Executive Summary

Riding on the coattails of 2021, in many ways 2022 was another record year. In 2022, 19.2 million overnight visitors and an additional 7.3 million day visitors, totaling 26.5 million traveled to the area, resulting in a year-over-year net gain of over 2 million people With this increase in the volume of visitors came additional spending, which also exceeded the prior year. Tourists spent an estimated $20 8 billion, an increase of 8% over 2021

The momentum that built during 2021 carried over into 2022, with continued demand at levels never seen before Miami International Airport (MIA) added more flights and recently welcomed low-cost carriers, which included Southwest, JetBlue and Spirit, all of which contributed to the influx of travelers. Additionally, the cruise industry experienced a surge in passenger volume starting in the summer and by the end of the year, returned to pre-pandemic levels Furthermore, meeting and convention activity gained momentum and bookings quickly filled the convention centers and hotels.

Domestic visitation still made up much of the overall deficit created by a lack of visitors from traditional international markets, nevertheless the overall international recovery was strong The primary purpose of visits for tourists continued to be leisure-driven However, similar to trends in 2021, many visitors came to the area to visit friends and relatives, as well as to shop and take part in outdoor leisure activities Florida has been one of the fastest growing states in the U S , and this helped fuel both domestic and international visitation to Greater Miami & Miami Beach

Total overnight visitation increased by 20% from 2021 Conversely, day trip visitation was actually down 12% from the prior year; however, this figure was more on par with 2019, as 2021 was an unusual year for tourism. All told, 2021 saw unprecedented pent-up demand and in many ways did not resemble travel trends of prior years, so comparing 2022 to 2021 does not necessarily align with standard benchmarking. The 2022 changes in overnight versus day visitation revealed that visitors to Greater Miami & Miami Beach were more likely to stay overnight as opposed to staying somewhere outside of the county

• Comparing the top 20 domestic overnight markets, all of the top 20 domestic markets increased their visitation over 2021 However, day trip visitation from the same markets decreased year-over-year for all but Los Angeles, which posted a small gain after lagging behind other markets in 2021.

• While this may seem unusual, when compared to 2019, almost all of the same markets were higher in 2022. When visitors come to Florida, they have many options in the state.