OREANDA-NEWS. Miami International Airport, the State of Florida's busiest airport, hosted Florida Governor Rick Scott, Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos A. Gimenez, Visit Florida President and CEO Will Seccombe and Greater Miami Convention and Visitors Bureau President and CEO William D. Talbert for a news conference today to announce Florida's record-breaking number of visitors in the first half of 2015. With 54.1 million travelers to Florida through the second quarter, Florida is on pace to welcome more than 100 million annual visitors to the Sunshine State for the first time ever.

"Miami-Dade County and the state of Florida have had an outstanding year so far for tourism, and with even more new flights expected at MIA this year, the rest of the year promises to be even better of 2015," said Mayor Gimenez. "That's great news for our community and for our state. Of the 14.6 million visitors who stayed overnight in our community last year, 96 percent arrived right here at MIA, and those travelers help to support quality jobs for our residents."

MIA has been a leading contributor to the historic milestone, with more than 10 million passenger arrivals at the mid-year point. MIA is also the state's busiest airport for international travelers, welcoming 70 percent of all foreign visitors to Florida annually. The global gateway is having a record-setting year as well, with 21.9 million total passengers and growth of 5.79 percent through June - putting it on pace for more than 43 million passengers. New airlines and routes have boosted already-strong passenger numbers, and more are on tap for the rest of the year. In the coming months, MIA will welcome: expanded seasonal Miami-Helsinki service on Finnair; five weekly flights to Vienna aboard Four-Star carrier Austrian Airlines; and daily Miami-Istanbul service by Turkish Airlines, Europe's top-rated carrier.

"We're extremely grateful to Governor Scott for choosing MIA as the location for today's encouraging news about Florida's tourism growth," said Miami-Dade Aviation Director Emilio T. Gonzalez. "As Florida's busiest airport for total passengers, we're delighted with today's announcement, and we're proud to do our part for the Florida economy by leading the state in international visitors. With more new air service coming soon from underserved markets in Europe and beyond, the future is even brighter for our local tourism industry."

During the news conference, Governor Scott recognized two Miami-Dade Aviation Department employees - Marketing Chief Ernesto B. Rodriguez and Customer Service Supervisor Diana Berron - for their years of service to Miami International Airport and the local tourism industry.