Sunshine Matters

Sunshine State visitors have bought untold numbers of souvenirs throughout the years, reflecting the history and culture that is Florida tourism.  Those souvenirs reflect remembrances of great experiences of yesterday and today at our theme parks and roadside attractions.

Tuesday night, VISIT FLORIDA hosted a sneak preview of the new “Remembering Paradise: Souvenirs of Historic Florida Attractions” exhibit at the Florida Historic Capitol Museum in Tallahassee.  The evening reception allowed legislators, Capitol staff and industry executives to be the first to see the extensive one-of-a-kind collection of travel treasures assembled for the 8-month long exhibit.  The items on display range from a rubber alligator from the historic St. Augustine Alligator Farm, to a cowboy tin cup from the old Six-Gun Territory in Ocala, as well as a host of rare memorabilia from Walt Disney World in Orlando and much, much more.

VISIT FLORIDA was asked by the museum to assemble a collection of items for the exhibit that would showcase souvenirs from historic and important tourist attractions, as well as explain how they have helped enhance the impact of tourism in Florida.  To accomplish that goal, a call went out to our industry Partners seeking hundreds of souvenirs reflecting Florida’s attractions from as far back as Ponce de Leon’s visit in search of the Fountain of Youth in 1513 up to the opening of the new Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Orlando in 2010.

The response from the industry has been overwhelming and VISIT FLORIDA would like to thank everyone who contributed to helping us put together this incredible exhibit that will showcase the importance of Florida tourism through the ages to all our visitors at the Capitol.  Please make plans to visit the Florida Historic Capitol Museum before the exhibit closes in December so you can experience all the great memories for yourself.