Businesses on Fort Myers Beach are grateful as the spring break season continues to bring larger crowds to the island.
Local beachfront restaurants say this year's spring break is on track to be the busiest since Hurricane Ian.
“It’s just wonderful having people back on the island,” said Snug Harbor General Manager Raymond Donovan. “It seems like every year since Ian, more and more people are coming back.”
Since the hurricane, more hotels have reopened, and larger crowds have started to return.
For some businesses, like Smokin’ Oyster Brewery, this is their first spring break since Hurricane Ian.
“Since we’ve been open, it’s just been a huge success,” said Smokin’ Oyster Operating Partner Hank Leitnaker. “We’ve had tons of people come back in. They love the place. We brought back a lot of the old menu, and people really love that. We’ve added some new favorites, too.”
For Nervous Nellie’s, this is only the second busy season since the storm destroyed their building.
“We love it,” said Nervous Nellie’s General Manager Danny Timothy. “This is what we do. This is what we love—being busy and taking care of our guests. We’ve got a great community on the island, and visitors from up north just keep coming back.”
With more business comes more traffic.
“I know everybody’s frustrated with the traffic coming over the bridge, but this is huge,” Leitnaker said. “I love the traffic because it means people are coming to the beach. The beach is reviving, and a lot of new hotels are back open.”
This week, it has taken some visitors more than an hour to get to the beach. But for spring breakers like Kali and Sophia Wallis, it’s all worth it.
“It’s been so much fun,” they said. “There’s so much to do. I know we’re talking about doing the Goofy Golf right out there, too.”
Despite slow-moving traffic, business owners say it’s a small price to pay to keep their businesses alive after a turbulent few hurricane seasons.