Hotel & Tourism SMARTreport #44
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
AMERICAS & THE CARIBBEAN<br />
TRENDING DESTINATIONS<br />
ON TURTLES, BOATS AND YOGA<br />
WITH GOATS<br />
… Off the beaten track in southwestern Florida<br />
THE FORT MYERS, CAPE<br />
AND SANIBEL REGION OF<br />
SOUTHWEST FLORIDA HAS<br />
A PACKED AND EXTREMELY<br />
VARIED AGENDA OF EVENTS<br />
AND ATTRACTIONS OVER THE<br />
NEXT SIX MONTHS. THIS IS<br />
JUST A SNAPSHOT OF WHAT<br />
COULD BRING TRAVELLERS TO<br />
THIS STRETCH OF THE GULF OF<br />
MEXICO.<br />
There are regular festivals like September’s Island<br />
Hopper Songwriter Fest and the American Sand<br />
Sculpting Championship and Beach Festival<br />
in November/December. The 33 rd running of<br />
this event sees master sand sculptors, a state<br />
championship contest, an amateur contest, sand<br />
sculpting lessons and more, with over 1,000 tons<br />
of sand used on Fort Myers Beach. For indoor<br />
entertainment, the Florida Repertory Theatre<br />
is located in Fort Myers historic arcade and has<br />
recently had upgrades to its interior. The 2019<br />
/2020 season includes ‘An Inspector Calls’ by<br />
J B Priestley and Neil Simon’s “Barefoot in The<br />
Park”. In March, the 21 st annual Southwest<br />
Florida Reading Festival takes place at the Fort<br />
Myers Regional Library, a free event for families to<br />
celebrate the power of books.<br />
LIFESTYLE & WILDLIFE<br />
There are plenty of local wellness-related products,<br />
with yoga proving popular – especially themed<br />
classes including yoga with flamingos at Everglades<br />
Wonder Gardens in Bonita Springs and barnyard<br />
yoga in Lehigh Acres, which involves practising<br />
the mindful art in the presence of goats. For other<br />
ways to interact with wildlife, tourists come to the<br />
region for shelling and for loggerhead sea turtle<br />
nesting and hatching season. Between May and<br />
October, the endangered animals travel hundreds<br />
of miles to return to the Florida coastline – and<br />
visitors can witness this.<br />
Useppa island, Florida, USA,<br />
is home to luxury resorts<br />
HOSPITALITY NEWS:<br />
THE LUMINARY HOTEL & CO. TO OPEN IN 2020,<br />
DOWNTOWN FORT MYERS<br />
The 237-room, 12-story hotel along the waterfront of downtown Fort<br />
Myers plans to open in Q3 2020 with 8,000 square feet of function space.<br />
It will be connected to the neighbouring Harborside Event Center. A<br />
signature restaurant, rooftop lounge, culinary theatre, indoor and outdoor<br />
fitness facility, and spacious pool area on the fourth floor overlooking the<br />
Caloosahatchee River, as well as a local diner and retail space at street<br />
level will be included. Outlets: Silver King, Ella Mae’s Diner, The Workshop,<br />
Beacon Social Drinkery. The hotel will be a part of Marriott’s Autograph<br />
Collection.<br />
MARGARITAVILLE RESORT<br />
SET TO OPEN IN 2021<br />
Playing off the brand and laid-back beach lifestyle made famous by singer<br />
and songwriter Jimmy Buffet, the resort will be built near the Times Square<br />
area of Fort Myers Beach with opening planned for 2021.
Change language