Pinellas County is the first Tampa Bay area county to receive approval from the state for short-term vacation rental properties to resume accepting reservations and check-ins.
The ruling is effective immediately - just in time for the Memorial Day weekend.
Governor Ron DeSantis said vacation rentals could resume under the "full Phase I" of his COVID-19 recovery plan -- as long as counties had their safety plan approved by the state.
The Florida Department of Business and Regulation signed off on Pinellas' plan Wednesday.
Reservations from areas DeSantis has identified as "high-risk" - like New York and New Jersey - must be for periods longer than the required quarantine period.
Property owners and managers will have to follow a number of safety and sanitation measures to reopen. And guests must practice social distancing.
In the county's letter to the Department of Business and Regulation, Administrator Barry Burton said that tourism supported more than 100,000 jobs and contributed more than $9 billion to the local economy in 2019.
Other Tampa Bay area counties have submitted plans as well.
As of early Wednesday evening, the department had also approved plans for Bay, Charlotte, Duval, Escambia, Franklin, Gulf, Lee, Levy, Nassau, Okaloosa, Osceola, Santa Rosa, St. Johns, Wakulla and Walton counties, according to a list on the department website.
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