It's been an award-winning year for Visit Orlando and the entire Orlando destination—with top awards and recognition from a variety of organizations covering everything from family travel and meetings and conventions to sports and more.

Destination Wins

• This week, Orlando was named a winner in the Good Housekeeping 2025 Family Travel Awards. Experts at the Good Housekeeping Institute, a leading consumer testing facility, spent eight months reviewing hundreds of travel products, services and experiences to identify the best family-friendly options. For Orlando they said, “There’s always something new in Orlando, the theme park hotspot that is gaining accolades for its cultural and dining scene.”
   
• The destination was ranked among the 2024 Top Thanksgiving Travel Destinations by Allianz Partners USA., based on a study of over 750,000 travel itineraries.
   
• Orlando also earned the title of Accessible Destination of the Year at the inaugural JRNY America Awards in London, judged by an independent panel of leading travel journalists.

Visit Orlando Awards

• Visit Orlando took home a Telly Award for our Black Travel Guide video produced in partnership with Urban One Media. The video, part of Visit Orlando's Orlando For All multicultural campaign, targets the African American market. The Telly Awards honor excellence in video and television across all platforms.
   
• For the second consecutive year, Visit Orlando was honored as Orlando Business Journal's Best Places to Work in Central Florida, a program that recognizes the region's companies that rate highest for employee satisfaction.
   
• The organization was also named Rookie of the Year in Domo’s second annual Domo Community Ovation Awards. Domo is an American cloud software company specializing in business intelligence tools and their awards recognize the innovative and impactful ways organizations use Domo to solve business challenges and drive positive outcomes.

Meetings & Conventions and Sports Recognition

• Orlando continues to lead, earning recognition as the Top Meeting Destination in North America by CVENT, a leading provider of meetings and event technology.
   
• The destination also received top honors in the 2024 Best of Meetings Today Awards by Meetings Today, and recognized as CVB/Destination of the Year in North America by HelmsBriscoe and earned a 2024 Smart Star by Smart Meetings.
   
• In sports, Orlando is making its mark as a destination for major events being ranked 2024 Best Sports Business City for Attracting and Hosting Events by Sports Business Journal.

These awards reflect our commitment to creating memorable experiences for visitors and showcasing the best our destination has to offer. We should all take pride in this recognition, which helps elevate the perception of our destination to the world.

Looking ahead, your Visit Orlando team will continue our commitment to inspire, promote and grow global travel benefiting our local economy and the community in new and exciting ways now, in 2025 and beyond.

We hope you can celebrate these accomplishments with us at Visit Orlando’s Year-End Celebration on Friday, December 6, at the Hilton Orlando. Register now.

Data & Trends

Metro Orlando’s hotel occupancy rate for the week ending November 9, 2024, was 72.6% which was down 5.4% from the same week last year. The average daily rate for the week was $195.39 which was down 0.9% from last year. Room night demand lagged prior year by 4.6%.

Around the Destination

Greater Orlando Aviation Authority’s Takeoff 2024: The Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) hosted Takeoff 2024 on Nov. 13, celebrating the Aviation Authority’s contributions to the Orlando region. Visit Orlando board member and CEO of Greater Orlando Aviation Authority, Kevin Thibault, and the GOAA team unveiled a new digital experience, including a brand-new logo (for MCO, ORL, GOAA and the Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting (ARFF) department), completely rebuilt website and a bold, innovative app to optimize efficiency for passengers and airport community. The new GOAA website and enhanced app are designed to modernize the Aviation Authority’s digital presence and align with the rebranding, with the website promising to deliver a faster, more secure, and user-friendly experience for all airport visitors. Learn more.

Additionally, Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger delivered the keynote at the event where he shared his story and love for aviation. Captain Sully recently served as the U.S. Ambassador and Representative to the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and is a sought-after speaker, safety expert, author and pilot.

