CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Spring break tourists are making their way to North Beach to check out some of the Coastal Bend's most popular attractions.
Officials from the U.S.S. Lexington Museum tell 3NEWS it is the busiest week of the year for them.
That many people also means local restaurants are benefiting from the extra business. For Pier 99 Restaurant, it started over the weekend and they are now serving about 1,000 plates of food per day.
Pier 99 Restaurant Assistant General Manager Joey Garza explained how they trained their staff to prepare.
"Seeing that they had the right backgrounds and the right knowledge to take a job on like this, cause it is very overwhelming to serve that amount of people and we've just been, we've been very blessed," Garza said.
Garza said they hired at least 25 new employees and trained them to be ready for spring break. He said summer is the busiest time of year there, starting with Memorial Day, but spring break also sees a peak of visitors for about two weeks.
Pier 99 Restaurant's owner picked the location before both the U.S.S. Lexington Museum and Texas State Aquarium were even there, according to Garza.
"They didn't exist yet, so that was kind of, just a lucky pick there, but yes, lots of tourists coming in from both venues," Garza said. "It's just awesome."
Spring break is historically a strong week for the U.S.S. Lexington Museum with visitors. Samantha Koepp-Stemplinger, the museum's marketing director, said that is once again how it is this year.
"On average, we see 20,000 people during the week of spring break," Koepp-Stemplinger said. "It is our busiest single week of the year."
She explained that spring break showcases the museum to everyone that visits, whether they are from out of town or locals. She said every ticket sold helps fund the museum.
"The biggest revenue generator is those who are visiting the ship and paying general admission, and it's those funds that help in the maintenance and restoration and the preservation of the ship," Koepp-Stemplinger said.
Garza said they are still hiring at Pier 99 Restaurant as busy summer months approach. They are looking for front and back of house staff, especially in the kitchen, and people can apply and interview in-person.
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