Fort Myers Beach business owners prepare for Spring Break crowds

Business owners on Fort Myers Beach say more visitors have already come to town ahead of Spring Break and they’re planning for it.

The sights and sounds of Spring Break arrived earlier than expected.

“They’re here early. They’re coming already, and they’re here to play,” said Kathy Doherty, hostess at Sunset Beach Tropical Grill.

Brenden Donovan, a freshman at Wayne State University, was among the visitors. “Enjoying the beach as much as we can.”

Traffic is one sign that Spring Break has started. It took WINK News Reporter Zach Oliveri more than an hour just to get to Fort Myers Beach. Once there, a spot in the sand with appropriate social distance was hard to come by and there were not many masks in sight.

So, what about the pandemic?

“Zero concern. No concern at all,” said William Gandee, visiting from Akron, Ohio.

“We got our masks, so we’re good,” Donovan said.

The Lani Kai is a popular Spring Break location but is expected to scale it back this year.

“We are not offering events that are going to cause people to crowd around together as we might have in the past,” said Melissa Schneider, marketing director.

They’re selling safety this year, but on Friday, that was a tough sell.

“You have the people who start having fun, people join them, and they just make crowds and it’s hard, very hard for the social distancing,” said Doherty.