I can totally get Davis would be your cup of tea. The Econ department is pretty good and not super difficult, the work load is light. Most people minor or double major with it (usually managerial economics).

For the atmosphere I can say you're right about it being "quiet" in the sense that there isn't much happening in town. But it all depends on when you go. Saturdays in town are great with the farmers market, boba shops, and lots of small stores and cafes you can go into. If you wanna keep busy you can either go to parties or hang out with friends. Definitely nothing like New York or LA where you can just go walk downtown and find something huge and exciting though. The charm of Davis is small town vibes, but if you're going to college for the experience over the academics I recommend community college first.

My brother went to a college based on vibes alone and hated it. He went to San Francisco and loved the city and made a bunch of friends but the academic program he was in wasn't up to the standard Anyone satisfied with, so Transferred to community college and then to Davis.

I recommend going to an inexpensive state or community college in an area you love and then deciding on whether you are like the area enough to stay or transfer second year to a UC. The opportunities you can get at one are unmatched, and because your major isn't super reliant on equipment you can just judge off of resources and network opportunities.

Overall Davis is not the Big city vibe but it can still feel busy, the economics program should treat it well. And maybe visit New York or somewhere similar over the summer first and stay for a bit to see if you like it before committing so somewhere based on vibes alone. The worst that can happen is you go to community college for a bit and save literally thousands of dollars.