Scenic 395 - The Official Guide 2021/2022

8 2021-2022 Scenic 395 Ridgecrest Ridgecrest’s Finest Hotels Great weekend and holiday rates available 104 E. Sydnor Ave. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 (760) 446-1968 Complimentary hot buffet breakfast and internet, also heated pools and spas at both locations! 113 E. Sydnor Ave. Ridgecrest, CA 93555 (760) 446-1630 A new welcome experience in Ridgecrest R idgecrest will soon have a larger place on the map — and with it an opportu- nity to draw in more visitors to its corner of the High Desert, thanks to the des- ignation of a new California Welcome Cen- ter. The designation, granted in 2019, links Ridgecrest to other Welcome Centers across the state. As part of the benefit, the center will carry promotional material and infor- mation from its sister centers — and in re- turn, those other Welcome Centers will carry information on the surrounding Ridgecrest area. The designation is part of the effort by Visit California — the state’s tourism mar- keting agency — to expand tourism in the state. In 2019, more than 1.1 million guests visited the centers, gaining information on local and regional sites. “The welcome center acts as a concierge service to travelers but also market and send travelers to the other welcome centers,” says Kari Crutcher, marketing coordinator for the Ridgecrest Area Convention and Visitors Bu- reau/Ridgecrest Film Commission, the agency that markets tourism for the Ridge- crest area and assists with filming permits and locations. The state in 2019 decided to expand its network of centers, which are independently operated under a set of state criteria, and the RACVB decided to put its name in the hat. As a benefit, it receives all the marketing the state puts out for free. And it puts Ridgecrest on the map to draw more tourism. “One of the challenges Ridgecrest has is it doesn’t have name recognition to travelers,” Crutcher says. “If you’re traveling from On- tario to Mammoth Lakes, you might see a sign for Ridgecrest but unless you been to Ridgecrest, you probably wouldn’t know what it is.” The city is located near State Route 14 and U.S. Route 395 but remains well away from the highway interchanges on the floor of the Indian Wells Valley. The welcome center designation would provide more visual cues and signage direct- ing people to Ridgecrest. “Having us as part of the family and net- work will really put Ridgecrest on the map,” Crutcher said. “The exposure we will get as far as marketing and tourism will be the most valuable thing.” It opens up the fact that the region is home to museums, off-highway vehicle op- portunities, hiking and a valuable stopping point on the way to Death Valley National Park should visitors access it via State Route 178 through Trona. It would also provide material on signa- ture events, including the annual Petroglyph Festival, which highlights some of natural and Native American history unique to the region. The designation has traditionally led to a significant increase in the percentage of trav- el-generated employment for each region represented. This effect has led to docu- mented positive impacts in secondary spending and employment, as each region increases its share of California’s in-state Continued on Page 9