A German-born Lehigh Acres man is planning to feature southwest Florida’s No. 1 export — tourism — in his new online publication, Inside Florida Magazine.
Lars Hommerich said that edition will be published on March 1, and feature Lee tourist attractions such as the Edison-Ford winter estates and the Museum of Black History in Fort Myers.
Hommerich added that the Cape Coral based European Business Council has been instrumental in help the launch Inside Florida Magazine, which is now heading for its second issue.
That target group is the large number of German tourists who are deeply attracted to Southwest Florida.
Hommerich said that 1.2 million German tourists visit Florida each year, with more than 200,000 coming to Lee County, and spend 18 days, on average, each visit.
He said the existing German community in the area merely adds to the allure.
“Its almost a community within a community,” Hommerich said.
He says he was one of those tourists, first visiting the area in 1998 when he rented vacation houses.
He said it didn’t take him long to fall in love with Lee County, finally deciding to settle in Lehigh Acres not too long after.
Hommerich said his online publication already boasts 12,000 subscribers, and that he heavily promotes the site in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.
These are the people who look at Lee County as a land of opportunities, he said, especially with non-stop flights into Southwest Florida International Airport from Germany.
“I’m the best example,” he said of German tourists who eventually decided on living in Lee. “And there are other people like me who plan to settle down.”
For more information visit InsideFloridaMagazine.com