Orange County’s tourism tax collection was better in April than a year ago, but not as good as the previous year.
The revenue generated by the 6% extra charges at county’s one-night hotel stays and other short-term accommodations was a reliable measure of the tourism industry’s health, but the secretary Phil Diamond, whose office tracks the collection, carefully interpreted the new figures.
“We had just had a good month despite us being in the middle of what seemed like a very good year, but we didn’t beat the numbers two years ago when everything was cheap and the cost of hotel rooms was cheaper,” Diamond said.
The April 2025 collection was just $33.1 million compared to the April 2023 ($33.6 million) and April 2022 ($34.6 million).
Epic Universe: Know before you go
Still, for the first seven months of 2025, revenue from Tourism Development Tax (TDT) totaled $235.6 million, moving the pace of last year’s fiscal year, when TDT appeared at its best hole of $359 million.
Diamond raised concerns about international travel and slowing global economic uncertainty, but also pointed out bright spots.
“I really want to see more epic results,” he said. “I think they’re happy to be amazed at the level of visit we had before the new park opened. That was a surprise to me and perhaps to others.”
The immersive park was officially opened on May 22, eager to see the world of training dragons, the wizards of Harry Potter, the super Nintendo video game, Dracula, Frankenstein and other attractions built around celluloid creeps and monsters.
Tourist prices for May will be made public in early July.
Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings looked at another $30 million in TDT revenue.
“We are delighted that our tourism development tax revenues continue to be strong,” he said in an email. “It’s a great indicator that our tourism industry is thriving and likely to continue doing so in the near future. This complements our strong growth in other industries such as the medical and health sciences, technology and the aerospace industry.”
“I miss visiting American friends”: Angry at Trump’s threat, Canadians rethink their travels to Florida
Visit Orlando also provided a somewhat complicated outlook for summer trips with an email response on the latest numbers.
Hotel reservations from May to July are currently 1% higher in the same period last year, but the short-term rental market has booked 15% ahead of last year, with reservations showing 15% ahead of last year.
She said the average daily room rate in April was $223.44, driven primarily by a surge in leisure travel.
The price in April 2024 was $208.50.
shudak@orlandosentinel.com
