Last year, visitors to New Orleans spent a record $7.05 billion, a 3.5% increase over the previous high set in 2014. The city welcomed 9.78 million visitors—also higher than 2014—and those travelers spent more per person than in prior years. The 2015 New Orleans Area Visitor Profile, conducted by the University of New Orleans Hospitality Research Center for the convention and visitors bureau and tourism marketing corporation, shows steady growth in both visitation and spending since Hurricane Katrina.
“We are on a strong tourism growth curve driven by new investments in expanded marketing and sales, which help us compete for leisure travelers, conventions and major special events,” said Stephen Perry, president and CEO of the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau. “Not only are we attracting more visitors, we are attracting higher-quality visitors, as reflected in record visitor spending. With the state facing budget challenges and slowdowns in several traditional economic sectors, the greater New Orleans tourism industry has become a leading source of job creation and state and local tax revenue. Tourism is a key catalyst for economic growth and opportunity that benefits other businesses and improves quality of life and public services for all Louisianans.”
In 2015, overnight visitors who stayed in hotels spent an average of $1,011 per person per trip. The average stay was 4.2 nights, and visitors spent about $238 per person per day. These figures underscore tourism’s growing economic impact on the region and its importance as a driver of recovery and continued development.