New Orleans tourism officials announced Tuesday that the city achieved its second-highest visitor count on record in 2012, when 9.01 million people traveled to the city. Only 2004 surpassed that total, with its 10.4 million visitors.
A University of New Orleans study concluded the 2012 visitors spent an all-time record $6 billion in the city. In 2004, spending was pegged at $4.9 billion.
The numbers mean 2012 was the biggest year for tourism in New Orleans, by all measures, since Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005. Researchers and officials said the upward trend is persistent enough to suggest a permanent improvement in the city's appeal to visitors.
The numbers have been strong for long enough to declare the city has expanded beyond its traditional core as a dining and nightlife destination, although those sectors also are growing, said John Williams, interim dean of the UNO College of Business Administration and co-director of the university's Hospitality Research Center. He said a survey of more than 15,000 visitors indicated people now are coming for a wide array of attractions, including museums, festivals and other cultural events.
"These figures are pretty amazing this year," Williams said during a press conference unveiling the results. "We see trending that has now turned into something else. I believe now that it is transformative."
The challenge, Williams said, will be for New Orleans to maintain and grow its new-found reputation as a multifaceted destination.
The $6 billion spending figure represents total spending by visitors without deducting for factors such as corporate profits that leave the city, in national hotel chains for example. While that might narrow the picture of tourism's economic impact, the broad figure also leaves out residual spending by hospitality businesses and employees, which would boost the number, Williams said. Rough estimates are that the spending total generates about $250 million in taxes for a range of public agencies, which is just a slice of the local benefit.
"Right now, in the world, the traveler economy has been the most competitive it's ever been," said Stephen Perry, president of theNew Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau. "We've never in our lifetime had the number of choices."
So the visitor total is a sign of rising perceptions of the city, he said.
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