It’s our favorite place to be, it’s a phrase, that at least for spring break, is becoming more and more accurate for Abilenians.

“It means folks are staying in Abilene for staycation, and it also means more people are coming in  to visit friends and family,” commented Nanci Liles, the executive director for the Abilene Convention and Visitors Bureau.

The Pearson family is just one of many families that is staycationing in Abilene.

“We’re from here, live here and have been here since 2005,” stated Eric Pearson.

When I asked why stay instead go, the answer was long and came in list form.

“There are actually a lot of things around Abilene that our kids enjoy doing,” stated Nickie Pearson.

Things like the zoo, Frontier Texas, fishing, hiking, sampling local cuisine and much more.

And the staycationing increase means more people downtown, and more people downtown is good for the economy.

“When people get out and about and visit attractions, they’re spending money locally and that helps everybody. It helps the tourism industry,” continued Liles.

On top of that, these two parents shared with me another great reason to stay local.

“It’s a lot cheaper than traveling,” said Eric.

“It’s way too long of a drive to have three kids in the back of a car,” finished Nickie.