
07/11/2025
CarePlus has been involved with HydroFest since 2018 and we are humbled for the opportunity. The relationships we have formed are irreplaceable.
Please know that Katy Norton and her exceptionally talented team are amazing and we look forward to working alongside them in the future.
MARSHALL COUNTY TOURISM AND SPORTS BIDS FAREWELL TO HYDROFEST.
After seven years of hosting one of the nation’s largest boat racing events, Marshall County Tourism and Sports announced today that Guntersville Lake HydroFest will not be returning in 2026.
The annual event, which has generated millions of dollars in revenue for the city of Guntersville as well as the other communities surrounding the lake, requires hundreds of volunteers and costs around $500,000 which must be raised by the tourism organization each year. The event has consistently brought $3.5 million in economic impact to the county which will be hard to replace by any singular event.
In addition, exposure through advertising and social media content has reached 4 million, with over 200,000 engagements each year, bringing positive attention to the lake and the county. This growing interest in our destination expands tourism, which continues to be one of the largest economic drivers for the community, said Katy Norton, president of Marshall County Tourism and Sports.
While thousands of out-of-state visitors continue to fill the hotels and purchase tickets to the annual event, local support has declined since 2021 with ticket sales reflecting only a few hundred attendees from Marshall County. Local sponsorship, which helps fund the event, has also declined.
Without local support, sustaining an event of this size is impossible, Norton said.
Click here to read the full release: https://acrobat.adobe.com/id/urn:aaid:sc:US:fd71a95e-85f7-47b7-9b87-761961bffb35