Yolo County attracts curiosity as journey vacation spot

As Yolo County — and the town of Davis — work to spotlight their attraction as journey locations, they’ve been buoyed by pent-up demand from those that delayed journey throughout a lot of the pandemic.

In keeping with Terry Selk, govt director of Go to Yolo, “up till about in all probability two months in the past, the intent and demand for home journey was by means of the roof.

“Actually,” he instructed two Davis Metropolis Council members throughout a gathering final week, “a number of locations had been reporting a lot increased customer site visitors … and occupancy than even earlier than COVID, earlier than 2019.”

However excessive fuel costs and rates of interest, in addition to inflation, are starting to have an effect.

“There’s a curbing of a few of that demand and intent,” Selk mentioned. “Demand and intent for journey within the subsequent two months has dropped six to eight factors. The demand and intent for journey within the fall is holding regular, but when these elements proceed, if fuel costs (stay excessive) and inflation and rates of interest, it’d begin to erode extra.”

On the optimistic facet, Selk mentioned, over the last week of Could, he had 31 worldwide journey sellers in Yolo County for 4 days and “their introduction to Yolo County was like a breath of contemporary air.

“Most had by no means been right here and, the truth is, many had by no means been to the Sacramento space they usually had been extremely keen about what we needed to present them when it comes to our authenticity and the agricultural tourism expertise, the much less congestion, quick access, affordability.”

He noticed a lot of these purchasers once more per week later at a serious journey present they usually continued to gush about how that they had present in Yolo County a “substitute for Napa Valley.”

“They had been bored with sending prospects to a pretentious vacation spot that was excessive priced, much less fulfilling, and had been trying to discover one thing extra genuine. So we definitely grabbed their consideration there.”

Moreover, Selk mentioned, they had been happy by the geographically accessible nature of the realm and its location between two bigger journey locations, which more and more suits what individuals need once they journey.

“Increasingly, we’re listening to that prospects don’t need to go to huge cities and in the event that they do, they don’t need to be there very lengthy. They’re extra inclined to go to locations they’ve by no means heard of earlier than or by no means been to earlier than, so I walked away from this huge worldwide present that I went to — and I’ve been doing this present for 33 years — and I’ll inform you that the enterprise appointments I had had been essentially the most authentically and extra rewarding when it comes to the dialogue than I’ve ever had in my 33 years of going to this present.

“I really feel like we’ve the proper product on the proper time when it comes to how the world has modified its journey pursuits. I believe we’re in an excellent place to capitalize on that peak curiosity and actually begin to see some motion.”

One factor to remember, he instructed Gloria Partida and Dan Carson — the 2 Davis Metropolis Council members who sit on a joint metropolis/Go to Yolo committee — is that fears about crime are deterring individuals from touring to some locations.

“It looks like each week there’s some type of a taking pictures or a problem with theft or crime and it appears to be extra seen,” Selk mentioned.

“Individuals are turning into far more delicate in regards to the locations they’re selecting to journey to based mostly on their premise for crime and … in the event that they’ve traveled someplace they usually’ve had some type of engagement or destructive encounter with a homeless particular person or a homeless atmosphere, that vacation spot then turns into much less engaging to them for future journey.

“This crime factor that the nation is experiencing,” mentioned Selk, “positively has a subliminal financial influence on issues like journey. Individuals need to journey the place they’re going to really feel protected or comfy strolling the streets or being out in sure areas… so it’s one thing we at all times must consciously take into consideration — what message does our vacation spot convey by the extent of crime, the kind of crime?”

He cited the town of San Francisco for example.

“Conventions and conferences are refusing to return to the town now due to among the issues which have occurred to their convention attendees or persons are hesitating to drive their vehicles into public areas in San Francisco as a result of they’re being damaged into. So that is one thing we don’t at all times take into consideration, nevertheless it’s positively an necessary a part of the matrix which helps journey to a vacation spot.”

Carson famous that the town not too long ago surveyed residents — not guests as Selk was speaking about — “and (crime) grew to become the quantity three situation that folks talked about … though we’ve requested our police chief to report again to us.

“We’re curious as a result of the year-to-year crime numbers that we see don’t correspond with that and one potential clarification is … that there’s this nationwide dialogue and debate and we all know nationwide discussions influence native opinions. However there could be extra to that… We don’t need to take these issues flippantly in any respect.”

Partida instructed Selk, “I do hear what you’re saying in regards to the influence that the notion of security has on the place individuals go to.”

She described an encounter in San Francisco final week the place a homeless particular person wandered into a store she had simply entered.

“And a safety (guard) walked in behind the homeless particular person and requested the store proprietor if the whole lot was OK and the homeless particular person exited the store immediately and I simply observed… how that impacted my expertise. So I positively felt safer. As a lot because it doesn’t trouble me that a lot that homeless persons are in my area, it was fascinating to note how that interplay made me really feel.”

For extra details about Go to Yolo and its actions, go to http://visityolo.com.

— Attain Anne Ternus-Bellamy at aternus@davisenterprise.web. Observe her on Twitter at @ATernusBellamy.