Ed Fouché

The 2020 Florida Tourism Hall of Fame inductee is Ed Fouché, a former Disney senior sales executive and two-time Chairman of the VISIT FLORIDA Board of Directors. Fouché has long been a champion of Florida’s tourism industry, leading global efforts for the Walt Disney World Resort, Disneyland Resort, Disney Cruise Line, and Adventures by Disney for nearly 25 years before retiring in 2014.

In 2009, the Florida Governor and Legislature lost trust in VISIT FLORIDA leading up to and throughout that year’s legislative session. Though the institution survived, there was much work to do in restoring confidence and trust. Later that year, Ed Fouché ascended to Chairman of the VISIT FLORIDA Board of Directors, where he leveraged the advocacy muscle and resources of his senior leadership role at Disney to improve VISIT FLORIDA’s legislative relations and achieve a budget increase for the agency.

Following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2010, Ed was elected to an unprecedented second term as VISIT FLORIDA’s Board Chairman, and spent the year engaging with the Governor and Legislature to navigate the crisis and its effects on Florida’s tourism economy.

In addition to his service with VISIT FLORIDA, Ed served as Chairman for Air Team Orlando, and was a member of the Cruise Lines International Association and the University of Central Florida’s Rosen College of Hospitality Management Board of Advisors. He was appointed to the Board of the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority by Governor Rick Scott, and is a U.S. Navy veteran.

Ed’s experience, expertise, and dedication have been essential to the success of Florida’s tourism industry, and the impact of his work continues to enrich the Sunshine State vacation experience today.