The head of Visit Florida on Aug. 28 responded to the controversy over the destination marketing organization's removal of LGBTQ+ travel information from its website.
Dana Young
"Visit Florida is a taxpayer-funded organization, and as such, Visit Florida -- our marketing strategy, our materials and our content -- must align with the state," Visit Florida CEO Dana Young said during a board meeting on Aug. 28.
"Florida has always been and will continue to be a very, very welcoming state. That is evidenced by the incredible tourism numbers that we presented last week and at this board meeting, and Visit Florida is committed to continuing that message of being welcoming to everyone as we move through the next year and through the next many years in our partnership with the state of Florida."
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also addressed the issue on Aug. 28 during a news conference, where he said did not know the LGBTQ+ travel information was being removed.
"Our view as a state is we are the best place to visit, we're open to all, but we're not going to be segregating people by these different characteristics," DeSantis said. "That's just not how we've done business in any
of the things that we've done -- that's just not how we're operating. So we have
people from all walks of life that come and they enjoy the state of Florida."
Visit Florida still has online travel guides dedicated to its African American and Hispanic heritage.
When local Florida news outlets reported that Visit Florida removed LGBTQ+ information, other DMO leaders voiced their concern.
"It's just disgusting to see this," Keith Blackburn, who heads the Greater Fort Lauderdale LGBT Chamber of Commerce, told the Associated Press. "They seem to want to erase us."
This is not the first time Florida's travel industry has had to answer questions about inclusivity. In 2023, the NAACP issued a Florida travel advisory, calling the state "openly hostile" toward people of color and LGBTQ+ individuals.
At the time, Young told Travel Weekly that given the state's record-setting first quarter that year, "these numbers reflect how welcoming and hospitable Florida is and how diverse Florida is."
DeSantis addressed some of those previous advisories as well.
“Over
the years a lot of activist groups call for travel advisories against Florida
just because they don't like certain policies that we're bucking the left on," he said.
"As they've done that, I think we've continued to set tourism records.”