28 months after Hurricane Ian wreaked havoc on Southwest Florida, SanCap President John Lai reported last week that of the 1,728 rooms that were available before Ian on Sanibel, only 483 are available today. The good news is that Lai expects that number to jump to 45% by Valentine’s Day.
Lai says hotels on Sanibel are pacing at about 80% occupancy. Lai also said 90% of the non-accommodation businesses on Sanibel have reopened. His research from Hurricane Irma in the Florida Keys told him that once the number of rooms available goes over the 40% mark, the island will be better able to support those local businesses.
In 2024 The SanCap Chamber held 46 ribbon cuttings to usher back new businesses. Lai also said that restaurants on Sanibel and Captiva are reporting that 2-3 days a week there is a 30-minute wait for dinner. “It’s the first time I’ve been happy to hear I have to wait to get a seat.”
Lai spoke about the Chamber’s Wander app, which is available on mobile devices. It allows visitors to see what businesses are open on Sanibel and Captiva, where they are located, and the hours they are open.
County-wide, nearly 80% of the number of hotel rooms that were available before Hurricane Ian are available today, including just under 50% on Fort Myers Beach, According to the latest Tourist Development Council statistics. Nearly 100 more rooms are expected to come back online on the beach when The Best Western reopens which is expected in the next few months.
Note this chart below does not match the numbers Lai provided for Sanibel above. Lai’s numbers are more current for Sanibel.
Wouldn’t it be nice to have these kind of statistics for FMB, like Sanibel has? I have ask for them from the TC and from the chamber of commerce a couple of times, to no avail. Why won’t the individual TC members give us their visions of FMB (% and # permanent residents, % and # of snow birds, # hotel rooms, # of short term rentals, # long term rentals, # and capacity of restaurants, etc. ? Even if their vision is as many high rises, high density as they can get, at least they would be transparent.
FMB needs short term lodging, especially on the south end! It will mean mess “day trippers.”