Spring break journey up regardless of TSA slowdown, gasoline costs

Despite spiking gasoline costs and busier-than-normal airports, spring break tourism within the larger Tampa Bay area is up from final yr and approaching 2024 figures.

Visit St. Pete-Clearwater tasks resort income in March and April to be 23% larger than final yr.

Ahead of spring break, customer numbers had been up by 18% in Jan. and about 6% in Feb. from final yr.

During a meeting of the Pinellas County Tourist Development Council final week, VisitSPC director of information and digital Eddie Kirsch defined that this yr’s statistics may very well be just like 2024’s numbers – however there’s nonetheless room for enchancment.

“The hotel revenue sample is very close to fiscal year 2024 in March, and it’s above the previous two years in April, May and June,” he stated. “As we note that the booking window has shortened, there’s still some opportunities that those numbers could actually be a little bit above the previous two years when we’re looking at this in the rear view.”

But officers stated income numbers are combined throughout the county.

Tampa Bay Beaches Chamber of Commerce CEO Charlie Justice stated a few of that has to do with some Pinellas County accommodations nonetheless being closed following 2024’s hurricanes.

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“If you go to the north beaches, Clearwater Beach is up, downtown St. Pete proper is up,” he stated. “But you get on to our south beaches, and the total numbers are down considerably because we still have a significant number of properties that are are not fully back or not back at all.”

The native surge is regardless of journey points elsewhere.

At airports like Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta and George Bush Intercontinental in Houston, Transportation Security Administration wait instances have soared amid a authorities standoff that has left employees unpaid for a full paycheck interval.

“I think some of the shutdown news stories were towards the tail end of our peak, so there was a delay in that,” Justice stated. “And if you’re at the airport, you’re coming. So I think some people just hunker down and get through it.”

Soaring gasoline costs have additionally factored in folks’s spring break journey plans.

But to Justice, as a lot as that may harm in-state tourism, it will also be helpful.

“I don’t think you can say it won’t have an impact,” he stated. “On the other hand, someone who lives in Gainesville, if they were thinking about driving to Miami or further out of state, maybe they change their mind and drive just over here to St. Pete Beach and Clearwater Beach, so maybe we benefit from that part of it.”

Beyond spring break, VisitSPC officers anticipate journey figures will proceed to enhance over final yr.