With so much development and major meetings continuing to choose Florida, there’s much to learn from the state’s top DMO executives. Here are their thoughts on trends and the state of the industry.
Paul Beirnes, Vice President, Amelia Island CVB
Meetings and group business in the destination have been strong, with a positive outlook for the coming years. Growth continues to be driven by regional association meetings, corporate gatherings and incentive programs.
The first half of 2025 is shaping up to be strong for meetings; however, we are noticing a softening trend emerging in late Q3 and early Q4. Although Amelia Island was unaffected by last year’s tropical season, it’s not uncommon for such events to influence meeting planners’ decisions when considering Florida destinations during this period.
We’re seeing several emerging trends among meetings and conventions on Amelia Island. There is a growing preference for virtual components in pre-planning, such as pre-con meetings, rather than in-person site visits. Sustainability is also a key focus, with an increased commitment to reducing and eliminating waste. Additionally, more meetings are incorporating local culinary experiences, offering attendees a taste of the region’s distinctive flavors.
Elliott Falcione, Executive Director, Bradenton Area Tourism Bureau
The future is bright for meetings in the Bradenton Area in 2025. This summer, we’ll be opening our new $52 million Bradenton Area Convention Center with nearly 70,000 square feet of meeting space, including the 14,000-square-foot grand ballroom.
This new expansion and renovation will transform the Bradenton area into a diverse meetings destination, offering a vibrant urban core that sits just across the Manatee River in addition to easy access to the world-renowned coastline of Anna Maria Island. It’s the perfect recipe for meeting planners looking for a midsize meetings market that offers strong bleisure experiences for their attendees. The Bradenton Area has been a popular host destination for sporting events for many years with dynamic venues like Premier Sports Campus (PSC) and IMG Academy.
Regarding meetings, we’re actively booking for 2026. Right now, we are looking at corporate and association events, but with it being our inaugural year, we’re open to exploring the SMERF marketplace to discover which market segments will be the right fit for the Bradenton Area Convention Center.
Jennifer Adams, Director of Tourism, Destin-Fort Walton Beach
Meetings so far in 2025 are pacing well and we’re pretty much booked 48 weekends a year, but we’re still working hard to fill in midweek with corporate travel.
We are rockin’ and rolling at our 32,000-square-foot convention center (with 30,000 square feet outdoors and a plaza for tented events) where we can have up to 1,600 for a plated dinner. We also have a collection of venues for planners to choose from: the Destin-Fort Walton Beach Fairgrounds and Events Center, with 36,000 square feet indoors, including a 12,000-square-foot ballroom and 10 acres outdoors; Freedom Tech Center, a mixed-use development that’s set with restaurants, pickleball courts and a four-acre park for staged events and a Home2 Suites by Hilton and a Holiday Inn Express & Suites by IHG; The Baker Recreation + Equestrian Center for rodeos and dog shows; and a lodge on 450 acres at the Shoal River Preserve for executive and wellness retreats.
We are looking at things a bit differently and trying to be more creative with what we can do. We want to stay relevant and are continually looking to upgrade.
The airlines—Delta, American, Allegiant, Southwest, Sun Country— are continuously adding flights at Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport and we now can arrange a shuttle service to and from the airport.
The beach is, of course, a big draw, and we notice a lot of attendees at conferences come back with their families or extend on either side of the meeting with hotels offering the group rate.
Groups and families love The Pier, The Boardwalk and all its restaurants and Gulfarium Marine Adventure Park right across the street from the convention center.
Jill Vance, Director of Sales, Fort Myers–Islands, Beaches & Neighborhoods
Our meetings business is back and has surpassed pre-pandemic levels. Rhett Wilson, director of sales at the Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort & Spa said, “Business is thriving! We’ve not only surpassed pre-pandemic levels but are consistently achieving record-breaking results year after year.”
Fort Myers’ islands, beaches and neighborhoods accommodate groups as small as 10 attendees to large conferences of 400 or more. According to Sandra Keneven, senior sales executive at Westin Cape Coral Resort at Marina Village, “Our sweet spot is groups requiring up to 200-250 rooms on peak, accommodating up to 400-500 attendees. For this size group, we have plenty of space for their meetings and meals and several breakout spaces, all with windows for natural light. Also, multiple outdoor spaces of various sizes.”
The trend of incorporating wellness into event programming remains incredibly popular, according to Keneven.
“We’re seeing an increased demand for outdoor meetings, and our resort is uniquely positioned to deliver on that with expansive waterfront venues, terraces and even the option to host meetings poolside under cabanas. Family-friendly meeting experiences are also on the rise.”
