This week Queer News Tonight reported that Visit Florida, the state's official visitor promotion agency to a worldwide audience, has quietly eliminated all LGBTQ embracement and promotion of travel to Florida. It was a shocking decision because Disney is the largest LGBTQ employer in the world and three of the top LGBTQ destinations in the world are here in Florida. Meanwhile, Visit Lauderdale reported that Florida's loss was Greater Ft Lauderdale's gain. This week, Visit Lauderdale is the sponsor in Provincetown with a dramatic marketing effort on why the world should continue to travel to Florida, specifically Broward County. Provincetown's famous Carnival had a Visit Lauderdale float and participation in many events. The messages were "We Say Gay" in Greater Ft Lauderdale. Simultaneously, Richard Gray, Senior Vice President at Visit Lauderdale, revealed why events like this are so critically important to our community. He spoke to Queer News Tonight Executive Producer Al Ferguson to talk about the strength of the LGBTQ travel market. New annual numbers showed that Greater Ft Lauderdale had 21.9 million domestic travelers that stayed at least one night. The average spending by these guests was $260 per person. New reporting also showed that LGBTQ+ community spending was 50% more at $390 per person. An astounding 13% of all visitors were LGBTQ, and that amounted to 2.8 million Queer visitors. Is marketing to the LGBTQ worldwide community important? Gray's answer was clear. The annual report showed that LGBTQ spending in Greater Ft Lauderdale was $1.12 billion dollars and the report didn't stop there. The new figures were even better for international visitors. 15% of all international visitors to Greater Ft Lauderdale were LGBTQ which accounted for a jaw-dropping 375,000 visitors who spent $243 million dollars. The result is clear. Governor Ron DeSantis and the state's Visit Florida have now denied diversity in a spending category that is far greater for LGBTQ travelers to Florida. In total, Visit Lauderdale reports that the LGBTQ community traveler generated more than $1.4 billion dollars. That makes Greater Ft Lauderdale the #1 LGBTQ tourism destination in the world. Governor DeSantis and Florida's loss is Greater Ft Lauderdale's gain. Queer News Tonight wonders if anyone told Disney and Universal about Greater Ft Lauderdale's news? #Queer Up South Florida & Florida