FORT MYERS, Florida — "We've only seen like 5, and my kids, they already have 5 they want to buy," said David Klinger, resident of Tampa.
The Fort Myers boat show is back at the Caloosa Sound Convention Center.
And many vendors and attendees are happy to see it return.
"You know, it's good seeing them out," said John Watkins, Owner of Marine Detail. "I think people are going to spend some more money now. There was that pent up demand before. But things are getting back to normal, so we just want to be here for our clients.
This year's event always brings out those water seekers.
And some, all the way from Tampa.
"Yeah, we wanted to go to a larger boat show and see a large variety of different boats," said Klinger. "We kind of wanted to see Fort Myers, we haven't been down here for a while as well."
Last year's event took the show inside.
But this year, these beauties are back on the water.
Which in the end, might make some water goers want to take one home.
"Oh absolutely, you've got the water here and you've got the boats floating on the water," said Heidi Hewson, resident of Cape Coral. "Therefore it's giving them the opportunity to feel how it feels to be on the water, in a boat, and kind of feel that vibe."
And for a lot of these companies, they hope to have a big turnout to make up for some lost wages due to Covid.
"Yeah one of the biggest problems we've had over the last year and half or so is, getting people into our dealerships," said Bruce Angelillo, sales manager for Estero Bay marina." So, just over the last hour or so that we've been here, people are happy. So we're here and enjoying it and we've got some great weather, and looking forward to this weekend."
