GlobeSt.com UPDATE: Business Down 35% at Area Attractions

ORLANDO-A mild attendance recovery at area hotels and attractions following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks have been wiped out by new anthrax fears that have plummeted gate receipts by 35% for the week ended Oct. 9, according to the Florida Attractions Association.

The trade group monitored 22 statewide parks in this 600-mile long state. Business was down an average 25% throughout the state. Orlando was hit hardest, largely because of the volume of new and planned hotel rooms, says the Orlando/Orange County Visitors Bureau.

The bureau, headed by Bill Peeper, is spending $5 million on a promotional tourism package that comprises electronic and print media advertising; discounts at hotels and attractions; and related tourist-attracting concepts.