Tourist Still Flocking, But Spending Less

Tourist numbers are on a par with last year, said Kathy O'Bryan, manager of Peach's Restaurant on Holmes Beach.

By RICHARD DYMOND – rdymond@bradenton.com

ANNA MARIA ISLAND — Every year for the past 25, Mark Short and his family leave the suburbs of Detroit for a week and come to Anna Maria Island for a vacation.

Sometimes it’s for Easter week like this year, sometimes it’s in the summer.

Still, some things have changed.

For one, the Shorts now plan out everything they will spend for the week instead of just letting spontaneity rule.

And instead of spending the whole week at a rented condo or house at the beach, they now save money by spending half their vacation with either Short’s sister-in-law, Nancy Haller, or his father-in-law, Jim Tyrrell, both of Bradenton.

Occupancy levels for hotels and motels in Manatee County showed small incremental increases over last season, starting in December, said Jessica Grace, marketing and public relations director for the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitor’s Bureau.

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Island Tourism Surges in January

Always a Popular Spot - The Rod and Reel Pier in Anna Maria

By Rick Catlin
Islander Reporter

Anna Maria Island tourism climbed more than 15 percent in January, compared with the same month in 2009.

Occupancy of Island accommodations for January 2010 hit 51 percent, compared with 44.2 percent in January 2009, a 15.4 percent jump, according to the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau’s latest report.

That marked the fifth straight month that occupancy of Island accommodation units increased from the same month the previous year.

Occupancy of all units in the BACVB area for January 2010, however, was down slightly. Overall occupancy was reported at 53.6 percent against 54.3 percent for January 2009.

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