Story by Chris Lawrence
Charleston city leaders indicated the Sternwheel Regatta for a third straight year grew significantly in 2024. The four day event from early July featured 235,000 visitors to the Capitol City. Mayor Amy Goodwin said it was a huge reflection they have tapped into a strong vein of support.
“Twenty-two percent came from more than 50 miles away. This isn’t the state’s signature event, this is a regional event and we are becoming the event on the east coast to go to, that’s no opinion, that’s a fact,” she said.
The Charleston Convention and Visitors Bureau analyzed the data from the week and determined the economic impact to the city was $38.8 Million dollars. The figure increased from $37 Million in 2023, and $31 Million during the first year of the newly revamped Regatta in 2021.
“I think it proves if you plan a good event and you book great entertainment, people are going to come. What I’m most pleased with is that we continue to grow our visitation numbers, those are the important numbers for us at the CVB, so it’s nice to see those visitation numbers growing,” said Tim Brady, President and CEO of the Charleston Convention and Visitors Bureau.
Goodwin told reporters it costs about $1 Million to put on the Regatta and a large amount of the budget is paid for by corporate sponsors. Although a high price tag, she noted the payoff was worth it.
“If I gave you a million bucks and you gave me $38.8 Million in economic development in return, I’d play that game with you all day,” said the Mayor.
She was also pleased with the continued growth of the event. Goodwin admitted there were initial concerns when they brought the event back about doing it over the Fourth of July holiday. During the first year, when people had already made plans, the holiday may have hurt. But since then, she said something she didn’t anticipate has happened, people are planning their Independence Day activities around the Regatta.
“I didn’t anticipate this, I thought we’d capture people who are here and get some travelers, but what we saw from this year in particular, people made a plan to stay in town. Before on the Fourth of July holiday in Charleston you had the fireworks and that was about it. So, we kind of filled that void,” said the Mayor.
She said the date also worked best for the Sternwheel owners which is an essential element of the entire festival.
The city revealed the 2025 Charleston Sternwheel Regatta will be July 3-6, 2025.
“Book your rooms and Air B-N-B’s now, don’t wait until we announce the entertainment. The acts will be good, but if you wait, you may not find a place to stay,” said Brady.