[1]FRLA’s Carol Dover Meets With NW Florida Hoteliers and Restaurateurs.
Florida Restaurant and Lodging Association’s (FRLA) President and CEO Carol Dover held a press conference today in Pensacola Beach with Northwest Florida hoteliers and restaurateurs to report that the Sunshine State is open for business. Florida tourism enjoys over 80 million visitors each year, with over 14 million visiting the Panhandle area. Regionally, there are 3,200 restaurants and 1,600 hotels, motels, bed and breakfasts, and vacation rentals which account for over 80,000 rooms.
“Florida is open for business. Florida beaches have not been closed. No oil has washed ashore. Seafood is safe to eat and charter fishing boats are running daily. But we must stop sending the message that the world’s most beautiful beaches are covered in oil,” said Dover.
“There have been reports that the whole north part of the coast is closed for fishing, and that is just not the case,” said Bruce Craul, COO of Legendary Inc. “Our folks are fishing everyday and red snapper season opens June 1 It is business as usual, the coast is clear, and charter boats in Destin are running,” continued Craul, who also serves as the Secretary Treasurer of FRLA.
“We are watching closely and have recently posted actual photos and videos from our sites, which are updated on a daily basis so people have a visual reference,” said Park Brady, CEO of ResortQuest. “As for bookings, we are lowering the risk and modifying our cancellation policies. We are not going to risk your deposits and we are committed to being honest and accurate – and people are coming back.”
“There have been no significant cancellations, and just today we see that May’s overall pace of bookings has been flat over this time last year,” said Julian MacQueen, CEO of Innisfree Hotels. “In fact, we find only 20 percent of the people actually go to the water. People are here for the overall experience, incredible views, amazing sunsets, beautiful fishing opportunities and all the things Pensacola Beach brings.”
“We know the oil spill is a threat and need to plan ahead,” said Florida Chief Financial Officer Alex Sink. “It is important for local businesses to keep very organized and detailed records of any lost business, because we will hold BP accountable for any lost business as a result of the spill.”
The Association encourages all business owners to keep accurate records of any and all cancellations, along with the number of employees that may have had to be let go. This is important documentation that the industry will need in the coming weeks and months. We encourage our members to begin the claims process by contacting the BP Claims Hotline at 800-440-0858. Please visit www.FRLA.org [2] for this and all updates on the BP oil spill.
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