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Data and Trends
For the week ending April 6, 2024, the Orlando metro area hotel occupancy rate was 75.8%, down from 80.2% the previous week and down -2.4% from the same week last year. The average daily rate this week was $215.10, down from $230 the previous week and down -5.4% from the same period last year. Room night demand fell -1.6% from last year.
Among the top 25 markets, Orlando’s occupancy rate last week ranked sixth despite being down from last week and last year. This week’s report is the start of our comparisons to last year’s spring break period around Easter, which could be a factor in the year-over-year decline.
entire industry
Access Orlando leadership updates: Mike Waterman, Chief Sales Officer of Visit Orlando, will begin a new career as President and CEO of Visit Anaheim on April 29. Over the past four years, Mike has been dedicated to serving Visit Orlando and the Orange County community and has been instrumental in leading several major initiatives and bringing several impactful citywide initiatives to our destination. major events such as Vision Expo and HIMSS. Mario Bass, Visit Orlando’s chief operating officer, will also serve as interim chief sales officer, taking over the day-to-day responsibilities of leading these teams while we begin a nationwide search for our next chief sales officer. Prior to joining Visit Orlando, Mario served as Chief Sales Officer for Visit San Antonio. By combining his sales experience and deep understanding of the industry with the existing strong team, we aim to create the most seamless transition possible for the organization.
American brand Fred Dixon: Brand USA’s Board of Directors has selected Fred Dixon to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer of the Company, effective July 15, 2024. Dixon brings more than three decades of experience with a strong leadership background in the tourism industry, serving as President and CEO of NYC & Company + Conventions, New York City’s official destination marketing organization. read more.
Annual CVB: This week, Visit Orlando won the ConferenceDirect CVB of the Year (Major Market) Award at ConferenceDirect’s annual partner conference. This is the ninth time in ten years that Visit Orlando has received this honor. The award recognizes convention and visitors bureaus (CVBs) that excel in serving the convention and convention industry. The awards are presented by Conference Direct, a leading provider of event management services, and are based on feedback from meeting planners who have worked with CVB over the past year.
Around the destination
Destination Tourism Master Plan Town Hall: Visit Orlando is developing a ten-year Destination Tourism Master Plan to help shape the future of the community, boost the visitor economy and safeguard the well-being of the destination and residents. A key aspect of this measure is the valuable insights of Orange County residents. Next week, we will be holding town hall meetings in each of Orange County’s six commission districts. We hope you will consider attending and sharing it with your connections. Details include:
- a district: Monday, April 15th, Gotha Secondary School Canteen
- Zone 2: Wednesday, April 17, Apopka High School Media Center
- Zone 3: Thursday, April 18, Taft Community Center
- District 4: Tuesday, April 16, Timber Creek High Media Center
- District 5: Wednesday, April 17, Florida Technical College Orlando Campus Auditorium
- District Six: Tuesday 16 April, Dolphin Room, Barnett Park
County Board of Commissioners: Earlier this week, Orange County decided to postpone its transportation sales tax until 2026. Despite this, Orange County remains a great place for residents and visitors from around the world. It is vital that we continue to work together for the greater good of our destinations to achieve similar goals now and in the future.
Additionally, changes to the county’s tourism development plan were unanimously approved by the Tourism Development Commission last week and approved by the Board of County Commissioners in a 5-2 vote. The changes will allow Orange County to move forward with agreements to fund community projects and sites previously approved by the board in January. We appreciate Mayor Demings’ support and will continue to work with the County to negotiate an addendum to our funding agreement, with final details tentatively scheduled to be submitted to the BCC by the end of May.
We encourage you to watch the meeting here (right sidebar Section 27, Tourism Development Plan) because the discussion around the use of Tourism Development Tax funds continues to be a hot topic and we must demonstrate the value of our industry and visit Orlando.
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