Gabrielle Russon
Back in 2020, the unthinkable happened. Disney World was empty. The giant tourism machine of Orlando shut down during the pandemic.
Fast forward to the present day, and Orlando’s tourism industry is back and running stronger than ever.
“It’s not only a successful year in its own right, it’s been an incredibly successful rebound since 2019,” said Adam Sacks, President of Tourism Economics, an Oxford Economics company, and conducted an economic impact study.
Visit Orlando held a virtual news conference on Thursday to discuss the study results that estimated tourism generated a record-breaking $94.5 billion economic impact in 2024 as the community welcomed 75.3 million visitors. The $94.5 billion impact increased by about 2% from 2023, the results found.
“Visitor spending and activity fuel our economy, generating significant financial benefits to residents and businesses while also producing substantial tax revenue, which supports local essential public services,” Visit Orlando CEO Casandra Matej. “It is important to understand the magnitude of our visitor economy.”
Visit Orlando commissioned an $86,520 economic study with Experience Kissimmee, Seminole County and the Central Florida Hotel and Lodging Association by Tourism Economics.
Visitors in 2024 spent nearly $60 billion, according to Sacks.
“Direct visitor spending in Orlando grew an impressive 5.4%, generating an economic impact equivalent to hosting the NFL Super Bowl nearly twice a week for an entire year,” he said. “If you want to compare that to where we were in 2019, that’s a full 25% increase.”
He added, “Now that $60 billion doesn’t just stay there because it ripples out through the entire economy.”
The tourists’ spending goes through the supply chain to wholesalers, architecture companies, engineering firms, financial services and other suppliers, eventually ending up in households.
The study used economic data from the Bureau of Economic Analysis and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, as well as industry data on hotel stays and airport records.
Unsurprisingly, Greater Orlando’s economy is heavily reliant on the tourism industry.
About 37% of the region’s jobs — or about 468,000 — are in tourism from shops, hotels, theme parks and transportation companies, Sacks said
“The employment breaks out, of course, differently across the three counties, but it’s most important in Orange County,” said Sacks, with 42% of all jobs in Orlando County tied to tourism, followed by 35% in Osceola and 12% in Seminole County.
Last month, an Orange County Comptroller audit questioned some of Visit Orlando’s spending.
