luckie
07-06-2006, 12:18 PM
More tourists opt to skip theme parks and visit natural parks
The Business Journal of Jacksonville
June 30, 2006
by Dolly Penland
http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/stories/2006/07/03/focus3.html?from_rss=1
JACKSONVILLE -- Tourism has always been Florida's bread and butter. According to Visit Florida, the state's tourism marketing corporation, 85 million people visited the state in 2005, spending $62 billion. Most of that is spent at traditional destinations such as theme parks or for beach vacations, but more and more people want to experience "the real Florida" -- boosting the fast-growing ecotourism market. Ecotourists seek out nature-based outdoor activities that typically mix recreation with education. They want to see natural areas untouched by development and learn something in the process. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission estimates these outdoors activities have a nearly $8 billion yearly impact on the state's economy. Many ecotourists head to the Keys or the Everglades, but hundreds of other natural areas across Florida, from lakes, rivers and springs to the parks and forests, are seeing an upswing in visitors. With a wealth of unspoiled natural resources, Northeast Florida is becoming more of an ecotourism destination in its own right each year.
The Fairbanks House bed and breakfast owners Bill and Theresa Hamilton said they have seen a noticeable increase in ecotourists in the past nine years. "It's very much a draw," Theresa said. "There are certainly places that are more exciting and have more nightlife and shopping, but they come to Amelia Island, at least our guests do, for a different day. They want to relax and do things they can't where they live because we do have so much preserved around here. They want to do things like the Segway tours and the kayaking and the boat tours to learn about the ecosystem. We have the Greenway; and Fort Clinch State Park is 20 percent of the island, where many of our guests go to take nature walks and do a little birding while here." In fact, with nearly 180 species of birds that breed in Florida and 300 that migrate here in winter, Florida is a birdwatcher's paradise, second only to California in retail sales generated by what the fish and wildlife commission calls nonconsumptive bird use, approximately $477 million every year.
It is not just birds; people want to see animals in their natural habitat, and wildlife-watching in general is increasingly popular. That is one reason Ecomotion Tours opened for business March 1. The company provides guided tours along the forest trails of Fort George Island Cultural State Park, from the Ribault Club to the National Park Service's Kingsley Plantation, using self-balancing scooters called Segways. As of June 8, 278 people have taken the Segway tours, including many who would otherwise not have made a long hike through the woods. "People are driving for this [service] from Palm Coast and St. Augustine and as far away as Gainesville," said Greg Arnett, who co-owns Ecomotion Tours with his wife, Maren. "It's far less strenuous than walking or biking. You still have to guide the machines, so it's not effortless. But it is far more accessible for people." The company also provides custom tours for corporations. "We have a lot of corporate folks taking our trips and reporting back that this is great for team building," Maren said. Riding a Segway "is a new skill, so everyone gets it at a different rate, and you'll watch people helping one another out."
Another local ecotourism company, Kayak Amelia, has seen the number of people kayaking with it grow each year, from 300 paddlers in 1997 to 3,400 in 2005. "We moved from New Hampshire, where kayaking is very popular," said Jody Hetchka, who owns Kayak Amelia with her husband, Ray. "We said, 'This is perfect. There are so many places to paddle and the water doesn't freeze.' And people looked at us and said, 'What do you do with that thing?' " Now, 10 years later, "We don't have to explain what a kayak is any more," she said. Businesses also use Kayak Amelia for corporate retreats. "The employees and the customers get to interact with each other on a more personal basis and put faces with names," away from the office, said Angelia Walsh, in administration at Nassau Terminals, which took 12 people paddling in April. "It's less business and more friends, and because the employees are involved and the customers are involved, it strengthens the relationships." As more people look to spend time in natural places, Northeast Florida's abundance of wild and preserved lands should continue to draw more tourists.
The Business Journal of Jacksonville
June 30, 2006
by Dolly Penland
http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/stories/2006/07/03/focus3.html?from_rss=1
JACKSONVILLE -- Tourism has always been Florida's bread and butter. According to Visit Florida, the state's tourism marketing corporation, 85 million people visited the state in 2005, spending $62 billion. Most of that is spent at traditional destinations such as theme parks or for beach vacations, but more and more people want to experience "the real Florida" -- boosting the fast-growing ecotourism market. Ecotourists seek out nature-based outdoor activities that typically mix recreation with education. They want to see natural areas untouched by development and learn something in the process. The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission estimates these outdoors activities have a nearly $8 billion yearly impact on the state's economy. Many ecotourists head to the Keys or the Everglades, but hundreds of other natural areas across Florida, from lakes, rivers and springs to the parks and forests, are seeing an upswing in visitors. With a wealth of unspoiled natural resources, Northeast Florida is becoming more of an ecotourism destination in its own right each year.
The Fairbanks House bed and breakfast owners Bill and Theresa Hamilton said they have seen a noticeable increase in ecotourists in the past nine years. "It's very much a draw," Theresa said. "There are certainly places that are more exciting and have more nightlife and shopping, but they come to Amelia Island, at least our guests do, for a different day. They want to relax and do things they can't where they live because we do have so much preserved around here. They want to do things like the Segway tours and the kayaking and the boat tours to learn about the ecosystem. We have the Greenway; and Fort Clinch State Park is 20 percent of the island, where many of our guests go to take nature walks and do a little birding while here." In fact, with nearly 180 species of birds that breed in Florida and 300 that migrate here in winter, Florida is a birdwatcher's paradise, second only to California in retail sales generated by what the fish and wildlife commission calls nonconsumptive bird use, approximately $477 million every year.
It is not just birds; people want to see animals in their natural habitat, and wildlife-watching in general is increasingly popular. That is one reason Ecomotion Tours opened for business March 1. The company provides guided tours along the forest trails of Fort George Island Cultural State Park, from the Ribault Club to the National Park Service's Kingsley Plantation, using self-balancing scooters called Segways. As of June 8, 278 people have taken the Segway tours, including many who would otherwise not have made a long hike through the woods. "People are driving for this [service] from Palm Coast and St. Augustine and as far away as Gainesville," said Greg Arnett, who co-owns Ecomotion Tours with his wife, Maren. "It's far less strenuous than walking or biking. You still have to guide the machines, so it's not effortless. But it is far more accessible for people." The company also provides custom tours for corporations. "We have a lot of corporate folks taking our trips and reporting back that this is great for team building," Maren said. Riding a Segway "is a new skill, so everyone gets it at a different rate, and you'll watch people helping one another out."
Another local ecotourism company, Kayak Amelia, has seen the number of people kayaking with it grow each year, from 300 paddlers in 1997 to 3,400 in 2005. "We moved from New Hampshire, where kayaking is very popular," said Jody Hetchka, who owns Kayak Amelia with her husband, Ray. "We said, 'This is perfect. There are so many places to paddle and the water doesn't freeze.' And people looked at us and said, 'What do you do with that thing?' " Now, 10 years later, "We don't have to explain what a kayak is any more," she said. Businesses also use Kayak Amelia for corporate retreats. "The employees and the customers get to interact with each other on a more personal basis and put faces with names," away from the office, said Angelia Walsh, in administration at Nassau Terminals, which took 12 people paddling in April. "It's less business and more friends, and because the employees are involved and the customers are involved, it strengthens the relationships." As more people look to spend time in natural places, Northeast Florida's abundance of wild and preserved lands should continue to draw more tourists.