New Orleans Tourism Running At Healthy Pace

Two years after Hurricane Katrina ravaged New Orleans, the New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau is reporting that tourism levels are steadily inching back to pre-Katrina decibels. The New Orleans CVB attributes the numbers to a strong 2006 Mardi Gras and New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Progress continued that fall with the return of cruise ships to the city's port and a healthy shot of meetings business. Today, airlines are adding new flights and the city says that the French Quarter is cleaner now than it's been in decades. "The rich New Orleans cultural experience that has existed for hundreds of years is alive and well," said Stephen Perry, president and CEO of the New Orleans CVB.