Central Florida - Tourism professionals are anxiously waiting to see how 2009 will be for the Florida tourism industry. The industry has been rocked by financial markets as would be travelers hold on tighter to their cash.
The Florida Keys which had a difficult summer with higher fuel costs, hope that lower pump prices will make for a better New Year. Annual Florida Keys Events like Fantasy Fest draw worldwide visitors to the Conch Republic.
In Tampa, hoteliers, merchants and others are hoping Super Bowl XLII is, in fact, super. Football fans are happy people and tend to be good spenders.
Further north, in Daytona Beach, the Daytona Speedweek Schedule draws one of the largest crowds of race fans in the nation. By late February Daytona Bikeweek 2009 will attract the remarkably affluent biker crowd to soak up the sun and drive on the beach.
Tourism professionals will cross their fingers and hope the dire predictions don’t come true and that 2009 will be a pleasant surprise.