May 03–Tourism leaders have 66 million reasons to smile — that's how many tourists came to Orlando in 2015, representing a new record by more than 3 million visitors.

George Aguel, president and chief executive officer of Visit Orlando, the region's tourism arm, revealed 2015's tourist numbers Monday during its annual Travel & Tourism luncheon.

Aguel said expansion at the region's theme parks positioned Orlando for repeat visitors.

"That's the beauty we have going for us," he said. "A lot of destinations and cities, not that much new shows up. It's kind of like a little bit more of the same."

Aguel said 2015 was the first full year Orlando benefited from the opening of the Wizarding World of Harry Potter — Diagon Alley at Universal Studios Resort, which opened in July 2014. An overhaul of Disney's Hollywood Studios at Walt Disney World and potential plans for a large plot of land Universal purchased last year will only continue to feed the market.

Last year's 5.42 percent growth comes a year after Orlando became the first U.S. destination, at 62.7 million visitors, to surpass the 60 million mark. It also doubles Orlando's visits in the past 20 years — Orlando welcomed 32.4 million visitors in 1995.

Peter Kacheris, chairman of the Visit Orlando board, said higher tourist numbers sustain the recent increase in Orlando's hotel rooms, which also has required political support.

"I think the county has taken the steps to improve the roads and the fact that the infrastructure is getting better and better and bigger and bigger," said Kacheris, the managing director of the Waldorf Astoria Orlando and Hilton Orlando Bonnet Creek.

"At the end of the day, the parks are putting more money into their properties and we're adding more hotel rooms," he said.

March tourist-tax collections, which are charged on short-term rentals like hotels and motels, were up 8 percent in year-over-year figures, Orange County Comptroller Martha Haynie said Monday in a news release. The 6-cent rate funds tourism-related expenditures in the county including funding Visit Orlando, as well as paying for debt on Orange County Convention Center debt and other venues in Orlando.

"Orange County's tourist development tax collection have been on an amazing growth trend for almost three years, and it is no wonder that these numbers are generating some excitement," said Haynie.

A record 33 million room nights were sold in Orlando during 2015 and $230 million was collected in tourist development taxes, said Visit Orlando leaders.

Visitors' growth in 2015 to 66.1 million also leaned partly on the rebounding strength of the American dollar, although it also resulted in some softer international numbers.

Canadians, for example, are seeing a decreased value in currency as the American economy continues to recover, said Aguel.

The same goes for Brazil, which ranked No. 1 among overseas visitors, Visit Orlando leaders said last year.

Brazilian tourists edged out United Kingdom and were second only to Canada among all foreign countries.

Aguel said Visit Orlando continues to heavily market in the South American country, choosing to build on recent efforts.

"Because we know this is temporary and we don't want to lose our market share," said Aguel. "So we want to make sure we don't sacrifice that for near-term thinking."

Other international markets, including the United Kingdom, had a strong showing in 2015, said Aguel.

Last year, Visit Orlando leaders launched a new global marketing campaign called "Orlando — the Never Ending Story" to reach potential tourists on a larger scale.

The campaign, said Aguel, targeted the emotional connection tourists have to Orlando and promotes use of the #MyOrlandoStory social-media hashtag for visitors to share their memories on outlets like Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Aguel also attributed 2015's growth to Orlando's overall balance of offerings beyond theme parks.

"I think what we're finding is happening is the fact is we're populating our community with so many other things to do," he said, adding dining and retail are among the main drivers for tourists.

Monday's announcement secures Orlando's rank as the most-visited destination in the U.S. New York in January reported 2015 tourism figures of 58.3 million.

Aguel expects another increase in visitors during 2016, but one not as robust.

"As you look ahead you think, 'You can't do anymore,' and then you realize you can," said Aguel.

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