International tourists such as Lynch and Concannon have put Florida on the path toward its best tourism year since before the Sept. 11 attacks. For the first nine months of 2004, the number of visitors to the state was up 4.1 percent from the same period of 2003, while hotel and motel occupancy was up 10 percent. Orlando's major theme parks had estimated attendance gains of 7 percent to 14 percent in 2004.

But behind the good news is an uneasiness about what will happen to the tourism business during summer 2005, a year after four hurricanes hit Florida and brought the state's biggest industry to a halt for days at a time. Many in Florida's $51 billion tourism industry wonder whether visitors — particularly conventioneers — will stay away during the storm season that runs June 1 to Nov. 30.

"Our concern for the future is perception," said Vanessa Welter, spokeswoman for Visit Florida, the state's private-public tourism marketing agency.

At a recent meeting in Miami Beach, hoteliers, county officials and convention bureau officials made plans to establish a telephone hot line during the season and arrange for guests of beachside hotels to find inland hotels during storms.

Visit Florida officials said in December that a fifth of potential summer visitors told market researchers they would consider avoiding the state for fear of future storms. The start of next year's hurricane season likely will invite a barrage of TV footage showing the destruction left by Hurricanes Charley, Frances, Ivan and Jeanne at about the same time families make plans for summer vacations.

The concerns run beyond 2005 — a Visit Florida survey said the state could have difficulty securing convention and corporate meeting business for years because of the storms. The late summer and early fall, the peak of storm season, represents about $12.2 billion in tourism spending, nearly a quarter of what the industry generates all year.

Still, despite the industry's anxiety, it doesn't appear that many convention planners are changing their itineraries. The American Dental Association moved its conference in Orlando from September to October, but otherwise there have been no cancellations or postponements of conventions in the area during the 2005 hurricane season, said Danielle Courtenay, spokeswoman for the Orlando/Orange County Convention & Visitors Bureau.

But hotel owner Harris Rosen, who has 5,000 rooms on six properties in central Florida, said he expected meeting planners to pressure Florida hoteliers to lower rates during the hurricane months. But, he said, all will be forgotten if next year's storm season is mild.