Sunshine Matters

Florida communities have been busy in the week since Hurricane Matthew rolled up our East coast.  Several counties reported very serious damage from the storm, many areas were very fortunate to receive minimal damage and all of the state was impacted by the dramatic media coverage of the first major hurricane to hit the U.S. in a decade.  This week, I joined Carol Dover and her team with the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association to tour some of the areas of our state most impacted by the storm and to offer the assistance of the Florida tourism industry in their recovery efforts. Continue reading »

VISIT FLORIDA, in partnership with the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association, is proud to announce the launch of our new Online Hospitality Training Program.  After months of development and testing, we are excited to roll the program out to the hospitality and tourism industry. Continue reading »

VISIT FLORIDA, in partnership with the Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association (FRLA), has created an online training program for front-line employees in the hospitality and tourism industry.  Before rolling the program out to the industry, VISIT FLORIDA has selected 11 DMOs to participate in a trial.  We will monitor participation and industry feedback through the end of the fiscal year before opening the module to all counties and creating additional training modules. Continue reading »

Last night, the Florida Legislature passed the state budget which included a $10.5 million increase in VISIT FLORIDA funding for a record $74 million in FY 2014-15.  This allocation includes $5 million for medical tourism marketing and $1.3 million to promote the Sunshine State to veterans and active duty military.  I would like to thank Governor Rick Scott and the Florida Legislature for their visionary leadership and for their extraordinary support of VISIT FLORIDA and the state’s tourism industry. Continue reading »

I’m pleased to share that during Tuesday evening’s Florida Restaurant & Lodging Association annual Gala and Awards Dinner, VISIT FLORIDA Board of Directors member Gene Prescott received the 2014 Hotelier Hall of Fame Award.  As president of The Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables, Gene led a $40 million, 10-year renovation program that has recently been completed, restoring the landmark to its world-class excellence.  Click here to see a compilation video of industry support for Gene’s honor. Continue reading »