Discover the Palm Beaches presents visitor data, pitches 'destination stewardship' for Royal Palm Beach

Representatives of Discover the Palm Beaches briefed the Royal Palm Beach Village Council on local tourism trends on Nov. 20, highlighting visitor counts, demographic segments and a new emphasis on "destination stewardship"—an approach they said balances visitor growth with resident quality of life.

Sergio Piedra, senior director of intergovernmental affairs for Discover the Palm Beaches, described the organization as the county’s official tourism-marketing corporation funded by a 6% bed tax on overnight stays. He said the organization represents all 39 county municipalities and is affiliated with sister agencies including the sports commission and film and TV commission.

Gustav Leibel, senior vice president of business intelligence and destination development, presented data for Royal Palm Beach showing about 87,000 visitors annually—roughly 0.9% of the county’s reported 9.9 million visitors in 2024—and noted a 6% occupancy gain in select local hotels year-over-year. He described two dominant visitor demographic clusters for the area, "booming with confidence" (retirees with higher incomes) and "suburban style" (middle-income families), and said surveys show residents generally support promotional activity for restaurants and events.

Council members asked to receive the presentation slides as a PDF for further review and discussed ways the municipality could promote underused assets such as the Cultural Center and Commons Park. Discover the Palm Beaches said it would share materials and continue the roadshow to build local partnerships.