ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla. — It’s been a rough summer.
Those are the words from someone in the tourism industry on the First Coast.
In fact, employees in the tourism biz say numbers are down across Florida.
The St. Augustine Distillery was just named Craft Distillery of the year by an industry association. While that's a high note, its CEO Phil McDaniel says business this summer has not been nearly as spirited.
"Really in the last six months, there’s been some pretty significant fall," McDaniel said. "We’re off about 10–12% in terms of visitors."
That’s people through the door, compared to last year. The amount they’re spending at the distillery is down 8 or 9%, according to McDaniel.
"The challenge is your expenses over the last two years have gone up significantly," he said. "You have increased rent. You have increased salaries. Expenses to run the business have gone up."
There are no official regional numbers in yet from the summer. However, people across St. Augustine say they’ve seen fewer tourists in the last few months.
The owner of the Kenwood Inn told St. Johns County commissioners last month, "It’s been a rough summer. We're looking for a more prosperous fall and winter."
A merchant on St. George Street told First Coast News there are far fewer visitors downtown.
McDaniel also serves on the Visit Florida board, and he’s heard the same thing all over the state.
"So this is a statewide issue," he said.
Why are the tourism numbers down? McDaniel and others say they believe the people who were traveling to Florida are now traveling elsewhere. And he thinks something else is going on.
"People don’t have as much disposable income," he added, "And this is an election year. Everybody is watching the presidential race to see what’s going to happen there. And I think people are just naturally cautious."
McDaniel has had to cut back his employees' hours, but has not laid anyone off. He’s also diversified the items he sells at different price points.
But he does predict that the winter will be something to toast to.
"I’m bullish. I think it’s going to be great," he said.