As tourism continues to evolve, businesses across Gilbert are exploring how placemaking, programming, and collaboration can strengthen the visitor experience and drive repeat visitation. At a recent Business Retention and Expansion Roundtable, local businesses highlighted real-time perspectives from within the industry.
Co-hosted by the Town of Gilbert Office of Economic Development, the Office of Mayor Scott Anderson, and the Gilbert Chamber of Commerce Foundation, this roundtable created a space for open and honest dialogue around the trends, challenges, and opportunities shaping the industry. We are grateful for the support of our sponsors, Joshua Development and Advance Champion Supply, whose partnership helped bring this important conversation to life.
What Makes Gilbert Unique
The conversation began with what makes Gilbert distinct in an increasingly competitive tourism landscape.
Leaders were quick to point out Gilbert’s downtown vibrancy, which has a family-friendly atmosphere and a strong sense of place. The Gilbert Riparian Preserve was highlighted as a natural asset that offers visitors a unique blend of outdoor recreation, wildlife, and peaceful exploration, while SanTan Village’s open-air shopping environment adds to Gilbert’s appeal as a lifestyle destination where retail, dining, and entertainment come together. From Agritopia to the Heritage District, Gilbert brings together shopping, dining, wellness, community, and recreation, all in one dynamic setting.
People enjoy having a “third place” — a place that you can belong to outside of work and home. Gilbert's ability to create spaces that give off a strong sense of place and a feeling of belonging is one of Gilbert’s greatest assets. That small-town warmth, combined with growing amenities, helps visitors feel welcomed while also giving residents a strong sense of community.
While Gilbert’s brand is well-positioned within the Valley, attendees noted an opportunity to expand the regional story beyond familiar draws and continue elevating destinations like Verde at Cooley Station, HD SOUTH – Home of the Gilbert Museum, Epicenter, and Gilbert Regional Park.
If We Can Get Them Here, They’ll Love It
Those who visit Gilbert often enjoy the town, but the key question is: how do we get them here? It’s both the challenge—and opportunity— that many leaders in the industry face, not only to attract visitors to the city, but to create reasons for them to return.
Businesses emphasized the importance of experience-driven tourism. Visitors are no longer just looking for a place to eat or shop; they want curated moments, local flavor, memorable events, and opportunities to connect with the community.
That means continuing to create experiences around what Gilbert already does well:
- Arts and culture
- Community events
- Outdoor spaces and parks
- Family-focused programming
- Local dining and retail
Visitor Expectations Are Changing
Tourism expectations continue to evolve. Today’s visitors are increasingly seeking resort-style amenities, elevated restaurants, and destination-worthy programming, leaving Gilbert to compete with other cities in the region. Gilbert has many foundational pieces, but staying competitive means continuing to grow its inventory and amenities to compete regionally.
Spring training, sports tourism, and event-based visitation were also major topics of opportunities for Gilbert. Leaders stated we don’t get the same traction in these areas as we used to, as nearby communities continue increasing their tourism inventory. Gilbert has an opportunity to define its own niche through complementary experiences, family itineraries, and “off-season” activities that draw visitors year-round.
Creating Reasons to Visit in Every Season
A major opportunity identified by the group was off-season tourism. Rather than relying only on peak visitation periods, attendees discussed how Gilbert can create compelling experiences year-round through:
- Seasonal campaigns
- Senior living and winter visitor programming
- Signature local events
- Community crawls and art walks
- Family-focused festivals
- Strong calendar of events that draws population from outside of the state
Infrastructure, Mobility, and Connected Experiences
Tourism is also shaped by how easy it is to move from destination to destination.
Transportation and connectivity emerged as important themes, including the potential value of bringing in Waymo and other flexible mobility options to better connect Gilbert’s activity centers. Participants also discussed the value of trolleys, district-to-district transportation, and event shuttles that could help turn separate attractions into one connected visitor journey.
The goal is simple; we want to make it easy for visitors to experience multiple valued aspects of Gilbert in a single trip.
Placemaking, Public Art, and Storytelling
Public art, murals, and visually engaging spaces were highlighted as powerful tourism drivers. Businesses noted that local art installations, mural events, and even recurring “mural walks” or first-Friday-style experiences could create new reasons for visitors to explore different parts of Gilbert.
Outdoor signage and digital screens were also discussed as ways to improve awareness and visibility for events and destinations, though some noted the current challenge of aligning town and center-specific signage rules.
This opens the door for stronger collaboration between business centers, property owners, and municipal partners to make promotion easier and more cohesive.
The Opportunity Ahead
The roundtable reinforced that Gilbert is already a destination people love for its sense of community, local charm, and evolving lifestyle experiences.
The next chapter is about being even more intentional—connecting destinations, elevating storytelling, strengthening off-season experiences, and continuing to invest in the amenities and experiences today’s visitors seek. Participants agreed on one core takeaway: Gilbert already has the ingredients of a standout destination. The opportunity now is to turn those strengths into intentional experiences that keep visitors coming back.