There’s an affliction many northerners get when they arrive in the tropics for spring break vacation. It’s called stupid flu, and it causes otherwise reasonable and respectful people to act in ways that are neither.
“You come here, you have a good time, you behave, we will invite you back,” Miami Beach Police Chief Wayne A. Jones told the local NBC affiliate. “You come here, you break the law, we’re likely gonna arrest you.” Still, the economic impact numbers are compelling. Orlando, for example, saw 7.3 million spring break visitors last year. This generated more than US$1-billion in revenue for the area during the period, which runs roughly from early March to mid-April.
There is no easy answer to the dilemma created when demand is so strong for what an area has to offer that its popularity becomes its Achilles’ heel. But places such as Miami Beach need to keep trying to solve the riddle.