Tourism officials hope weak dollar will lure Europeans

Canada, the United Kingdom, Venezuela and Germany were the top four countries of origin for international travel to Florida in 2001.

06/14/03 By LAURA LAYDEN, lllayden@naplesnews.com

Vacation may not be all they ever wanted.

But it's what many Americans want this summer, and that's helping to boost the local tourism industry here at a time when business is at its slowest.

Since the start of the slow season in May, some local hoteliers say they have seen more tourists coming here than they expected.

The Edgewater Beach Hotel in Naples had one of its best Mays ever this year.

May was also good for the Marriott's Marco Island Resort.

"I think it's just that people are tired of not taking a vacation and they are just saying, 'You know what? I need to get away,' " said Laurie Cardenuto, the Marriott's director of marketing.

This year, hoteliers and other industry watchers are expecting a much better season than last year's.

Last summer — the first once since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United States — was one of the slowest local hoteliers have seen in years. The threat of more terrorist attacks kept many people closer to home. A sluggish national economy and rainy weather here only dampened the picture.

Now the U.S. economy is stronger and that's one of the reasons Americans are expected to travel more this summer.

Local hoteliers already have noticed more people driving here from other parts of the state, such as Orlando, Tampa, West Palm Beach and Miami. Some are also seeing more bookings from European travelers, a trend they link to the strengthening of the euro against the dollar.

The euro hit a record high of $1.19 on May 31. And though its value has dropped since then, it could grow in coming months, encouraging more Europeans to come to Southwest Florida.

Europeans typically travel between the months of June and August. So there is plenty of opportunity for more to come here this summer, said Jack Wert, executive director of the Greater Naples, Marco Island and Everglades Convention and Visitors Bureau.

"We should see an upward trend in some international visitors, with the improvement in the euro and the weakening of the dollar," he said. "That makes us a better bargain."

At the current rate of about $1.18 for their currency, Europeans would pay about $168 a night for the same hotel that in Europe would cost $200. Likewise, a $1.50 cup of coffee would cost them $1.26 in the United States.

Scott Shoenberger, managing director for LaPlaya Beach & Golf Resort in North Naples, said with the war in Iraq considered over, he's optimistic that more foreigners will travel here in June, July and August. He's especially bullish on the European market because of the increase in the euro's value.

At one time, Europeans accounted for 13 percent of the hotel's business in the off-season, Shoenberger said. That dropped to about 6 percent last year in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, but there are hopes it will reach 10 percent this year, he said.

"It should be a relatively good off-season for the Naples market from the European standpoint," he said.

In May, the hotel's business was up 52 percent over the same month last year. Shoenberger said it was in part due to more European visitors.

Even in season when room rates were running about $400 a night, about double what they are now, more Europeans could be spotted at the LaPlaya. The hotel recently got a $54 million facelift and that could be part of the reason for the increased interest from Europeans and other foreigners, Shoenberger said.

"I think it helps that we are new," he said. "We are the new kid on the block."

Shoenberger and other hoteliers also have noticed more visitors coming from the United Kingdom this year, and, if that trend continues over the coming months, it will give another much-needed boost to the tourism industry this summer.

Suya Davenport, director of leisure sales for The Registry Resort and Edgewater Beach Hotel in Naples, said her hotels have been seeing more visitors from the United Kingdom and it's one of the reasons the Edgewater hotel had one of its best Mays, she said.

The LaPlaya also has seen an increase in visitors from the United Kingdom.

"In the case of the United Kingdom, I think that some of the international problems (with terrorism) have worked in our favor," Shoenberger said. "The English people feel safer coming to the United States than they would going to a resort destination in Europe."

Any increased interest from foreigners comes as welcome news to local hoteliers.

For the past two years, European travel to Southwest Florida has been off because European currency has been so weak and German visitors have been scarce because of economic problems in that country. And then, of course, there was Sept. 11.

"The dropoff in foreign travel was seen long before 9-11," said Walter Klages, an economist who heads Research Data Services in Tampa and tracks visitor numbers in Lee and Collier counties. "It simply accelerated the problem because it created the perception of a personal risk in travel no matter where you went."

When foreign travel to the United States is down, it's felt across Florida because it has become such a large part of the state's tourism market.

In 2001, Florida surpassed New York in foreign tourists, attracting more than 7 million overseas visitors. That made it the No. 1 state for foreign travel.

Canada, the United Kingdom, Venezuela and Germany were the top four countries of origin for international travel to Florida in 2001.

While an upturn in foreign travel may boost tourism here this summer, it's the travel patterns of Americans that should have an even bigger impact.

The travel industry estimates that Americans will take roughly 275 million leisure trips this summer, about 2.5 percent more than last year. While many have yet to make up their minds where they want to travel, they are expected to take more driving vacations and that should benefit this region.

It's the drive market that local hoteliers target anyway this time of year, primarily Floridians who live within five or six hours of Southwest Florida.

Shoenberger estimates that more than 70 percent of the tourism business in Florida is generated by Floridians in the summer.

Floridians helped boost business for local hotels Memorial Day weekend, resulting in strong occupancies. And that trend is expected to continue throughout the off-season.

Robert Colantonio, general manager of the Hampton Inn in Bonita Springs, said he's seen a lot of Florida residents checking in over the past two months, coming from such places as Tampa, Orlando and Miami.

In May, his hotel's revenues were up 15 percent more than during the same month last year.

"In our case I think it's a result of the marketing we've done for this hotel, specifically," Colantonio said. "We have some packages and other things that we have offered to Florida residents and to local businesses. That is where our increase has come from."

Colantonio is not as optimistic as some other local hoteliers about foreign travel this summer. Last year, the Hampton Inn saw very little business from foreigners and Colantonio doesn't expect that to change this year.

He thinks European and British travelers will be more likely to stay at more upscale hotels, such as The Registry Resort or The Ritz-Carlton, Naples.

"Certainly properties on the beach are the first choice," he said. "We are further back from the beach. If they can get a good rate at the beach, why stay two miles away?"

Even without foreign travelers, Colantonio predicts this off-season will be much better than last for his hotel.

There are many signs in the local industry pointing to the start of a recovery from Sept. 11.

In April, tax collections on hotels and other lodgings were up 16 percent over the same month last year, said D.T. Minich, executive director of the Lee Island Coast Visitor and Convention Bureau. He said May was a strong month for many Lee County hotels in part because there were a lot of weddings. Weddings are something his bureau has been working hard to attract.

Despite the positive outlook for the off-season this year, the Lee Island Coast Visitor and Convention Bureau plans to tap emergency funds and will spend more money on marketing than usual. That's because there is increased competition from other markets.

"The Keys are spending an additional $500,000 to attract Floridians," Minich said. "They are one of our biggest competitors. I would not be spending this money otherwise. It's like we have been backed into a corner."

While there are a lot of bright spots in the local tourism industry right now, there are still a lot of concerns about the future. And most still don't expect this year to be as good as 2000 — before the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.

"No, we're not quite back to the peak levels of 2000," Klages said. "But we are certainly doing better than we did last year."

He doesn't expect a full recovery until next year.