Orlando Announces Record 75 Million Visitors in 2018! #VisitOrlando

- Michelle Snow
[Left to Right] Adrian Jones (Visit Orlando Board Chair and Divisional Director USA, Merlin Entertainments USA Inc.); Orange County Mayor Jerry L. Demings; and George Aguel (President and CEO, Visit Orlando) celebrate a record 75 million visitors to Orlando in 2018.

Visit Orlando and local tourism officials have announced a historic milestone for the U.S. travel industry as Orlando released news of a record-setting 75 million annual visitors in 2018.

This is an increase of 4.2% over 2017’s 72 million visitors, and once again solidifies Orlando’s lead position as America’s most-visited destination.

Orlando also reached a host of other new milestones in 2018 including:

  • Record number of U.S. visitors: 68.55 million (+4.1%)
  • Record number of international visitors: 6.48 million (+5.4%)
  • Record airline arrivals: Orlando International Airport (OIA) maintained its position as the busiest airport in Florida, with 47.7 million passengers (+6.9%)
  • Record international airline arrivals: OIA’s international arrivals reached 6.6 million passengers (+11.64%)

“It was another record-breaking year for Orlando with both domestic and international visitation,” said Visit Orlando President and CEO George Aguel. “We saw strong gains from all of our core countries, particularly from Latin America. This success is a testament to the special appeal of our destination that continues to grow and evolve, as well as our strong commitment to strategic marketing initiatives.”

I predict Orlando will hit another milestone next year with attractions like Universal Orlando’s Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Ride and Walt Disney World’s Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge opening later this year.

Congrats to the city of Orlando and it’s surrounding areas for drawing record numbers of guests to enjoy all we have to offer!

[Photo courtesy of Visit Orlando]

About Michelle Snow

Michelle is the owner and editor of CitySurfing Orlando. She also owns Zengrrl.com, is a freelance writer specializing in travel and entertainment, has authored/co-authored four guidebooks on Orlando and Florida, and is head editor/writer at TheDisneyBlog.com. She's lived in Orlando near Walt Disney World since 1995, and still finds there's so much fun to be had in Central Florida.
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