The number of visitors to the Reno-Sparks and Washoe County regions over the past year has topped the 5 million mark for the first time since 2007.

What caused the increased visitation for fiscal year 2017? The Reno-Sparks Convention and Visitors Authority and area policymakers have a few ideas. The U.S. economy is stronger than ever, and this has led to a renewed push to market the Reno-Tahoe Area, plus all of the buzz from the arrival of high-profile tech companies including Apple, Google and Tesla.

In 2002, this region was in the midst of an economic boom that tracked nearly 5.7 million tourists. The housing bubble popped five years later when the recession hit and tourism fell as expected. Visitor counts fell by nearly a quarter to as low as

Outside Magazine listed Reno as one of its “25 of America’s Best Towns Ever”.

The popular publication is focused on the outdoors and included Seattle, Kansas City, Bend, Austin, Boise, Kona and Fort Collins in the list. Reno was listed as the “best low-key hideout” in America.

Outside Magazine quoted: “Reno is home to the world’s tallest climbing wall (164 feet at BaseCamp, located at the Whitney Peak Hotel), year-round desert mountain biking, a half-mile long downtown whitewater-kayaking park and the 55-degree chutes at Mount Rose Ski Resort, just 25 minutes uphill from the slot machines.”

Here are some of our favorite things about living in Reno.

Water, Water, Water!

Not only is Reno incredibly close to Lake Tahoe (only a 20-minute