Michael Corrigan, President & CEO, Visit Jacksonville
The word is development in Jacksonville these days, with 17 hotels in some stage of development or construction. One of those hotels is the Four Seasons, which will be in downtown Jacksonville along the St. Johns River and adjacent to EverBank Stadium. It will be the first luxury property downtown and is expected to open next year.
The newest offsite venue option is Decca Live, the live music venue and rooftop bar. Its proximity to Jacksonville’s largest convention hotel, the Hyatt Riverfront Downtown Jacksonville, makes it a great offsite venue option for groups.
Meeting professionals come back again and again because our Visit Jacksonville team offers a high level of service to meeting planners and convention groups. From recommending vendors to selecting locations for offsite events to making the vision of the perfect event come to life, our team is ready to assist and make things happen.
Jacksonville is one of Florida’s most afford able meetings destinations—a place to gather, get business done and have a return on the experience well worth the investment.
Visit Jacksonville’s Destination Experience team works closely with over 400 groups each year for everything from planning to promoting to onsite execution for meetings, conventions and special events. The team also helps with customized websites, group welcomes, amenities and pre-promotional site visits.
Carol Motley, SVP, Convention Sales and Services, Greater Miami CVB
We’ve seen an uptick in international meetings coming to Miami and added an international sales manager to keep up with our growth. We expect to open 10 new hotels this year and between 2026 and in 2027 we’ll open 27 hotels.
We had three huge citywide meetings with $54 million in impact at the end of 2024. One of our groups, EXP Realty, which is an entirely virtual real estate company, had their first annual conference on the East Coast here at the convention center and attendance went up 30%. They’re coming back in 2025. We also have the Fraternal Order of Police coming to the convention center in August and Connect Marketplace in August.
The groundbreaking of the 800-room Grand Hyatt Miami Beach Convention Center Hotel, connected to Miami Beach Convention Center, will take place this spring with an opening in 2027. We are really looking forward to PCMA 2027 when we can showcase Miami and Miami Beach to so many meeting professionals.
Jay Tusa, Tourism Director, Naples Marco Island, Everglades CVB
Speaking with our hotel and resort partners, business is strong, though we are seeing shorter booking cycles. We are optimistic about 2027, 2028 and 2029. Our ideal meeting size ranges between 250 and 400 attendees, however, we can accommodate groups of all sizes at our lovely boutique hotels as well as our larger resorts such as the JW Marriott Marco Island Beach Resort, Naples Grande Beach Resort and The Ritz-Carlton, Naples.
We target the incentive market as well as high-end financial and insurance groups. While we are unapologetically luxury-focused, there is value for meeting planners during shoulder season and non-peak.
We assist planners in finding properties that best suit their needs and recommend unique offsite experiences, such as Ngala Wildlife Preserve for exotic animal encounters, Revs Institute for a once-in-a-lifetime experience for car enthusiasts, a multitude of restaurants along 5th Avenue South offering al fresco dining, airboat tours through the Everglades and even swamp walks in places like Big Cypress National Preserve. Eco-tourism is a hot topic for meeting planners—they want to get out and see and touch nature. We’re also fortunate to have stunning beaches, and most groups enjoy getting out on the water on the Naples Princess for sunset cruises and charter boats for fishing excursions.
Planners increasingly request wellness options, such as incorporating beach yoga or a structured walk into their meetings. They also appreciate free nights to explore local gourmet restaurants or browse the Village Shops at Venetian Bay.
Kelly Cavers, Chief Sales Officer, Discover the Palm Beaches
The Palm Beaches have seen significant growth in the MICE sector, with nearly $1 billion in recent area investments including new hotels with meeting spaces, upgrades to existing spaces and a recent bid won for a second headquarter hotel to be located next to the Palm Beach County Convention Center. New hotel openings include the Amrit Ocean Resort, a beachfront wellness resort on Singer Island; The Belgrove, a modern and secluded resort in West Palm Beach with a private golf course; and Palm House, a new luxuriously chic Palm Beach hotel. Each of these properties offers flexible spaces for a variety of meeting types. We’ve also seen a stunning reimagination of the Beach Club at The Boca Raton.
