Tourists and locals can benefit from Values Card

By J.P. Crumrine
Assistant Editor
Several merchants in Idyllwild are accepting the Idyllwild Values Card, a project the Idyllwild Bureau of Tourism (IBOT) conceived
and implemented. The card is intended to entice more visitors to the Hill.
The card is being distributed to members of the Hemet San Jacinto Valley Chamber of Commerce and through the San Bernardino state welcome center.

This site is the newest and closest welcome center to Idyllwild. It opened in May in San Bernardino off Interstate 10.

The weekend cards are available free of charge to tourists. Annual membership cards, available to local residents, can be purchased for $25.

Current participation includes the following merchants:

  • Idyllwild General Store,
  • Natural Solutions
  • Spruce Moose.

“Anything that will pull people up here is good,” said Bryan Tallent, co-owner of the Spruce Moose.
Rather than offering a discount, Tallent and his partner, John Stonitsch, offer a $7 Christmas ornament for a purchase of $10 or more. The ornaments are sold year-round and are never discounted, according to Tallent.

Restaurants are also part of the package, which may interest full-time or frequent visitors. Current food establishments participating
in the venture include

  • The Bread Basket,
  • Oma’s European Bakery and Restaurant,
  • Goodtimes Pub and Grill,
  • Nature’s Wisdom.

Their discounts vary from 10 to 15 percent for a meal.
“It’s a great idea to bring people up here,” said Trudy Twardowski, Oma’s owner. “It’s time to we did something.”
Twardowski says customers used the card twice last weekend at Oma’s. She believes it will attract visitors to the Hill who might not normally visit Idyllwild.

Both Tallent and Tourists and locals can benefit from Values CardTwardowski said the card gives them valuable information
about their customers and enables them to track its usage. At the end of this season, they plan to evaluate its value and merit.

The Cedar Street Inn is currently the sole lodge honoring the card. With it, visitors can have a room for $15 less per weekday or money off a spa appointment. Most of the participating businesses are also members of the Idyllwild Division of the Hemet San Jacinto Valley
Chamber of Commerce. The Hemet organization also is cooperating on distribution in the valley.

Participation is open to all Idyllwild establishmentsand is not limited to Idyllwild members of the Hemet Chamber, according to Richard Cadieux, IBOT managing director.
Cards can be obtained from the local business participants or through the Web site www.innsofidyllwild.
com.

The annual Value Card can be obtained at the Cedar Street Inn, (951) 659-0506.
Paying the $25 annual membership also entitles the person to a DVD, “Idyllwild in the Movies.” The DVD is a compilation of clips from first-run movies filmed in Idyllwild during the 1960s.
J.P. Crumrine can be reached jp@towncrier.com