PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Before the pandemic, Americans had $1.2 trillion in hand.

That's money not going to any bills; that was money going in to the bank. Post pandemic, that same metric is now at $4.1 trillion.

Economists call it a surge in loose money from government stimulus plans and that, coupled with steadily rising fuel and food prices and stagnant wages, is driving serious warnings about a coming recession.

Meanwhile, Visit Tampa Bay CEO Santiago Corrada says the area continues to see a tourism boom.

Visit Tampa Bay is closely monitoring those tourism numbers because it is usually an indicator of any economic shift.

So far, people are still visiting the Bay area and spending despite record high prices.

But that is something that could change at any time, according to Corrada. And that possibility has tourism officials thinking ahead.

"You then deal with the situation and are flexible and can mitigate for some of the things, that's what you are supposed to do right?” Corrada said. “You are supposed to be flexible enough and smart enough to handle the situation and work around the situation like we did when we hit the pandemic."

And it only took Visit Tampa Bay one year from the start of the pandemic to rebound its tourism numbers.

It's something Tampa's tourism industry certainly doesn't want to deal with again but may have to if economists predictions about a coming recession turn into a reality.