NEW ORLEANS — Downtown New Orleans recorded 2.2 million visits during the two-week Carnival stretch from the Friday of the Krewe of Cleopatra through Mardi Gras Day, marking the highest level of Carnival visitation since 2020, according to data from Placer.ai analyzed by the Downtown Development District (DDD). The total represents a 10% increase over 2025.
Carnival Visitation Reaches Post-2020 High
“These visitation numbers show that Downtown remains the economic engine of our city during Carnival,” said DDD President & CEO Seth Knudsen. “A 10% year-over-year increase reflects meaningful momentum for our restaurants, hotels, retailers and cultural attractions. We remain focused on delivering a clean, safe and welcoming environment that allows businesses to thrive.”
DDD also sponsored The Riverwalk’s 40th Annual Lundi Gras Festival which attracted approximately 7,000 attendees with live music, local food and family-friendly programming along the Mississippi River.
Hotel performance reflected the strong turnout. While official 2026 occupancy data have not yet been released, early industry reporting indicates hotel occupancy in New Orleans reached roughly 90 percent during the peak Mardi Gras period. That aligns with 2025 levels, when occupancy averaged 87 percent over the five-night peak and approached 95 percent on the Saturday before Mardi Gras. By comparison, 2024 occupancy averaged about 81 percent during the same stretch.
Citywide Tourism Nears Pre-Pandemic Peak
This carnival season’s performance is not an outlier but part of the broader resurgence in tourism that has pushed the city’s annual visitation and spending back into record-setting territory.
According to New Orleans & Company, New Orleans attracted 19.08 million visitors in 2024, generating a record $10.4 billion in visitor spending. The milestone marked the first full return to pre-pandemic strength and underscored the depth of the city’s tourism recovery. Visitation increased 6.4 percent over 2023 totals, bringing overall volume close to the 19.75 million peak reached in 2019.
“This kind of growth doesn’t happen without implementing successful strategies across multiple sectors of visitors simultaneously, especially in such a competitive environment,” said Walt Leger III, President and CEO of New Orleans & Company.
Spending growth was even more pronounced. Visitor expenditures rose 8.4 percent year over year, surpassing the previous high-water mark of $10.045 billion set in 2019. The combination of rising visitor counts and higher per-visitor spending signals not only a rebound in travel demand but stronger economic impact overall. Based on sustained year-over-year gains, tourism officials expect 2025 and 2026 totals to remain at, and potentially exceed, these record-setting levels if current trends continue.
“Our ongoing efforts to ensure that New Orleans remains the most remarkable, unique and welcoming city in the world are creating a positive impact at the local and state level,” Leger said.
The tourism and hospitality industry employs more than 80,000 people in the New Orleans area. Visitor spending generates tens of millions of dollars in local and state tax revenue that supports services including education, infrastructure and public safety.
Conventions Strengthen Business Travel Segment
New Orleans has also further solidified its standing as a leading meetings and conventions destination. New Orleans secured a third-place national ranking for hosting major conventions in the latest “Top 250” industry study, outperforming Chicago and Las Vegas and trailing only San Diego and Orlando.
The ranking reflects the efforts of the DDD, New Orleans & Co. and other civic groups to bolster the city’s competitiveness in attracting large-scale national events.
Business travel carries significant economic weight for the city. Meetings and conventions generate more than $2 billion in direct annual spending in New Orleans, supporting hotels, restaurants, transportation providers and a broad network of local vendors.
Industry leaders say convention attendees typically spend more per trip and are more likely to book midweek stays, helping balance occupancy levels and providing a steady revenue base outside major tourism spikes like Carnival and festival season.
