TAMPA – The February Super Bowl 55 Economic Reward inspires another sporting term in the Hillsborough County’s tourism industry: rebound.

Instead of collecting failed basketballs, the tourism industry is attracting more and more visitors. Tourist tax and hotel occupancy data reported to the Tourist Development Council on Friday showed that the nearly year-long slowdown in tourism caused by the pandemic is reversing.

Tourist taxes levied in February when Super Bowl 55 was played at Raymond James Stadium amounted to nearly $ 4 million, the highest amount since February 2020. The numbers were also high in March. The county raised $ 3.875 million in taxes on lodging. compared to $ 2.7 million in March 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic hit mid-month.

“It’s been two strong months,” said Ron. Barton, assistant county administrator for economic prosperity. “… Basically we are recovering. This is good news, we’re not back to pre-pandmee levels, but we’re on our way. “

For the first seven months of the fiscal year, the county’s tax revenue was nearly $ 17.7 million. A year ago that seven month total was more than $ 24 million, a record pace that stalled with the economic stalemate. The county collected just $ 6 million in tourist taxes in the last five months of last fiscal year.

Connected: The Super Bowl weekend filled Hillsborough hotels with a 92 percent capacity.

The hotel occupancy also meant a recovering tourism industry. The occupancy of the hotels in the district was 70.7 percent in March, below the national average of 71.2 percent, but still 40 percent higher than a year ago.

“Yes, the recovery is well underway,” said Santiago Corrada, president and CEO of Visit Tampa Bay, the county’s tourism promotion agency.

The number of visitors, Corrada said, doesn’t include international travelers or cruise industry passengers. Conventions work with around 60 percent personal capacity while the rest meet virtually, he said.

“Think about these factors that come into play,” Corrada said. “We are going in a good direction.”

Occupancy is slightly skewed from a year ago, Corrada said, as several new hotels opened last year, bringing the number of rooms in the county to 25,500.

The improved financial picture will allow the county to resume previous financial commitments for capital improvements for the Tampa Convention Center, Plant City Sports Complex, and other venues that were put on hold during the pandemic. The money for these projects will be included in the Tourist Development Council’s 2022 budget, which will be voted on in August and go into effect October 1, Barton said.

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