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Tourism chiefs put brave face on devastation
New Orleans tourist chiefs have described the French Quarter of the city as in “wonderful” condition as they continued to put a brave face on the devastation that brought havoc to the Gulf Coast.
As water continued to be pumped from the streets, the convention and visitor’s bureau said it is now clear that buildings in the historic area escaped relatively unscathed compared to other parts of New Orleans.
“Many parts of the Vieux Carre (French Quarter) show little evidence that a catastrophic hurricane has just passed,” an update from the CVB stated. “The historic character has survived wonderfully well. The buildings have suffered far less wind damage than those in other parts of the city and the Quarter is now free from water.”
It added however that the area is still without basic services.
The CVB optimistically predicted that many hotels will be back in “pristine condition” within a month while others will have “beautiful renovations” and be ready for next year’s tourism season.
UK and Ireland sales director for the CVB and Louisiana Office of Tourism Jody Hanson said: “We are very pleased with the swift and positive progress that has been made in New Orleans over the last few days.
“It is likely that the tourism infrastructure will be one of the first priorities for planners in order to service the reconstruction effort. We therefore very much hope that the city will be welcoming back tourists again early in the new year.”
Tourist officials said with the New Orleans Armstrong International Airport now open, tourists can fly into the city and pick up hire cars to explore the rest of the Deep South.
All conferences using the main convention centre meanwhile have been cancelled until March 31.
Report by Steve Jones
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