Food & Beverage for Events

The cold temperatures in the Southeast have done more than just made for a miserable few weeks of not wanting to leave the house. The winter weather has also taken a toll on Florida's tourism industry.

According to the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, the state sees 30 percent of its annual revenue during the first three months of the year, when most visitors from the North seek refuge from the cold in the Sunshine State. But now, popular Florida destinations aren't offering fun in the sun, but rather freeze warnings and temperatures Monday morning as low as 16 degrees in capital Tallahassee.

"This weather hurts. It really hurts," Ed Chiles, owner of The Sandbar and two other beachfront restaurants on Anna Maria Island, told United Press International. "We kind of live and die by weather out here on the island, and when it is as cold as it has been, it has a significant effect on our gross sales."

David Teitelbaum's Tortuga Inn Beach Resort, Tradewinds Resort and SeaSide Resort in Bradenton Beach had no vacancies for the holidays, but have since completely died off with the cold weather.

"When you get cold like this, it does hurt you because so much of our business is drive-in business and they know the weather," he told UPI. "They don't need to get in their cars and drive to get frost-bitten."