Overview The Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Boat Parade is Fort Lauderdale's holiday kickoff: a parade of lit-up, decorated boats that travels a 12-mile route along the New River and the Intracoastal Waterway on a Saturday night in December. Winterfest, Inc., the nonprofit behind it, surrounds parade night with a season of events, from a family day to a black-tie gala. The International Festivals & Events Association ranks it among the top 20 parades in the world. On site More than a million people watch from the banks, bridges, restaurants and backyards along the route, and two ticketed zones anchor parade night: a public viewing area at Las Olas Intracoastal Promenade Park with games, vendors and a stage, and a VIP viewing party at Tunnel Top Park and the historic Stranahan House, where the judges sit and the TV cameras set up. Brands can sponsor a showboat, the fireworks, a stage, a sampling footprint, or a piece of the Black Tie Ball and Grand Marshal Reception, and every partnership comes with tickets to Winterfest's hospitality events. Audience South Florida residents and holiday visitors, many of whom travel in and stay the weekend. In the organizer's survey most out-of-county guests said the parade was the reason for their trip, and many spend over $100 downtown on parade day. The gala and reception crowds are the region's business, civic and philanthropic leaders. Talent and Influencers Each parade has a celebrity Grand Marshal (artist Romero Britto held the role recently), and pop artist Charles Fazzino creates the official poster art. The Black Tie Ball books a 16-piece band from New York, iHeartMedia personalities call the action at the public viewing area, and WSVN Channel 7 produces a one-hour TV special that also airs on ABC-Miami and in Boston. Track record The boat parade has been a Fort Lauderdale tradition for more than half a century, and Winterfest, Inc. has produced it as a nonprofit since 1988. It delivers an economic impact of more than $50 million to Broward County each year, has won IFEA Pinnacle and Florida Festivals & Events Association awards for its marketing, and is on BizBash's list of the top 100 events in South Florida. Brand presence Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino holds the title and Fifth Third Bank is the official bank. Partners include Amazon, Publix, Coca-Cola Beverages Florida, LaCroix, Florida Power & Light, Chevron, jetBlue, Brightline, Broward Health, Nicklaus Children's Health System, Rick Case Automotive, the Florida Panthers and Republic National Distributing Company, with media partners WSVN, iHeartMedia and the Sun Sentinel. Open partnerships run from valet and photo-booth sponsorships up to showboats and the parade fireworks.