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Discover Davis reports stronger attendance and local economic impact from 2025 events
Summary
Tourism staff told commissioners the Great Salt Lake Bird Festival and the Moonlight bike ride drew thousands and generated measurable local economic impact in 2025; staff cited nearly 1,300 tickets sold for the bird festival and roughly 1,500 riders for the Moonlight event.
Tourism staff briefed the Davis County Commissioners on Discover Davis events at the Dec. 9 work session, highlighting that signature events in 2025 returned strong community participation and produced local economic benefits. Presenters reviewed the Great Salt Lake Bird Festival, the Animal by Moonlight bike ride and other community events and partnerships.
The Great Salt Lake Bird Festival: Staff reported nearly 1,300 tickets sold and about 1,800 total participants for the 2025 festival, generating $61,000 in direct revenue and an estimated $450,000 in local economic impact. The festival expanded programming across the Wasatch Front, hosted about 80 events and tours, and added a free family day to broaden participation. Staff credited volunteers and local partners for supporting 45 vendors at a new Wings and Things vendor fair and for running roughly 80 educational workshops and field trips.
Presenters said moving the festival back to Western Sports Park from the smaller wildlife education center allowed more vendor engagement and larger public programming, including a student art contest that received about 900 entries in 2025 (up from roughly 200 entries in earlier years). Staff also described community give‑back activities such as installing a pollinator garden at Western Sports Park.
Animal by Moonlight (Moonlight bike ride): Staff described the long‑running themed night ride as a 24‑mile out‑and‑back event near the full moon. For 2025, they reported just under 1,500 riders, about 17 vendors on site, and an estimated economic impact of roughly $150,000. Presenters noted a high proportion of attendees came from within Utah and emphasized careful participant caps on some field trips to limit environmental impacts.
Why it matters: Staff framed these events as mostly self‑funding and as promotional tools that produce tourism‑related spending for local businesses while offering community programming. Commissioners and staff discussed capacity constraints for field trips, volunteer reliance, sponsorship models and next year’s tentative event dates and themes. Staff asked commissioners for theme suggestions for the 2026 Moonlight ride and said they will share videos and marketing materials with the commission.
The presentations ended with commissioners thanking staff for their work; no formal decisions or votes were taken at the session.
