Volusia's tourism numbers took a dip in 2023 after two record-setting years before.

In The Loop newsletter.

In The Loop newsletter.

In The Loop newsletter.

Velvet Sessions are making a return to Hard Rock Hotel at Universal Orlando next month, the company announced on Friday.

Superstar recording artists Shaggy and FloRida are coming to Hard Rock to celebrate healthcare workers.

ORLANDO, Fla. Hotels at the Universal Orlando Resort announced more than 800 employees will be losing their jobs as the Florida theme park industry continues to be devastated by the pandemic. The employees at Hard Rock Hotel, Loews Portofino Bay Hotel and Cabana Bay Beach Resort were indefinitely furloughed or permanently terminated, according to a notice filed last week by the company Loews Hotels & Co.A company director said in a letter to the state that the surge of confirmed cases in late June and July and other states' decisions to order Florida travelers to quarantine had caused a sudden, dramatic and unexpected reversal in bookings." The affected employees were not represented by a union. They work as cooks, chefs, servers, receptionists and housekeepers. Loews Hotels & Co had already shut down two other Universal Orlando hotels due to the coronavirus impact on tourism, The Orlando Sentinel reported.

All rights reserved)ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. Universal Orlando announced two more hotels will temporarily close. Hotels to temporarily close on Aug. 21:Loews Sapphire Falls ResortUniversals Aventura HotelHotels already temporarily closed:Loews Portofino Bay HotelUniversals Endless Summer Resort Dockside Inn and SuitesOpen hotels:Hard Rock HotelLoews Royal Pacific ResortUniversals Cabana Bay Beach ResortUniversals Endless Summer Resort Surfside Inn and SuitesThe reopening of the temporarily closed hotels will be announced at a later date, according to Universal. Anyone who has booked a reservation at a temporarily closed hotel should call 888-464-3551 to modify their reservation, according to Universal. Guests with reservations at Sapphire Falls or Aventura will be booked at a different hotel, according to park officials. Click here for the guest and hotel guidelines at Universal.

NEW ORLEANS Crews on Saturday recovered the body of one of two construction workers that had been trapped nearly 10 months ago in the collapse of a Hard Rock Hotel under construction in New Orleans. Crews have yet to reach the area on the 8th floor of the structure where they expect to find his body, authorities said. The remains of Anthony Magrette, 49, the third worker killed, were removed the day after the partial building collapse last Oct. 12. His twin sister, Angela Magrette, stood with Wimberly's family on Saturday as Wimberly's remains were lowered from the structure around 10:45 a.m."This family weve actually made our family. The cause of the collapse remains under investigation.