Tourism Then and Today
Whether going by boat, railcar, or automobile, ever since people have been able to conveniently travel south (and even before!), they have been drawn to Florida. Tourism, along with agriculture and development, has long been one of its major industries. The earliest days of Florida tourism might have seen invalids sunning in St. Augustine, while a little later wealthy tourists traveled by train or yacht to lavish hotels and sportsmen and sportswomen came to golf or fish. When highways opened, an era of ‘tin can tourism’ began (whether this name came from the ‘Tin Lizzie’ Model T or the canned food tourists brought isn’t known). The Dixie Highway from Montreal to Miami was completed in 1915, bringing an ever-increasing number of tourists in cars, campers, and trailers. In turn, they spurred better roads (Tin Can Tourism, n.d., par. 1, par. 7) and many roadside attractions.
Cypress Gardens, which opened in 1936, was considered Florida’s first commercial theme park and many followed, such as Marineland in 1938, the Weeki Wachee mermaid show in 1947, Ripley’s Believe It or Not in 1950, and Busch Gardens in 1968. But in 1971, the opening of Walt Disney World near Orlando changed the face of central Florida, as well as the course of tourism in the state. The theme park’s first year brought around $14 billion to central Florida’s economy. Many other attractions followed in Disney World’s wake, such as Sea World and Universal Studios. According to an impact study commissioned by Disney, its theme park and related businesses currently generate more than $18 billion per year and employ one out of every 50 workers in the state of Florida (Garcia, 2011, par. 1). All together, central Florida’s theme parks and related tourist industries generate $32 billion per year—and in 2012 alone, they produced more than $216 million in tourist taxes.
Read about 'tin can tourism' and view photos at the link below.
https://tincantourists.com/2016/02/01/tin-can-tourists-history/
Click the link below for a glimpse of what Florida tourist attractions looked like before Walt Disney World arrived.
https://www.visitflorida.com/en-us/things-to-do/attractions/classic-florida-attractions.html
Read a capsule history of Florida tourism at the link below.
