Florida tourism chiefs have reiterated their commitment to UK travel agents as they look to diversify the state’s appeal to international visitors.
Speaking at the IPW Conference in Orlando, Visit Florida chief marketing officer Staci Mellman said the UK market was currently around 30% down on 2019 levels, but was one of the first and fastest to return after the pandemic.
She said the market still had “room to grow” and said the trade would play a key role in revisiting pre-pandemic aspirations to increase and diversify visitation from the UK & Ireland.
“The trade is so important, and that is particularly the case in the UK market,” she said. “The job agents are doing for the travellers they are serving and the passion and commitment they show is striking and it is up to us to help them continue doing that job.
“The trade has always been important to Visit Florida and that certainly isn’t going to change.”
Mellman said the marketing organisation was promoting a range of areas to showcase the diversity of the state’s tourism offering – with focuses on cuisine, outdoor and adventure travel and accessible tourism.
She added: “We have a lot of family travellers but there are opportunities to grow different segments. There’s so much more than Orlando and Miami but even if those are the bases you don’t have to stay in one place for the duration of your trip.
“Travellers are not one-dimensional and we are not a one-dimensional destination. You can enjoy a theme park but that doesn’t mean you can’t also enjoy fine-dining or hiking.”
Mellman said Florida was committed to becoming the most accessible US destination for travellers with special requirements and was in the first stages of a full accessibility audit.
The introduction of an accessible travel hub on the Visit Florida website had also inspired 12 destinations within the state to follow suit, she added, with a focus on practical information for travellers and the trade.
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