The Palm Beaches are easy to get to with proximity to three major airports and two Brightline train stations. We also have a great variety of product, from our boutique convention center to our five-star resort properties, so a planner could conveniently book their board meeting and annual conference all in one destination. Planners also love the walkability of our convention center district with access to shopping, dining, arts and culture, and more right across the street, as well as distinct offerings that you can’t find anywhere else, like the National Croquet Center, National Polo Center and Loggerhead Marinelife Center. We also continue to add unique venues and experiences, like the all-new TGL presented by SoFi, a new golf league combining advanced technology with teams of top players from the PGA TOUR, and Eudemonia Summit, a three-day wellness summit with over 100 renowned health experts, returning to West Palm Beach in 2025 after a successful inaugural event this past November 2024. Currently 2025 is outpacing 2024 by almost 40% for bookings and 2026 is already looking strong.
Casandra Matej, President & CEO, Visit Orlando
2025 is already shaping up to be an amazing year for meetings in Orlando. We’re hosting 51 citywide events through April 2025, amounting to a 21% increase in citywide attendance over the same period in 2024. The estimated economic impact for these 51 events is a staggering $1.87 billion.
The range of events includes established shows that have long called Orlando home, like Surf Expo and PGA Merchandise Show, which had its biggest show in 15 years. Visit Orlando, alongside our partners at the Orange County Convention Center (OCCC), have been cultivating new business, and in the first quarter we are excited to welcome Vision Expo East 2025 and Annual Gasparilla Classic 2025, new to Orlando.
Just opened is Universal Orlando Resort’s fourth theme park, Universal Epic Universe, the most ambitious theme park Universal has ever created. Universal has also added three new hotels with the recent openings of Universal Stella Nova and Terra Luna Resorts, and the upcoming opening of Universal Grand Helios, a Loews Hotel, which will feature an entrance to Universal Epic Universe. These new hotel additions will add to the nearly 500 hotels and more than 130,000 rooms already available in our destination.
OCCC is targeting to break ground by 2026 on its enhancements to the North-South Building, which will include an additional 44,000 square feet of meeting space, a 100,000-square-foot ballroom and a new entry along Convention Way.
Steve Bailey, Vice President of Sales, Visit Panama City Beach
The meetings industry is thriving in Panama City Beach, and we’re focused on attracting first-time groups eager for a fresh and dynamic destination. We invite meeting planners to experience our stunning state parks, perfect for kayaking, birdwatching and diving on untouched beaches—offerings you won’t find in larger meetings destinations.
Exciting developments for 2025 include Dolly Parton’s Pirates Voyage Dinner & Show and Topgolf, coming to our Pier Park shopping and entertainment complex. These brands selected Panama City Beach because they recognize our continued growth and want to be a part of it.
Our new hotel properties, such as the Gulf-front Embassy Suites by Hilton and the beachfront Hyatt Place, provide an ideal setting for small meetings. Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport is another draw for meeting planners, offering direct flights from Chicago, Dallas and Washington, D.C., via Delta, United and American. Getting to Panama City Beach has never been easier, and as a result, we’re attracting new groups seeking a unique, off-the-grid experience.
As a boutique meetings destination, we specialize in high-end executive board retreats and outings, but we can also accommodate up to 3,000 attendees. For larger events, planners can utilize over 30,000 square feet of event space at Panama City Beach Event Center at Edgewater Beach & Golf Resort.
Sean Doherty, Tourism Director, Punta Gorda/Englewood Beach
Due to the lack of significant meeting space, our meetings and convention business was fairly limited prior to the opening of Sunseeker Resort in December 2023. Our meetings business is much higher than prior to the pandemic, however, it’s not an apples-to-apples comparison. Looking forward, the meetings business in 2025 is on track to far exceed 2024 numbers.
Based on the size and scope of the available meeting space, our sweet spot is in the 350-450 range, however, we focus on targeting groups of up to 600 attendees depending on the planner’s space needs. And while Sunseeker Resort has nearly 600 standard hotel rooms, overflowing to the three downtown Punta Gorda hotels is convenient and offers a range of rates. In addition, the Charlotte Harbor Event & Conference Center, which is located on the waterfront in downtown, has the largest single space with its 20,000-square-foot ballroom that can accommodate banquets of up to 900 people or theater-style seating for over 1,500.
More planners are sourcing their meetings within 12 months. Also, we’ve noticed an uptick in planners interested in discovering new destinations to host their meetings, which suits our area well as an emerging meetings and convention destination.
Suzanne Hackman, Director of Sales and Industry Relations, Visit Sarasota
Business is great here in Sarasota and we’re getting lots of leads ahead of the season. We’ve got buzz going with our $72 million expansion at the Sarasota Bradenton International Airport where we have five additional gates for Allegiant Air. We want to get the word out that we now have 67 nonstops coming from Air Canada, American Airlines, Jet Blue, Southwest, Delta, United and more. It was important we expanded our lift. It will really help with repeat meeting business. Planners always thought we just had a small, regional airport.
