Tourism has been on the sunnier side in Collier County.
For the months of January through March − representing the county’s second fiscal quarter − all of the key metrics showed gains over the year.
Here’s a look at some of the metrics for the quarter, and how they compared to 2025:
The county’s Tourist Development Council heard the mostly positive report at a meeting May 19, presented by consultants Downs & St. Germain Research.
“As we look at the quarter as a whole, it’s good to see numbers up, especially during your high time,” said Joseph St. Germain, the research firm’s president.
The peak season for tourists falls in the first quarter.
Over the year, the county saw increases in occupancy, daily rates, days in market and room nights booked by visitors. As a result, revenue per available room, a key measure for financial performance, rose by nearly 8%.
The latest report, however, came with some caution, with the county experiencing a weak second quarter last year, making for an easier comparison.
Growth in visitation from the north
In this year’s second quarter, about half a million of the county’s visitors came from the Northeastern and Midwestern United States, primarily to escape the cold and snow, as is usually the case in the winter, St. Germain said.
Top markets included Ohio, Illinois, New York, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Massachusetts and Michigan.
“I think you can probably tell what the theme there is, and that is cold-weather states. Again, kind of your bread and butter overall,” St. Germain said.
In crunching the data, he found the typical household income for visitors had increased to $189,000 from $162,000, which he described as “fairly large,” reflecting the strength of the county’s “luxury product” − and the success the county is having in marketing those luxury offerings.
Canadian visitation is still off
While visitation increased noticeably in the second quarter, overseas visitation remained soft, mirroring a national trend.
The county saw 87,900 international visitors in the quarter, down 6.2% from last year. The biggest decline came from Canada, with its visitor numbers down by more than 16% over the year.
Canadian visitation to the U.S. has plummeted over the past two years, driven by economic factors, tightened border scrutiny, and heightened geopolitical and political tensions.
“That is not a Collier County thing. That’s something we’re seeing in most areas in the state, and frankly, across the country overall,” St. Germain said.
In Collier County, the slump in Canadian visitation began in February 2025.
After hearing the latest Canadian statistics, Susan Becker, a long-time member of the tourism council, who works as a street concierge on Third Street South, described them as “discouraging,” asking for more perspective on the situation.
In answer, St. Germain said: “The sentiment of Canadians coming to the United States has not really changed in the last nine to 10 months. It’s not up, it’s not down. It’s just it’s at a trough overall, and it really hasn’t changed a whole lot overall.”
While the Canadian statistics aren’t good, St. Germain pointed out that Canadians aren’t a significant percentage of the tourism market in Collier County, and there is still a group of them coming to the United States and Florida.
“I’m not saying they’re coming down here and posting on Instagram that they’re here, but they’re here, just not in the same level that they used to be,” he said.
Strong quarter follows a ‘tough 2025’
Council member Clark Hill, general manager of the Hilton Naples, said the increases in U.S. visitors and spending can be celebrated, but he emphasized it comes in the wake of “one of the most down periods that we’ve experienced” in the county.
“That’s great, but we still have work to do,” he said.
He questioned whether the lack of hurricanes last summer might boost visitation this summer, or whether it might take another year without a landfall to see a positive impact.
In answer, St. Germain joked: “If I knew 100% how to answer that question, I’d be doing this from my yacht,” bringing laughs from the council.
In a more serious answer, he said he anticipated the quiet summer last year to be of help, but it might take longer for would-be visitors to forget about all the major storms that hit Florida from 2022 to 2024.
Early predictions for activity in the 2025 hurricane season are looking pretty good, but at the same time, it only takes one major storm to change consumer sentiment, St. Germain emphasized.
“We’ll kind of see how that plays out,” he said.
While he wasn’t ready to share the April numbers, St. Germain said: “They were up as well.”
He reiterated the increase in visitation must be considered in the context of a “tough 2025.”
Higher gas prices, airline fares not likely to deter visitors
Several council members asked questions about the latest statistics and trends.
Member Michael Lamey, manager of the JW Marriott Marco Island Beach Resort, wanted to know whether higher jet fuel prices and airline fares could affect long-distance travel to Collier County this summer or beyond.
Looking ahead, St. Germain said he expects both gas prices and airline prices to continue going up, but he has yet to “see sentiment that says people are going to stop traveling.”
“You tend to have a more affluent visitor,” he said. “I think it’ll be less impacted. Other markets, I think will be a little bit more impacted by that, just because of who tends to come here.”
Council members debated marketing budget
Other topics on Tuesday’s agenda included next year’s budget for the county’s tourism division.
Council members discussed the recommended amount to be spent on tourism marketing that came down from county management.
The advertising budget is proposed at $9 million for fiscal 2027, down from the roughly $11 million spent in the last two years, which included supplemental funding each year to combat a softening in hotel occupancy, a drop in international visitors, and an influx of thousands of new hotel beds.
The tourism council debated the need for a larger promotional budget, with some members arguing that it should not be reduced.
A motion to support the tourism budget as recommended by county management narrowly passed by a vote of 5-4. The budget is funded by a portion of the county’s 5% tourist tax charged on overnight stays in hotels, or other vacation rentals.
Jay Tusa, the county’s tourism director, told the council that county staff, including himself, felt the budget for marketing could be reduced “a little bit,” while still remaining higher than the $6 million base budget set in 2023.
If necessary, county staff could still come back to the tourism council and to county commissioners with requests for more marketing money, with millions of tourist tax dollars held in reserves, in part for emergencies.
Among the council members voting against trimming the advertising budget by $2 million next year: Collier Commissioner Burt Saunders, who said it didn’t seem like it would be enough money to stay competitive and sustain the momentum.
Another member in opposition: Bill Kramer, a Naples city councilman.
“With inflation, I can’t imagine it being less than $11 million,” he said. “It just doesn’t make sense to me.”
County commissioners are expected to approve the final budget for 2027 in September.
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This article originally appeared on Naples Daily News: Tourism improves in Collier County after a ‘tough 2025’
Reporting by Laura Layden, Fort Myers News-Press & Naples Daily News / Naples Daily News
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
