009 was $1,250,983, a 16 percent decrease from May 2008. Year to date, the tax collection has decreased 7.3 percent, which is consistent with projections. Lee County is holding its own compared to other areas of the state, finishing in the middle of the pack for May compared to other county tourist tax collections.

Airport news
During May, 524,520 passengers traveled through Southwest Florida International Airport (RSW), a decrease of 8.9 percent compared to May 2008. Year to date, passenger traffic is down 3.6 percent. The traffic leader in May was Southwest Airline with 75,634 passengers traveling to and from Fort Myers, followed by AirTran (74,995), Delta Airlines (69,221), US Airways (63,333) and Continental (55,223).

New member joins TDC
The Lee County Board of County Commissioners has appointed Sanibel Island Vice Mayor Kevin B. Ruane to the TDC, and he participated in his first meeting today. Ruane has served on the Sanibel City Council since 2007. He and his family permanently relocated to Sanibel Island in 2004 from New Jersey after vacationing to the area for 14 years. Throughout his professional career, he held various senior executive positions at Crum & Foster, a “Fortune 100” company, as well as running his family’s accounting firm.

In addition, TDC members Roxie Smith, Colleen DePasquale and Fran Myers have been reappointed to the council.

TDC approves beach and shoreline projects and attractions funding
The TDC today approved and recommends to the Lee County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) $4,566,306 in funding requests for 15 beach and shoreline capital improvement projects throughout Lee County. The TDC also approved and recommends to the BOCC funding requests from the Southwest Florida Community Foundation, Edison & Ford Winter Estates and Fort Myers Conference and Convention Council. The $225,000 in funding for the Southwest Florida Community Foundation will support 35 arts attractions programs throughout Lee County. The approved funding for the Edison & Ford Winter Estates and Fort Myers Conference and Convention Council each totaled $50,000.

Travel packages increasingly important in tourism marketing
More than ever before, consumers are increasingly searching for and taking advantage of special packages in making travel plans, and now is the time for the Lee County travel market to take advantage of the trend, according to Jennifer Simmons of bvk, who presented the results of market research on travel packages to the TDC today. The competition for special packages is significant and is likely to increase, yet travel packages marketed by destination marketing organizations have a significant advantage because they offer unique knowledge and local insight. Nurturing relationships with consumers through databases and social marketing is important, as is ensuring the travel packages are consistent with the destination’s brand. Cost and convenience are the two most common reasons travelers turn to travel packages. Important lessons can be learned by studying companies who have mastered special packaging, including Amazon, Travelocity, Expedia, Cirque du Soleil and Disney.

TDC approves VCB’s FY2009/2010 budget
The TDC voted to approve the VCB’s proposed FY2009/2010 operating budget, totaling $11.7 million. The budget represents a 0.2 percent increase over FY2008/2009 and includes additional funds for marketing promotions. Now the proposal will go to the BOCC for its approval.

Next TDC Meeting
The TDC will not meet in August. The next TDC meeting is scheduled for Friday, Sept. 11, at the VCB office, located at 12800 University Drive, Suite 325. Please park on the top level of the parking garage. To view a complete tax collections report, go to www.LeeVCB.com. Contact: Suya Davenport at SDavenport@leegov.com, Lee County VCB, (239) 338-3500.