Florida's State Capitol, Tallahassee [Photo: Visit Florida]

For eight straight years, Florida has earned a top spot in Harris Poll’s “most desirable places to live” survey. Now, it seems, plenty of those who picked Florida as the place they’d most like to live are making good on their choice. Every day, close to 1,000 new residents move into Florida. The fact that many of them came here first as tourists is proof positive that the world’s number 1 travel destination is a favorite for permanent residence, too.

Play Here, Stay Here

Kristjan Ingvarsson had traveled from his native Iceland to Florida on vacation numerous times, visiting beaches on the east and west coasts as well as the theme parks in between. So when he was looking to expand his business into the United States and an opportunity to move to Ocala came his way, Florida seemed like the perfect place to grow.

Ingvarsson set up Ocala Instruments in the 1990s to manufacture and distribute electronic measuring devices for the construction industry. Later, he moved the business to be closer to Orlando International Airport.

Today, Kristjan and his wife, Gudrun, travel extensively between Florida, Iceland and other parts of the world for business and leisure. They own a house in a community near Orlando International Airport where nearly 200 Icelanders live part-time or year-round and get together often to revel in the “paradise weather.”

“The whole year except maybe one month, we live outside on the veranda,” Ingvarsson says. “When we come home from work, we stay outside. In Iceland, we’d spend maybe a week outside all year.”

Most of Ingvarsson’s customers are in other parts of the United States, but he has no plans to move. Quite the opposite in fact; he’s encouraged Icelanders and others to join him in Florida.

“The sooner you come, the better off you’ll be” he tells them. “Real estate prices are at a lull for now, and we’re getting new industries here that will bring prosperity to the region. Come now.”

The main attraction

Largemouth bass

Of the 83.9 million visitors who came to Florida in 2006, a majority cited the state’s beaches as their number 1 reason for visiting. Surrounded on three sides by water, Florida is home to 1,350 miles of sandy coastal shoreline, plus 11,761 square miles of inland waterways, all of which provide plenty of opportunities for boating, fishing, snorkeling, diving and water-skiing.

A great place to live

Florida’s remarkable quality of life is one of the state’s biggest assets. Consider these reasons why companies and employees are choosing to relocate here:

• Climate — average annual temperatures are between 81 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit.
  
  
• Schools — rigorous standards for small class size and regular testing improve performance.
  
  
• Housing — at a median value of $248,350 in 2006, housing prices are below those of other states with similar growth and in-migration rates.

Only in Florida Whether you come to Florida just for a visit or decide to call it home, you’ll find lots to see and do. This 65,758-square-mile peninsula offers a blend of experiences unequaled anywhere else in the world. Ride an airboat to see alligators in their natural habitat (Everglades) Feel what it’s like to blast off into space (Shuttle Launch Experience, Kennedy Space Center) Take a hike and hunt for panther tracks (Ocala National Forest) Get up close and personal with some manatees (Crystal River, Citrus County) Go underwater to explore this hemisphere’s only coral reef (Florida Keys) See $1.6 billion worth of yachts at the world’s largest boat show (Fort Lauderdale) Stroll along the streets of America’s oldest city (St. Augustine) Pet a six-toed cat (Hemingway House, Key West) Shake hands with Mickey Mouse and his friends (Walt Disney World, Orlando) Visit the world’s largest collection of art deco architecture (South Beach, Miami) Stand on the southernmost tip of the continental United States (Key West)

Luxury galore

Vacationers have long enjoyed Florida’s world-renowned resorts such as The Breakers in Palm Beach and the Don CeSar on St. Pete Beach. Now the world’s top hotel brands — Ritz-Carlton, Four Seasons, Waldorf-Astoria, Conrad, Mandarin and Trump — are building more properties in the Sunshine State. Luxury boutique hotels and condominiums are also sprouting up all across Florida.

More than a vacation hot spot

Bill Diaz from Puerto Rico wasn’t thinking of Florida as a vacation destination when he opened his company’s U.S. headquarters in Osceola County in May 2007. Nova Comm invents and manufactures heavy equipment, including an access control vestibule device that can be placed in the doorway of a bank to catch and deter robbers. When Diaz went looking at sites in Florida, Georgia and the Carolinas, he had two parameters in mind: easy, economical shipping to and from his manufacturing plant, and proximity to an international airport. He found both in central Florida.

Diaz today lives in a community just outside Walt Disney World where residents dock boats in their backyards and navigate through a canal system to 22,000-acre Lake Tohopekaliga — Toho for short — which is known for its abundance of largemouth bass. Once a dedicated saltwater fisherman, Diaz is hooked on freshwater now. Since moving to Florida, his fishing rod collection has grown from one to 15.

Nova Comm’s customers are spread out all over the United States and Puerto Rico, but Diaz has no trouble reeling them in to negotiate a deal. “It’s a lot easier when you can say, ‘Come to Orlando and let’s sit down,’” he says. “They usually shoot right down here and bring the wife and kids.”

NAME YOUR SPORT

“We have a diversity of offerings,” says Dale Brill, chief marketing officer of Visit Florida, the state’s official tourism marketing corporation. “We’re not a one-dimensional destination. ... The only thing you can’t find here is snow-skiing.”

Golf: Florida has 1,370 golf courses — more than any other state — and many have been designed by the biggest names in golf. Play a few rounds or watch the pros; the PGA and LPGA tours regularly stop at courses in Florida.

Fast cars: Catch a NASCAR race in Daytona Beach or Homestead; head to downtown St. Petersburg for the annual Grand Prix.

Football: The Miami Dolphins, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Jacksonville Jaguars call Florida home and, every few years, so does the Super Bowl. The big game was in Miami in 2007; it will be in Tampa in 2009.

Basketball: Miami and Orlando have NBA teams; University of Florida has been the NCAA champ for two years’ running (2006, 2007).

Baseball: The Marlins call Miami home, the Rays are headquartered in Tampa Bay, and more than a dozen major league baseball teams use Florida as the site for their spring training each year.

Fleet feet: The Great Floridian triathlon with a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike ride and a 26.2-mile run, draws athletes from around the world to Clermont every October.

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