Officials told storms may hit Florida tourism as hard as 9/11

[Khephra]

PANAMA CITY BEACH, Fla. - Thousands of undamaged beach-front hotel rooms went begging Friday along one of the best beaches in the world, and drops in airline bookings and travel agent inquiries left Florida tourism officials worried about a stunning financial fallout from Ivan and other summer hurricanes.

Airline executives have told Visit Florida, the state's official tourism marketing corporation, that bookings for travel to Florida are down on the scale of the 2001 terrorist attacks, said Dale Brill, the group's senior vice president of marketing.

Florida's annual tourism bed tax collection dropped from $335 million in 2000 to $309 million in 2002, in the after effects of the September 2001 terrorist attacks and the security difficulties of traveling by air.

Brill told board members on a conference call that tracking of Web searches by travel agents checking Florida destinations since mid-August showed a significant drop in all Florida markets except Orlando until Ivan, when even the Orlando clicks went down.

http://www.grandforks.com/mld/grandforks/business/9693163.htm

[SoCalDem]

1. People usually do not like to vacation in "damaged" areas

They like to be able to get around, and go places.. Hurricanes damage the infrastructure, the restaurants, museums, and other fun places.. It's kind of bothersome too, for people to know that they are having a good time, while people near or at the place they are, are still in shelters and eating "charity food"..