South Florida sun is getting less competitive against global economic gloom.

Recent news from the tourism sector points to growing softness and alarm. Hotel bookings appear to be off for this weekend's boat show in Fort Lauderdale, the biggest fall event for that city.

That could be a prelude to disappointment over the biggest weekend on Miami Beach's tourism calendar, with room reservations off 12 percent for February's Miami International Boat Show.

And on Tuesday, the Keys announced a $500,000 emergency ad campaign to lure visitors, pitching a laid-back island's pace as an antidote to the financial crisis.

One print promotion shows a shot of the Seven Mile Bridge from the air. ''Officially, it's called the Overseas Highway,'' reads the ad. ``But in times like these, it's a road to recovery.''

Analysts don't expect hotels to be immune from the economic fallout that has walloped the stock market, crushed housing prices, squeezed corporate profits and discouraged consumer spending.

But there's hope that South Florida's popularity with wealthy travelers -- particularly those from overseas -- could keep tourism a bright spot in the economy.

International visitors hit record numbers this year in Miami-Dade, where nearly one of every two tourists is from another country. But Miami-Dade saw its first six-month decline in U.S. visitors since the period immediately after the 9/11 attacks.

SMALL INCREASE

Revenue collected on the average hotel room, a key industry measure, is up 2.6 percent in Miami-Dade this year -- the smallest increase for that market in at least five years, according to Smith Travel Research.

It dropped 2.4 percent in Broward and 6.6 percent in the Keys -- two markets that rely heavily on U.S. tourists.

With Europeans back home from summer holidays, hotels' performance this fall could help answer how much South Florida tourism will suffer during the busy winter vacation season.

The Fort Lauderdale International Boat Show stands as the first big tourism barometer after this fall's financial meltdown, since the event regularly packs hotels along the city's waterfront.

It attracts both corporate travelers in the marine industry and vacationers pursuing the fun (and fantasy) of a high-end nautical festival.

Organizers of the boat show expect attendance to drop 8 percent to 12 percent this year, thanks to economic woes.

Most of the preferred hotels for the show have dropped lucrative five-day stay requirements in the face of weak bookings, said Dane Graziano, chief operating officer of the company that runs the show.

And with just three days to go before the show starts, the headquarters hotel, Bahia Mar, still had rooms to sell at $490 a night Tuesday, as did nearby hotels usually sold out by now.

''I would say we're going to probably end up at least 15 percent off compared to last year,'' said Walter Banks, owner of the Lago Mar resort, where the boat show weekend usually means a sellout. ``It's not horrible, but it was 100 [percent occupancy] every year I can remember.''

The resort took a big hit when one of the show's top sponsors, Key Bank, pulled out of the event after shuttering its marine lending division. Key had booked a large room block and planned a lavish party at Lago Mar.

George Cozonis, general manager of the Atlantic, one of Fort Lauderdale's priciest hotels, said boat show reservations aren't down ``as dramatically as we feared.''

Join the discussion

Note: If this is your first time using our NEW commenting system, you will have to LOG OUT and then LOG BACK IN.

The Miami Herald is pleased to provide this opportunity to share information, experiences and observations about what's in the news. Some of the comments may be reprinted elsewhere in the site or in the newspaper. We encourage lively, open debate on the issues of the day, and ask that you refrain from profanity, hate speech, personal comments and remarks that are off point. In order to post comments, you must be a registered user of MiamiHerald.com. Your username will show along with the comments you post. Thank you for taking the time to offer your thoughts.

     Showing: Oldest first Newest first Most-recommended first Least-recommended first

@Nyx.AuthorDisplayName@ wrote on @Nyx.PostedAtTime@:

@Nyx.CommentBody@

@Nyx.Recommender@ @Nyx.AbuseReporter@