Alabama's Gulf Coast beaches have regained their No. 1 ranking as the top coastal draw on the northern Gulf, according to the Alabama Gulf Coast Convention and Visitors Bureau.
A recent report shows Gulf Shores and Orange Beach combined for a total tax revenue collection of $227 million through October of 2006. That amount puts Gulf Shores and Orange Beach atop the list of popular destinations on the Northern Gulf Coast.
Nowhere to go but up.
The Alabama Gulf Coast Convention and Visitors Bureau only has plans to go higher from here.
Our goal for '07 is to increase by 15 percent over '06. It's a huge challenge, but it's one, as we look forward, we think we can do. We've got a lot of very, very positive factors going for us.
-- Mike Foster, vice president of marketing for the Alabama Gulf Coast Convention and Visitors Bureau
It's certainly possible. Local experts are predicting that in a few years the area will have twice the vacation rental properties it does now.