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October 2007 Article

A New and Better New Orleans Beckons

You can still march through the streets with a go-cup, enjoy some of the finest cuisine in the world, hear some of the grandest music, and generally enjoy life in the moment like no where else.

What’s more “It’s better”, Bonnie Boyd, CMP, president of BBC Destination Management, says of today’s New Orleans. “It’s much cleaner. You can really notice it.” That’s in addition to the new restaurants, new businesses, and even increased passion by the natives for their city.

“The real change since Katrina,” Bonnie explains, “is the way the natives look at their city. They see once again that there is no other place on earth like New Orleans. And they’re going to fight for it. They are passionate.”

Mark S. Wilson, director of marketing, Royal Sonesta/Chateau Sonesta Hotels, seconds Bonnie’s sentiments and then some. In his role as president of the French Quarter Business Association, he has seen collaborative efforts between private business and government to create an even more welcoming city.

After Katrina, the merchants put together a list of “wishful thinking,” he relates, including a request for 24-hour manual street sweeping, plus enzymes in the water of street sweeping trucks to make it all smell better. “We got it all,” Mark reports. “The streets are tremendously cleaner.” To show their appreciation, the association now sponsors a lunch monthly for the workers giving them the opportunity to dine in some of the city’s most famous establishments.

New to Do

In other joint efforts, businesses have created new reasons to visit New Orleans and new ways to enjoy it. Many of the hotels are now offering entertainment, Mark says, helping to employ more musicians, give visitors a reason to return, and enhance the property’s brand. The Royal Sonesta, for example, started a “Women in Jazz” series. The city launched a Seafood Festival in June, which will now annually draw people to a celebration featuring dishes from The French Quarter’s great chefs.

A new historic district designation is leading to grants for street lighting and street and sidewalk improvements. The merchants have also addressed making the streets even safer.

Become a Voluntourist

All of this enthusiasm becomes contagious when visitors take part in community service projects to help restore areas still recovering from the devastation of 2005. “Voluntourism is big in New Orleans right now,” Bonnie says, and her group was among the first to support it.

“It is how BBC stayed in business,” she explains. “We were the only DMC in New Orleans that stayed open. We survived providing logistics and box lunches to those repairing the city.”

Today you can plan an event in New Orleans and build a community service component into your schedule. About 95 % of corporations and associations are doing just that Bonnie says. Possibilities range from making mail boxes in a hotel room to building a playground in a residential neighborhood to landscaping parks or painting schools to building houses with Habitat for Humanity. It can be active outdoor work or less taxing indoor efforts, or a combination.

Omnicon Group Inc. and C2Creative and BBC Destination Management
joined forces to build a playground in New Orleans.

These projects can easily become a team-building exercise and definitely build esprit de corps, Bonnie says, where participants are delighted with the results of their efforts and the good they have done. Such activities also generate positive media attention and public relations. “It’s a win-win situation for everyone,” Bonnie declares.

BBC can provide planners with a list of organizations needing help so the planner can make arrangements with the best fit. BBC can then handle transportation, food and other logistics.

State of the Meetings Business

Mark and Bonnie agree that the meetings business is returning and should reach pre-Katrina levels by 2009. In the meantime, Mark says that there is great short-term availability for large-scale meetings at the convention center. The 1.2 million sq. ft. facility is all-new and still has openings in prime times next year.

Citing the collaborative efforts again, Mark credits leaders of local organizations with promoting the city for conferences and meetings. The president of Loyola University, the head of an insurance company, a restaurant owner and others have sent the word out to their industry associations saying New Orleans is ready, come meet here, Mark explains. They are also talking it up on the boards they serve on. And, it is paying off, he says.

New Orleans is ready, has been ready for some time, Bonnie declares. If you’ve been missing New Orleans, here’s a recap on why you no longer should.

New Reasons to Not Miss New Orleans:

1. The convention center has been rebuilt, looks great, and has some short-term availability.
2. The French Quarter is cleaner and better than ever.
3. Renovated hotels provide an even better product than before.
4. Service is especially attentive as workers appreciate your custom even more.
5. Many hotels now feature music, adding to their appeal.
6. New festivals are being launched such as the Seafood Festival in June.
7. Voluntourism is active and gives groups a way to give back in a win-win activity.
8. The private and public sectors have formed alliances improving an already magical place.

“When we returned after Katrina,” Mark explains, “we saw our city through fresh eyes. A somewhat laissez faire attitude has been replaced by new higher expectations on our part, giving the visitor an even better experience.”

A few highlights on the New Orleans Calendar for 2008:

• February 5 ~ Mardi Gras
• Feb 15-17 ~ 2008 NBA All Star Weekend
• March 24 – 30 ~ Zurich Classic of New Orleans
  TPC Louisiana, Avondale, Louisiana
• April 25 - May 4 ~ New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival
• June 6- 8 ~ New Orleans Seafood Festival
• October 4 ~ Prospect 1: the New Orleans Biennial, the largest Biennial
  of Contemporary Art in the U.S.
• October 31 ~ Halloween Weekend (“It’s a blast,” Bonnie says.)

For more information on New Orleans, contact your GEP or Krisam representative.