Extreme jet skiing and flyboarding will be part of the Kinzua Rocks the Wake event from Aug. 30 to Sept. 1. According to Warren County Visitors Bureau statistics, 44% of visitors to Kinzua Dam in 2024 were from more than 50 miles away, with nearly half of visitors coming from Pittsburgh and Erie.

The Pittsburgh area brought the most tourists to Warren County in July 2025 while the Harrisburg market brought the biggest spenders to Warren County.

The statistics come from the tourism impact snapshot compiled by the Warren County Visitors Bureau.

Pittsburgh was the home of 21% of visitors to Warren County in July, followed by 11% from Erie, 9% from State College, 9% from Buffalo and 6% from Cleveland. In terms of spending per visitor, the top-ranked visitor market was Harrisburg, followed by Biloxi, Mo., Rochester, N.Y., Detroit and Scranton. The average spent per visitor was $67 in area restaurants and $52 for area retail stores. The visitors bureau software showed 34% of local business revenue came from visitors in July, with the percentage increasing to 52% of restaurant income, 49% of retail revenue and 89% of accommodations revenue. Overall, 33% of the spending tracked in local businesses came from visitors. All of those percentages have increased from May, the first month the statistics were made available.

A visitor is defined as someone who came from 50 miles or more from the county. Someone from Erie is classified as a visitor. Someone from Jamestown, or other nearby locations outside the county, is not. The WCVB is working on evaluating the impact of more local tourism as they learn the capabilities of the new program.

The highlighted location in July’s Warren County Visitors Bureau newsletter was the Kinzua Dam. In 2024, half of the visitors to the Kinzua Dam were visitors, with 44% of those visitors coming from out of state. The top markets for those visiting the dam were Pittsburgh (26%), Erie (15%) and Cleveland (9%).

Kinzua Dam will continue to be popular as the summer comes to an end this year as Kinzua Rocks the Wake, a free three-day event at Kinzua Beach, takes place on Labor Day weekend, Aug. 30 through Sept, 1. It will bring wild water stunt shows and tribute bands to Kinzua Beach in the Allegheny National Forest.

This family fun Labor Day event features multiple championship level performances from the Chippewa Falls Ski Team, Ohio’s championship water ski team.

Water skiing performances will alternate with Ski Extreme’s freestyle jet ski and flyboarding stunts from Wisconsin. Ski extreme specializes in jaw-dropping flips and spins on jet skis, as well as flyboarding, a relatively new extreme water sport that involves a water-propelled board attached to someone’s feet and powered by a jetski. The flyboard shoots water down with enough force that users can hover fifty feet or more in the air on a jet of water, do flips and tricks and even dive into the water.

Saturday will feature the Ultimate Garth Brooks Tribute featuring Shawn Gerhard, Nashville’s high-energy embodiment of Garth’s greatest hits and unmatched showmanship. On Sunday, The Classic Rock Experience, the nation’s top classic rock-n-roll show, combines the 70’s arena rock legends Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, Styx and other classic icons into a live theatrical production of the greatest rock musical anthems.

Musicians from across the region will perform acoustic tunes throughout the event. Craft breweries, Bent Run Brewing and Bradford Brew Station, will join food trucks from McKean and Warren Counties, along with family friendly entertainment to round out the free event.

The event will kick off at noon on all three days. Saturday and Sunday’s high energy water performances will start at 1 p.m. and continue until 8 p.m. when national touring performances will hit the stage just up from Kinzua Beach. Monday’s performances will feature waterski performances and music from noon to 5 p.m.