According to preliminary estimates released by Visit Florida, 97.3 million visitors came to the Sunshine State in 2014, an increase of 3.9 percent over 2013 and the fourth consecutive record year for visitation. The number of direct travel-related jobs in 2014 also hit a record high, with 1,135,700 Floridians employed in the tourism industry, up 3.6 percent from 2013.
Visit Florida estimates that 11.5 million overseas visitors and 3.8 million Canadians came to Florida in 2014, both of which are record highs and represent 2.6 percent and 2.4 percent increases over 2013, respectively. Estimates reflect a 4.2 percent increase in domestic visitors to Florida in 2014 and show that Floridians took a record total of 20.2 million in-state pleasure trips.
"In 2014, a record 97.3 million tourists visited the state of Florida. That means there were nearly 4 percent more visitors spending money in Florida last year," said Andrew Hertz, chair of the Visit Florida board of directors. "Anyone would be happy to see their business grow by 4 percent year-over-year. But it is absolutely amazing when an entire industry keeps beating record numbers, while adding jobs and supporting the rest of the state's economy."
