St. Johns County

Visitors flock to St. Augustine for Bike Week

The 79th annual Daytona Beach Bike Week kicks off Friday, March 6th.

The event draws in 500,000 visitors that will be riding through A1A and to Daytona's sandy beaches.

Many bikers will choose to stay in st. Augustine not only because it’s close to Daytona Beach but because of what the city has to offer and that's creating an economic boost in the city.

Jeffrey Roland is from Tallahassee.

He’s been coming to bike week for the last 12 years and he always picks St. Augustine to stay.

"We’re a little older so we go down to Daytona during the day we love to drive the beach road own and back, it's scenic," Roland.

According to St. Johns County Tourist Development Council, more than $42 million in sales tax revenue was generated by visitors in 2008.

Bike Week visitors tell Action News Jax they pick st. Augustine because of the all the live music and street festivals.

Roland tells me it’s a pedestrian friendly city and there’s tons of shops and restaurants that welcome bikers each year.

"All the restaurant owners and bar owners, i think they really love us," he said.

Parking by the shops and bars near Cathedral Place will also have designated spots for bikers to park.

Bike Week runs until March 15th.