State Hits Record Tourism Numbers
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FORT MYERS (CBSMiami/AP) — Governor Rick Scott is expected to announce a bump in the tourism numbers during a stop in Ft. Myers on Friday.
Visit Florida estimates 57.4 million tourists visited the state during the first half of 2016. State officials say that's the highest six-month total ever and a 4.3 percent increase over the year.
The state's tourism marketing arm said that record number includes more than 49 million domestic visitors. The rest came to the state from Canada or other countries.
The new tourism numbers, however, do not reflect what's happened over the last few weeks.
Some parts of the state have dealt with toxic algae blooms, and 25 people have acquired the Zika virus from mosquitoes in a Miami neighborhood. U.S. health officials continue to warn pregnant women to avoid the infection zone.
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