A record 72 million people
visited Orlando in 2017, according to numbers released Thursday.
You can feel it. You feel it when you can look in the rearview mirror at the endless car backup on Interstate 4. You don’t think twice about arriving two hours early at the airport to fight the lines.
More people than ever are coming to Orlando.
About 72 million people visited Orlando in 2017 — a record, Visit Orlando revealed with much fanfare Thursday. It bested the previous record of 68 million people who traveled to Florida in 2016, making Orlando the first U.S. city to surpass the 70 million threshhold for tourists, according to Visit Orlando.
In comparision, about 62.8 million people visited New York City in 2017, Mayor Bill de Blasio has said, while Las Vegas attracted about 42.2 million tourists.
“Dare I say, when it comes to tourism, Orlando is the nation’s capital,” said Visit Orlando’s CEO George Aguel before drummers and confetti marked what he called a historic milestone for the community.
The latest numbers showed the strength of tourism in 2017 — a year where Hurricane Irma shut down the theme parks temporarily and disrupted lives in much of the state.
About 20 new attractions opened in Orlando in 2017, Aguel said.
Walt Disney World debuted its Pandora — World of Avatar to rave reviews and long lines for its Flight of Passage ride. Universal Orlando Resort also opened Volcano Bay water park.
Orlando also attracted national headlines for its restaurants and things-to-do away from the theme park corridor. It hosted the NFL’s Pro Bowl game for the first time in 2017 at Camping World Stadium.
Orlando’s record growth is not unexpected given the state of Florida as a whole recorded 116.5 million people in 2017, another all-time high.
Revenue from the 6 percent Orange County hotel tax is steadily growing as the visitors stay at shortterm rentals. It generated about $255 million in the 2017 fiscal year and is steadily growing.
An estimated 112 restaurants, resorts and attractions have arrived in Orlando in the past five years, according to Visit Orlando, which is in charge of marketing the tourism for the area.
The latest unemployment rates in Orange County and Seminole County dropped to 3.2 percent for March, the lowest in more than 10 years, according to figures released last month. However, critics argue some jobs in the tourism industry pay low wages that make it difficult for people to live off.
“Orlando’s record-setting visitation affirms the city as a leader in the U.S. travel industry,” said Roger Dow, president and CEO of the U.S. Travel Association.
On Thursday, the group gathered to celebrate the industry and the growing numbers.
Tourism has lifted the economy and improved the quality of life in Central Florida, said Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs as hotel executives, theme park leaders, elected officials and others at Loews Sapphire Falls Resort stood by.
Aguel called tourism an “economic force.”