DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Jeep Beach is back in Daytona Beach this year after it was canceled in 2020 because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Volusia County officials estimate at least 200,000 people will be in attendance, with at least 20,000 Jeeps rolling in for the event.
“The entire area here in the East Halifax are benefiting from these organizations and these activities,” said Kate Holcomb, with the Daytona Beach Area Convention and Visitor’s Bureau.
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Most of the week’s events are at the Hard Rock Hotel and International Speedway but visitors stay all over the county.
“Many of the hotels are having better numbers than they did in years past,” said Bob Davis, with the Volusia County Lodging and Hospitality Association.
Davis expects it to be one of the biggest in event history, especially after seeing the crowds this year at Bike Week.
“The entire Daytona Beach area was sold out and immediately when they left after those 14 days, we’ve got family vacation,” he said.
The Convention and Visitors Bureau studies economic impact through bed-tax collections. Every time someone pays for a hotel, they pay a 3% bed tax.
Holcomb said the latest numbers from February, when the Daytona 500 took place, show some of the pandemic’s effects on the industry still.
“We were just under 20% down and while that is still down from the year before, we were doing much better than many of our Central Florida counterparts,” she said.
Holcomb said Jeep Beach’s economic reach goes beyond hotels and restaurants, though. Over the last decade, event organizers have donated over $2 million to area charities.
“The hard-working volunteers who put on all of these activities, they are doing what’s called party with a purpose,” Holcomb said.
Daytona Beach police also want to remind anybody who is going to drive through the county to be aware of the increased traffic. Jeep Beach’s events run from Monday to Sunday.