I-Drive Chamber Visionary Award: Visit Orlando team members joined the I-Drive Chamber’s Annual Meeting this week, celebrating the impressive growth and achievements of the I-Drive corridor. During the luncheon, we learned about exciting new developments and transformative initiatives that will shape the future of the International Drive Resort Area as a premier, world-class destination. Congratulations to Universal Destinations & Experiences for receiving this year’s Visionary Award! Their contributions—from creating affordable housing with Catchlight Crossing to the development of Epic Universe—are making a positive impact on our region’s economy. 
 
Orange Appeal Recognition: Visit Orlando’s board member, Jennifer Evins, who serves as President & CEO at United Arts of Central Florida, was featured earlier this year in AdventHealth's "Women Are Incredible" series in Orange Appeal Magazine. Jennifer's leadership has brought United Arts of Central Florida to new heights, from raising $6.75 million in our collaborative campaign to expanding support from 32 to over 60 organizations. Read more. 
 
Junior Achievement of Central Florida: Congratulations to Bill Dymond, Visit Orlando board member and the chairman at Lowndes, who has been named a Laureate Honoree in the 47th class of the Junior Achievement of Central Florida's Hall of Fame. The recognition honors entrepreneurs and business leaders who have made significant contributions to the region's economic development through their commitment to business excellence.

Holiday Toy Drive: Orange County Mayor Jerry L. Demings’ annual Holiday Toy Drive has returned, celebrating 13 years of giving back to the community. Last year, over 11,500 toys were collected to support Orange County’s youth and family agencies, along with several nonprofits across the county. This year, Visit Orlando has created a drive to support Mayor Demings' toy drive. Please consider using Visit Orlando’s Toy Drive to donate. Purchases can be made online, and items will be shipped directly to the county.

New Ride DTO: Earlier this year, Mayor Dyer announced an exciting initiative, Ride DTO, enhancing the downtown experience. Ride DTO offers an innovative, on-demand transit service that picks you up and drops you off at your desired destination downtown for just $1. You can also enjoy your first three rides for FREE with code RIDEDTO! Read more.

Visit Orlando Engaged!

FPRA Student Presentation: Visit Orlando’s VP of Communications, Denise Spiegel, presented to 15 Florida State University students who are all members of Florida Public Relations Association – Student Capital Chapter. While majoring in public relations, they each have interests that span from business to tourism and hospitality. Denise shared an overview of Visit Orlando, our Communications team and a case study on our work to elevate the perception of Orlando’s culinary and dining scene.

Conference Direct CD Forum: This week, ConferenceDirect held its CD Forum at the Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin Resort. The forum provided valuable insights into trends shaping the meetings industry, along with networking opportunities and ways to discover top venues and services for future events. Visit Orlando has a strong partnership with ConferenceDirect, as they help connect clients to the destination during site visits. ConferenceDirect has also named Visit Orlando “Partner of the Year” and “CVB of the Year” multiple times. During their forum, Visit Orlando’s Chief Sales Officer, Lisa Messina, moderated a panel with meeting planners, highlighting some of Orlando’s exciting new updates.

Brazil Super FAM: Visit Orlando’s Travel Industry Sales team hosted 24 tour operators from Brazil for a Super FAM. Participants experienced Orlando’s theme parks and attractions, world-class shopping, and diverse dining, including Walt Disney World Resort, Universal Orlando Resort, an Orlando Magic game, Wild Florida, ICON Park, The Mall at Millenia and Premium Outlets, among other experiences. The group also connected with 24 member companies at the Visit Orlando Marketplace to learn more about our destination and to increase their portfolio of offerings.

In the News

Yahoo!: Expedia teams up to launch travel shops
 
Our Community Now: Best cities to visit in Florida, from Miami to Jacksonville
 
Trade Show News Network: Interview with Visit Orlando CEO Casandra Matej reveals exciting developments and opportunities for events
 
Orlando Weekly: 20 hotly anticipated new restaurants expected to open in Orlando by the end of the year
 
Travel Weekly: Fred Dixon begins Tenure as Brand USA's CEO with strategic initiatives