New Brunswick country music festival gives multi-million dollar boost to local economy

Thousands of country music fans have flocked to southeast New Brunswick and local businesses are welcoming them with open arms.

The third edition of the YQM Country Fest began Thursday afternoon in Dieppe.

The concert grounds can hold a little over 20,000 people for the three-day music festival.

This year's headliners are Bailey Zimmerman, Jason Aldean and Luke Combs.

Last year's event attracted well over 60,000 country music lovers.

Denis LeBlanc, the director of community development for the City of Dieppe, said the city did an economic study last year that showed a lot of the concert goers are coming from outside the area.

"The direct impact for the southeast region is $14 million which is quite significant. So the City of Dieppe is quite proud of that," said LeBlanc. "We were quite surprised with the high number last year, but it's quite impressive for an event like this."

LeBlanc said hotel rooms in Greater Moncton and the surrounding area have been tough to come by.

"We know it's been one of the challenges to get accommodations close by. From what we've heard, most hotels are booked," said LeBlanc. "On Facebook this morning people were mentioning Sussex had a few available spots, but not many, so it's been a regional success."

Ghislaine Vautour, the general manager of Wingate by Wyndham Dieppe, said the festival is great for business, especially since the summer is almost over.

"We fill all three nights during the whole event. The last week of August the tourism season starts to slow down. Everyone's getting ready to go back to school so it's a great end of the season," said Vautour.

Chris Holden stands behind the bar at Atelier Tony in Dieppe, N.B., on Aug. 22, 2024.

Chris Holden is the general manger at Atelier Tony, which is across from the hotel and roughly a block away from the site.

"Foot traffic is crazy. The energy is wild. The buses drop off right near our restaurant and this part of the town is alive," said Holden.

It's not just the local bars, restaurants and hotels that are benefiting from the festival, it's the vendors on site as well.

Serious Smoke Food Truck owner John Norman said this is the busiest weekend of the year for him.

"This is the icing on the cake. This is what finishes our year for us. This is what makes or breaks our year every year. This is a big one for us," said Norman.

The New Brunswick RCMP posted a message on social media Thursday morning advising motorists to expect more traffic and road congestion at the intersection of Champlain and Notre Dame streets, which is near the festival site.

On Tuesday, the RCMP notified the public officers will be conducting checkpoints in Dieppe and Moncton during YQM Country Fest to make sure the public is safe and to help keep impaired drivers off the roads.

For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.