Festivals ahead
April is a busy month in Georgetown. Since the late ’90s, the Red Poppy Festival has been the premier spring event downtown. For the past three years, the Two Step Inn has brought more entertainment, guests — and money — to town.
This year, Two Step Inn takes place April 18-19, and the Red Poppy Festival is April 24-26.
Two Step Inn contributed $128.6 million to the regional economy in 2025, city spokesperson Aly Van Dyke said. Money comes through supporting festival operations — including paying employees — and attendee expenditures both on site and around the community.
“Events like Two Step Inn bring thousands of visitors to Georgetown,” Assistant City Manager Nick Woolery told the Sun. “From hotel occupancy and sales tax revenue to the donation to our Friends of Georgetown Parks and Recreation and folks from across the country getting a chance to experience all the amenities Georgetown has to offer, these events create a lasting impact on Georgetown’s economy and quality of life.”
Across the state, April is historically a weaker month in terms of sales tax revenues, according to Nathan Parras, Georgetown’s assistant chief financial officer. However, he said the April addition of Two Step Inn helped even the playing field in Georgetown.
The revenue gap between March and April has gone down — from about $500,000 annually before the festival, to only $200,000 now, according to Texas tax data. Similarly, the gap between April and May has gone down from $280,000 before the festival, to $181,000 after the festival was created. 
“Two Step Inn has helped sales tax receipts in April,” Mr. Parras said. “However, I think the greater impact is on [Hotel Occupancy Tax] revenue.”
Hotel Occupancy Tax supports tourism
Hotel Occupancy Tax — which is generated when guests stay in hotels or rentals overnight and is used to promote more tourism into the city — has increased by $20,000 in April, from about $140,000 in Fiscal Year 2021 to about $160,000 in FY 2025.
Two Step Inn sells about 30,000 tickets for each day of the festival. While some are reserved for Georgetown residents, the majority of guests come from elsewhere to attend.
In 2024, Parks and Recreation Director Kimberly Garrett said at a city council meeting about 63,000 tickets were sold across Saturday and Sunday, but around 54,000 tickets were scanned. That year, most of the tickets bought were from Williamson County, Travis County, Dallas County and Harris County, which includes Houston.
Comparing 2024 to 2025, about 6,000 more people attended Two Step Inn 2025, when more than 60,000 people attended, Ms. Van Dyke said.
In contrast to sales tax, Georgetown Tourism Manager Kendal Buechler said April was already a good month for HOT revenue because of Red Poppy Festival and seasonal travel during that time of year.
“While Two Step Inn has certainly brought additional tourism activity and demand in April, it has not been identified as the sole reason for increases in HOT revenue,” she said. “Since Two Step Inn began, Georgetown has also seen growth in hotel inventory as well as an increase in short-term rental properties, which has expanded the community’s capacity to accommodate visitors and generate HOT collections during peak periods.”
HOT revenue from Two Step Inn goes into a separate, undesignated tourism fund, Georgetown’s Communication Manager Keith Hutchinson said.
“The HOT special revenue fund is used for a range of tourism advertising, events and programs to lead to overnight hotel stays, aka, ‘heads in beds,’ ” he said.
Comparing the prices of AirB&Bs and other short-term rentals in Old Town— which are operated by Georgetown homeowners — help show how demand for a room can change during Two Step Inn compared to the rest of the year.
These prices reflect the reservation dates for Two Step Inn weekend — from April 17-20 — for two adults, compared to the price for the same rental over the summer.
A home near Fifth and Church was priced at $4,392 April 17-20, compared to $901 for a stay June 19-22.
A home near Holly Street was priced at $3,901 April 17-20, compared to $866 for a stay June 19-22.
A home off Quail Valley Drive is $1,299 April 17-20, compared to $698 for a stay June 19-22.
A home on Holly Street is $2,720 April 17-20, compared to $681 for a stay June 19-22.
Impact on Georgetown businesses
The efforts of C3 — which puts on the festival — aligns with the mission of the Downtown Georgetown Association, DGA President Tammey Stokley said. The festival makes Georgetown a destination while highlighting local businesses.
“It’s really exciting how they’ve been a community partner,” she said.
The day before this year’s Two Step Inn, the DGA and C3 are holding a free, family friendly pre-party on the Square with live music from 7-9 p.m. The goal is to encourage patronage at businesses and shops downtown.
C3 provided the contact to secure entertainment for the pre-party, Ms. Stokley said.
She added downtown businesses have seen “tremendous increase [in business] from the year prior” thanks to the pre-party. She wants businesses to take advantage of the additional foot traffic.
“[Our goal] is to gather and divide that traffic [across downtown],” she said.
This year’s festival
Chris Stapleton and Brooks & Dunn will headline Two Step Inn, which takes place April 18 and 19 in San Gabriel Park.
Other artists on the lineup include ’90s rock band Goo Goo Dolls and country legend Randy Travis.
Tickets options include one and two day passes and General Admission, VIP, Platinum and Y’all Access price points. They can be found at www.twostepinn.com/tickets.