Heart + History

The Hilton Head Island Seafood Festival, organized by the David M. Carmines Memorial Foundation, is a week-long event supporting non-profit organizations. It offers celebrity guest chef dinners, cooking demonstrations, and showcases the South's evolving food culture. Guests can indulge in fresh seafood, oysters, and enjoy world-class talent in a serene coastal setting. Grant funding is requested to sustain this extraordinary festival and support local non-profits.

A Taste of the South Award

We are ecstatic to announce that the Hilton Head Island Seafood Festival has been honored as one of the Taste of The South Magazine's 2024 Taste 50 Winners! This prestigious award, traditionally given to the incredible foods, people, places, and experiences that make the South a great place to live and eat, has never before been bestowed upon a festival or experience—until now!

Top Metropolitan Travelers

With over 76% of our guests being visitors of Hilton Head Island, strong markets for festival are Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Jacksonville, Charleston, Greenville, Raleigh, Charlotte, New York-Northern New Jersey-Long Island, Chattanooga, Nashville and Chicago.
69% of our Festival Guests in these markets heard about our events from Meta and Google Ads.
Our Guest Demographics

44% Between the ages of 50-69
78% with Bachelors or Graduate Degree
76% with Income of $120,000 or more
57% Book their Festival Trip at least 4 months in advance
43% Spend over $300 Per Night on Lodging
By The Numbers

10,000+ Guests in attendance over the course of seven days on Hilton Head Island
30+ Local restaurants involved throughout the week
12+ Celebrity Guest Chefs in attendance
60+ Local Artisans, National Brands and Exhibitors involved throughout the week.
Three Major Resort Partners: Palmetto Dunes Resort, Omni & Beach House
Economic Impact

Guest real-time data, surveys and digital spending habits prove to provide over $6 million in new spending and economic impact to Hilton Head Island and the local hospitality community each year. Culinary Exhibitors (local restaurants) join us for a revenue generating event along with additional sales opportunities.
62% of our Festival Visitors Spend $220 or more on dining out each day of their visit.

Reach + Relevance

EARNED MEDIA

640,000+ High Income Audience Reached through Media Partner Platforms and Social Media Campaigns
Exposure to over 325,000+ publication subscribers through real-time content

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WORLD WIDE WEB STOREFRONT

One Million+ Unique Visitors for 2024 Season (Up 14% yr/yr)
68% of Traffic from Paid Digital Campaigns
30,000+ Conversions (Ticket Sales) from Social Media and/or Digital Campaigns (Up 47% yr/yr)
4,209 SMS Text Messaging Subscribers from Paid Social Media Campaigns + Hoffman Media Partnership

DIGITAL PARTNERS

2,101,000+ People Reached during 2023-24 Partnership with Hoffman Media Brands
2,700,000+ Digital Advertising Impressions
7,002 Partner Referrals for SMS/Email Communications from Hoffman Media Brands
3.5+ Million People Reached through Influencer Digital Discussions and Celebrity Guest Chefs and Talent Participation