If you think your home holiday displays get complicated, imagine hanging 40 miles of string lights and keeping them all lit. Then add four nights of drone shows.
That’s the latest challenge for Holidays on Water, the collective beacon that draws off-season visitors to Wilmington’s Riverwalk and surrounding areas, now in its second year.
“Behind the scenes, this project is very hands-on,” said Christina Haley, president and CEO of Wilmington Downtown Inc. “We constantly work with the contractor (Blink Lighting of Myrtle Beach) to ensure lights are functioning properly throughout the season. I have personally reset countless ground fault circuit interrupters during rain and wet conditions to keep the display running, which is a natural challenge given the weather.”
The organizations led by Haley and Kim Hufham, president and CEO of Wilmington and Beaches Convention & Visitors Bureau, partner in the collaboration. They said this year’s presentation will be the most merry-and-bright yet.
The lighting footprint will include Market Street, North Front Street, the Riverwalk and adjacent pocket parks, Haley said. Area businesses and residences, as usual, will add their own creative lighting touches. And drone formations by contractor Open Sky will provide the “oomph,” Hufham said.
“Last year, we had Santa on a surfboard. It was really cool,” Hufham said. “Open Sky can do customization, so we’re looking at hopefully changing it up a bit this year.”
Holidays on Water evolved from a Wilmington Downtown Inc. pilot display in 2023, in which WDI and the Municipal Services District split funding equally. Back then, it was lights only. The CBV joined Holidays last year, with officials adding the drone show to its wish list in November, before the clock on American Rescue Plan Act funds run out. The post-pandemic stimulus money also included an increased investment in the seasonal lighting.
The final portion of the ARPA grant will cover the $100,000 total cost of the 15-minute sky shows on each Saturday night this December.
Regarding the drone spectacular, Hufham said, “We went into this with a pretty short time frame, and I’m patting the committee on the back: We pulled it off. Our goal again is to extend people’s stays in the downtown area – to dine, explore and spend money.”
Hufham said her group’s $100,000 marketing push for this year began Nov. 1, delivering online advertising focused on the larger state area.
WDI is providing marketing within the Wilmington area through funding it receives for its Bring it Downtown campaign, Haley said. The organization allocated $200,000 for replacing some lighting and labor costs for Blink, the contractor performing the work, but some of that will go toward the start of 2026’s effort, she said.
The organizers continue to review what they can add to their evolving Riverwalk lineup, which may include bands and carolers, Hufham said.
Tracking the return on their investment will begin with an estimate of how many people attend the drone shows, she added.
“By using Placer AI, a measurement tool of how many people are in an area – you know, pings off cell phones – it gives us a really good pulse on how things look,” Hufham said. “Last year, we pulled fencing around the area there within Market and Water streets, and we saw about a 6% increase of people during the same period the previous year. Most people were there for a couple of hours, so hopefully they were coming and either shopping or eating and then staying for the drone show.”
As usual, Haley will conduct personal check-ins with business owners after the fact. Testimonials from 2024, officials said, included some informal “best December ever” reporting.
“While we do not track specific spending figures, many businesses have reported increased sales directly tied to these expanded holiday efforts,” Haley said.
Although the season is still underway, the organizers are already looking ahead to next year. A festive 2025 experience that makes cash registers ring will be important for recruiting new sponsors, who will need to cover the cost of the drone shows if the shows are to continue.
“We hope that by then we’ve built a strong enough case that, you know, with the numbers, it’s successful, it’s something people want to see continue,” Hufham said. “With last year’s event, there were nothing but positive comments about it. The community, visitors, they were just really blown away by what had been pulled together and really had a good time.”
Additionally, the Holidays on Water concept is growing, she noted, with an expanding list of associated events throughout the county.
