LAYTON — The cold January weather was left behind by thousands of attendees to the Utah Travel Expo, over the weekend.

They had their minds set on warm weather sites far afield from Davis County, as vendors described cruises down the Danube or trips to China and far beyond.

There were also seminars about such locations as China, LDS Church History Tours, Cancun and the Mayan Riviera, Israel and Egypt, and much more.

The event, held for the first time in Davis County targeting Northern Utah residents, was co-sponsored by Columbus Travel, which is based in Bountiful.

“This is something we’ve wanted to do for a few years,” said Mark Faldmo Jr., vice president of marketing for Columbus Travel. He hails from a family that operated Faldmo Travel in Bountiful for many decades.

“We feel we’re a fairly well-known entity, and felt like it was the right time,” he said. “Northern Utah gets overlooked a little bit.”

Faldmo said it was anticipated at least 5,000 people would converge on the Davis Conference Center for the event, which ran Friday and Saturday.

At times, it meant parking lots were reportedly filled to capacity and beyond.

He said some ticket-holders came from as far away as Idaho Falls and Twin Falls in Idaho.

“There were such great deals being offered. This is the perfect platform for cruise lines, hotels to get their deals out,” Faldmo said. In spite of the nationwide recession, he said 2009 sales for Columbus Travel were up 15 percent over 2008, and that such travel destinations as Cancun and Hawaii are “struggling,” meaning lower-priced deals are often on tap to those places.

“Cruise lines are also offering good deals,” especially as some lines have increased their fleets with flashy new ships.

To many people, Larry Gelwix, known as the “Getaway Guru” and coach of the Highland High School Rugby Team, is a familiar travel commentator. He has a weekly program that is aired on radio stations from Logan to St. George, and beyond.

Seminars were held every half hour detailing various destinations or with such information as “How to travel for free or almost free.” Many discount travel options were available or given away.

tbusselberg@davisclipper.com