Kudos to the National Cherry Blossom Festival for pulling off a spirited, 26-day celebration that recognized the gift of cherry trees from Tokyo to DC. The nation’s most popular springtime extravaganza showered D.C. in pink from Wednesday, March 20 to Sunday, April 14, uniting the city in a fun-filled, cultural and educational way. More than 1.6 million people—including regional, national and international visitors—attended the Festival, breaking the record set during last year’s five-week centennial celebration. Once again, their presence translated into several million dollars (way over a $100 million!) in direct spending for the city.
Also noteworthy:
• Attendance at many of the Festival’s signature events, including the Parade, was up 15 to 20 percent.
• Five of the top 10 Metrorail ridership days occurred during a Festival, and this year, April 10, was the 4th busiest day in Metro’s 37-year history! (True, Festival visitors, coupled with Nationals and Wizards games and a rally at the U.S. Capitol, all factored into the increase).
• Over the course of the Festival’s four weekends, 74,000 trips were taken using Capital Bikeshare, the regional bike-sharing system. The steadily increasing trips reached an all-time high of 11,368 rides on Saturday, April 13, the Parade date.
• A whopping 99 area restaurants participated in Cherry Picks, creating and offering dishes inspired by cherries, blossoms or spring throughout the festivities.
Ready for more? Mark your calendar for 2014, when the Festival will take place from March 20 to April 13!