Hotel occupancy rates surged in Seminole County during Hurricane Ian

Hotel occupancy rates surged in Seminole County during Hurricane Ian

According to official reports of the authorities, Hurricane Ian that wreaked havoc in Central Florida last month led to a sharp surge of hotel bookings in Seminole County.

Tourism industry representatives announced last week that on September 28, during the storm, and over the next few days, 80% of approximately 5,000 hotel rooms were booked in that area. This is 48% more than in the same period last year and 23% more than the September average.

Gui Cunha, Administrator, Office of Economic Development and Tourism of Seminole County, reported that the county’s hotels are always in demand during hurricanes. Some of the reasons he mentioned are the arrival of utility workers from neighboring areas coming to deal with the consequences of the natural disaster, demand from people whose homes are in the path of the hurricane, and even locals who are not sure whether their homes will have power and other amenities.

According to tentative estimates of the officials, the revenue from tourist tax reached a record-setting amount of $6.2 million last fiscal year that ended on September 30. This is a 5% tax charged on each night spent at a hotel or a rental home leased for six months or less, in addition to the state sales tax that equals 7%.

Hotel occupancy rates in Seminole County are setting one record after another this year, especially in popular sports tourism destinations, such as Boombah Sports Complex in Lake Mary and other sports facilities that were almost untouched by the recent hurricane. Over 70 sports events are scheduled to take place here in the new fiscal year that began on October 1, 2022, which will bring over $50 million to the county budget.

The flourishing tourism industry is good news for landlords and investors who make money by leasing their residential properties.

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