From hospitality award winners to rebounding hotel occupancy, here's your weekly look at what's happening across America's most visited destination.
Congratulations to Hospitality Award Winners
Today I had the pleasure of joining Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, the Board of County Commissioners and community leaders as the I-Drive Chamber of Commerce honored Phil Brown, CEO of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, for his visionary leadership, and Universal Orlando for their local philanthropic efforts. Thank you to the honorees for their tremendous contributions to our industry.
IAAPA Expo Returns to OCCC Next Week
On Monday, the Orange County Convention Center will be packed with more than 38,000 attendees at IAAPA Expo 2019, the global attractions industry's premier event. The conference is expected to generate $97.5 million in economic impact and will continue to be held in Orlando through 2030.
Hotel Occupancy on the Rebound
Our metro Orlando lodging sector has bounced back from a relatively soft summer and early fall by posting three consecutive weeks of occupancy gains. Last week was especially strong, with occupancy hitting 86.4% (8.9% greater than the same week last year) and average daily rate shooting up 11.7% to $148.23. A positive contributor was the Microsoft Ignite conference, which brought more than 26,000 attendees to the Orange County Convention Center Nov. 4-8.
Consumer Confidence Falls, But Still at High Levels
Despite three straight months of declining consumer confidence, there are no clear indications of American consumers cutting back on holiday spending. In October, the index fell slightly to 125.9, which is 12 points below where it was a year ago. But even with the recent dip, consumer confidence remains at historically elevated levels, meaning the near-term outlook for leisure travel remains strong.
OTHER NEWS FROM VISIT ORLANDO
» Don't forget to register for our Annual Meeting & Luncheon Dec. 5 at Hilton Orlando. Join us as we recap the year and reveal how much Visit Orlando Magical Dining raised for charity partners NAMI Greater Orlando and Lighthouse Central Florida.
» To drive 2020 visitation from the United Kingdom, Visit Orlando partnered with Universal Orlando Resort, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment and TUI Airways on a digital marketing campaign that ran through mid-November in key UK airports.
» This week, Visit Orlando's Instagram account surpassed 300,000 followers, an 81% increase since the start of 2019. This growth is a testament to the compelling content and personal engagement our social media followers have come to expect from America's most visited destination.
