Skip Florida, Go To Vegas Instead: City Leader To Spring Breakers

MIAMI BEACH, FL — Thinking of heading to the sunny beaches of Florida for spring break? At least one Florida city official would like you to think again.

In fact, Miami Beach City Manager Raul Aguila would prefer spring breakers trade beach sands for sparkling lights and casinos.

"If you are coming here with an anything-goes party attitude, change your flight reservation now and go to Vegas," Aguila said during a recent city council meeting, according to a report by The Wall Street Journal. "Miami Beach is not going to tolerate anarchy."

Florida is among states taking a more lenient approach to coronavirus mitigation nearly a year after it was declared a pandemic. Gov. Ron DeSantis started lifting restrictions just a month into the pandemic. By September 2020, the state had fully reopened.

Miami Beach, however, a barrier island known for its stylish hotels and spirited nightlife, is taking a zero-tolerance approach.

Officials have tightened restrictions through April 12 and expect peak activity in March, the Wall Street Journal reported. This includes a midnight curfew and bans on alcohol, boomboxes on the beach, and loud music at venues.

The city has also launched an ad campaign urging young people to vacation responsibly.

Last year, local leaders scrambled to make their own closure decisions during one of the busiest and most profitable times of the year for Florida, which boasts an $86 billion tourism economy. Still, officials made blind decisions with little guidance from the state.

The end result: people got sick. Others died.

This year, some colleges are going so far as to cancel spring break. The University of Miami and Florida State University are among them.

Miami Beach isn't alone in its efforts to steer away superspreader events. In St. Petersburg and Clearwater, signage promotes handwashing, spreading out and mask-wearing.

In other popular spring break destinations like Los Cabos, Mexico, beaches are limited to 40 percent capacity, nightclubs remain shuttered and a midnight curfew is in effect, the New York Times reported. On South Padre Island, Texas, groups are limited to 10 and no event permits are being issued.

Representatives with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority did not immediately return Patch's request for comment.