‘Business was up from last year’: Memorial Day weekend proves successful as Bend stores report seeing more tourists

(Update: Adding video, comments from visitors, businesses)

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) --  The Memorial Day weekend is in the books, and it was a good one for Bend-area businesses. Many people hopped on a plane coming from all over the U.S. to visit the area to see and explore all that it has to offer.

Kasey Boknevitz came from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

"We were visiting some friends," Boknevitz said Tuesday. "And then also, our dog is rescued from Mexico, and his sibling is up here. We came to visit and meet her."

Other tourists drove: AAA had predicted 88% of Memorial Day travelers would go by car.   

The Millikans came from Vancouver, Washington.

Randall Millikan said, "We love Bend, Oregon! We've been coming to Bend for many years, either camping or staying in a hotel."

The Redmond Airport said it was their busiest week. But even with the thousands of visitors Bend Police describe it as a pretty quiet weekend, thankfully.

 Businesses like boarding outfitters Tactics saw an influx of customers, some from the more than 250 teams in town for the Bend Bash youth baseball tournament. 

Store Manager Tim Picerno said, "Business was up from last year. We had an increase in traffic. Seems like people are coming back to Bend from the Valley. The baseball tournament definitely helped out getting a lot of people here, back in town."

At The Bend Store, visitors picked up souvenirs like T-shirts, mugs, post cards and paintings.  

Store Manager Robyn May said, "It's really nice to see people coming in and still wanting to buy things from Bend."

If you're trying to figure out what to do in town, you can stop at Visit Bend to find out how to spend your time in the High Desert. It can help you explore outdoor activities, and craft breweries in town.