We just booked an 1,800-guest incentive program at The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota for June. Attendees will be coming in three waves. Our sweet spot for a meeting is 350 or less, although The Ritz-Carlton and Westin, since they are on the same campus, can handle larger groups. The Ritz alone has 60,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor space.
We’re really excited about The St. Regis Longboat Key Resort, which opened last summer. It has 168 rooms, including 26 suites with private terraces. It’s also got incredible Under the Sea Lagoon Experiences for snorkeling and swimming with stingrays.
We have so much in the way of arts and culture, too, like The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art and the Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, and our dining scene is so diverse and offers something for everyone.
Nature enthusiasts will love it here with Siesta Key Beach, renowned for its powdery white sand, and picturesque Lido Beach. We’d love meeting professionals to consider us so we can really put Sarasota on the map!
Brian Lowack, President & CEO, Visit St. Pete-Clearwater
Business in St. Pete-Clearwater is brighter than ever! Fueled by a surge in new hotels and the destination’s ongoing and constant evolution, our area is highly desirable for conferences and meetings of all sizes. Everything that makes us America’s Favorite Beaches—a booming culinary scene, currently under review by inspectors of the MICHELIN Guide, attractions, world-renowned arts and culture, breathtaking outdoor experiences such as our iconic sunsets and so much more.
Meeting trends in St. Pete-Clearwater show a demand for diverse destination options, from luxury to affordable, with ample meeting space. Notably, there’s a rising interest in incorporating CSR projects into meeting agendas, and more importantly, we’re seeing significant growth in meetings that repeatedly come to our area, a great sign of not just strong client loyalty but also affinity to our destination and everything it has to offer. Meeting professionals are looking for destinations that offer a comprehensive list of things to do after a long day of sessions. Our valuable incentives and wide range of destination services—designed to streamline the planning process and enhance the overall meeting experience—is highly regarded by meeting professionals.
Some of the experiences include a myriad of breweries that compose the Gulp Coast and trendy rooftop bars to enjoy our sunsets.
Karen Morris, Director of Sales, Visit South Walton
Our destination is doing well with groups. We were busy during the pandemic and it hasn’t let up. Because we offer expansive beaches and open-air venues, we were a good alternative to meeting in major metropolitans so that kept us busy. Our peak season is in the summer–-the opposite of the rest of Florida—so planners should consider meeting here in the winter when our rates are considerably lower than our neighbors to the south. We are really trying to drive business to our off-season. One of the benefits to planners is if there’s an organization that’s gone to Florida in the winter and they’re finding they’ve been priced out of that market, they should consider South Walton.
Since we don’t have a convention center, we really do well with groups of up to 300, that’s a good size for us, but we can go up to 1,000. Some of our hotels have boardrooms for 12 or our largest property has 60,000 square feet of meeting space.
One of our greatest assets is having a choice of two airports attendees can fly into—Destin-Fort Walton Beach Airport (VPS) and Northwest Florida Beaches International Airport (ECP) with service from Delta, American, Southwest and United.
Santiago Corrada, President & CEO, Visit Tampa Bay
We’re doing better than most of Florida. Our occupancy and hotel development and the number of airlines flying into Tampa will make this another record-setting year.
We were lucky after the September hurricanes that we hosted a convention two days later. We saw our best November and December ever. In January we were 20% over what we were last year and a 30% increase as far as revenue. For 2025, we have more than 200 groups and one of our groups is booked for 2033 and 2038. We are booking groups into the 2030s!
The Tampa Bay Rays are going to be playing at Raymond James (instead of St. Pete), so we’ll also have pickup from people coming to the games. As far as new hotels, we have The Tampa Edition, Hotel Tampa Riverwalk, a Curio Collection, Springhill Suites and Palihouse Hyde Park Village, a new boutique hotel. The Seminole Hard Rock will be getting $65 million in renovations, as well. As far as off-site options, we have Sparkman Wharf, the Tampa Theatre, where groups have closed off the street in front of it and have had indoor/outdoor events.
The Florida Aquarium is adding exhibits and The Straz Center for the Performing Arts will expand with quite an amazing event space toward the Riverwalk. The Tampa Convention Center went through a renovation, and it is so convenient to everything outside, including the Pirate Water Taxi. We also just initiated the Treasured Saving Initiative for meeting professionals; if they book in 2025, we’ll pay their deposit at the convention center.
