Dreamville Festival leaders and Raleigh staff talk preps with event days away
RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Raleigh's Dreamville Festival is just four days away.
With the transformation of Dorothea Dix Park underway, festival leaders and City of Raleigh staff hosted a news conference to discuss preparations and how things may be different for the 2024 festival.
In 2023, Dreamville attracted 100,000 festival-goers from around the world.
While most people have already booked their accommodations, Hannah Talbott with The Longleaf Hotel said some rooms are still available.
"It's gonna be busy, it's gonna be bustling," she said noting that the hotel is 95 percent booked up. "We want people to know that we're here. So 100% occupancy would obviously across Friday Saturday Sunday night would be the greatest. That's what we're really hoping to hit."
According to a City of Raleigh press release, patrons were from all 50 U.S. states and 23 countries across four continents.
"Dreamville Festival brings visitors from all over the world, and they create a lot of excitement and energy in Raleigh. While we are sad when the festival concludes and the artists and the crowds leave, their celebration creates a positive and lasting impact for our City," Evan Raleigh, Assistant City Manager for Raleigh said.
"We're very proud to be a catalyst for visitors coming into Raleigh. And visitors you're seeing this year is a culmination of what has been an active year for Dreamville as a brand," Dreamville President Adam Roy said.
The festival quickly became an economic engine for the city, taking in millions of dollars for the local economy.
"This type of event amplifies not only the brand from a regional and state perspective, but the US and global perspective. And we love that," Visit Raleigh Executive Vice President Loren Gold said.
WATCH | Businesses brace for surge of customers during Dreamville Festival in Raleigh: 'Biggest Party'
According to the 2023 Economic Impact report, the two-day event provided the equivalent of over 1,300 full-time jobs.
The report also showed the boost was the greatest in the areas of hotel, food and beverage and ground transportation.
Several hotels sold out a month before the festival in 2023.
Wake County hotel occupancy reached 94 percent on Saturday night of the 2023 festival, up 2.6 percent compared to the previous year. The number of rooms sold also was up 11.7 percent compared to the previous year on Sunday.
"Dreamville continues to be a major driver of visitor direct economic impact to our hotels, restaurants and retailers throughout Wake County. There are high expectations that 2024 will continue to see 80% or more of the tickets held for the two-day festival to be from visitors from all (50) US States and (20+) international countries. A truly global event for Raleigh!" Loren Gold, Executive Vice President of Visit Raleigh, said.
According to the press release, Dreamville organizers invested in bringing a diverse lineup of music acts, vendors and small businesses in Raleigh and across the state. There will be two dozen music performers, along with 75 food vendors found across North Carolina.
It was announced Monday that 50 Cent will replace Dreamville headliner Chris Brown because of unforeseen circumstances. Nicki Minaj and J Cole still plan to take the stage.
