Climatec employees got into the NOLA spirit recently at an annual conference at the historic Hotel Monteleone. Courtesy of Gina Fierros

As skilled as New Orleans is at putting on a citywide fête, the Big Easy, Crescent City or The Paris of the South — whichever nickname fits its style on any given day — is equally adept at infusing its local culture and playful spirit into corporate events. Planners can utilize a wide range of one-of-a-kind venues, from an opening reception at the expansive Mardi Gras World Float Den to a dinner jazz cruise along the Mississippi River on the New Orleans Steamboat Company’s Steamboat Natchez.

There are also venues and activities for groups that may not be on most planners’ radar, such as fishing or boating in City Park, which is also home to the expansive Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden at NOMA (New Orleans Museum of Art). The art galleries on Royal Street are also options for corporate or incentive outings.

Stephanie Turner, senior vice president convention sales and strategies at New Orleans & Company —  the Official Destination Marketing and Sales Organization for the New Orleans Tourism Industry — emphasizes that the combination of unique venues and the local community sets New Orleans apart as a meetings destination.

“Our culture is so vibrant and it comes to life through the people — the people who create the food, music, art and architecture,” she says. “As event organizers and hosts, we have a passion for this and so we work exceptionally hard and smart with our customers to infuse our unique culture into their meeting environment. When you leave here, you have a sense of place through the people and that’s a really unique attribute about our destination.”

Mary Haley, executive director and meeting planner at Sonitrol Scurity Solutions, worked with New Orleans & Company to help plan a corporate convention for 350 people at the Westin New Orleans on Canal Street.

“New Orleans is well known to everyone and is a huge draw for meetings. Those who have never been would like to go, and those who have want to come back,” says Haley. “The food is known to be superior, and everyone wants to try it. Airlift is also particularly good into New Orleans. We were also there during a jazz festival, so it was ready made outside entertainment for those who wanted to experience the city.”

To integrate the culture, Haley organized a jazz saxophone player to open the convention playing the national anthem. In addition, the group had a second line parade from its closing reception to the formal banquet dinner.

“The banquet was filled with fun Mardi Gras colors and favors on the tables. There is so much to choose from regarding décor in New Orleans — and very reasonably priced and easily accessible,” she says.

According to Haley, the convention hotel and F&B rates were far more reasonable than many other major cities. Many attendees came early and stayed late, taking advantage of the hotel’s location on the riverfront with steamship and riverboat rides and to enjoy the walkable city.

New Orleans is promoting a variety of new attractions that are poised to engage attendees, including Vue Orleans, an indoor and outdoor observation deck and cultural exhibit featuring an interactive display of the city’s 300-year history. The touchless exhibits feature legendary New Orleans figures, such as the Soul Queen of New Orleans Irma Thomas and Preservation Hall Jazz Band, as well as other local icons. The observation deck offers 360-degree views of New Orleans and the Mississippi River.

Vue Orleans is located on top of the new Four Seasons Hotel New Orleans in the former World Trade Center building, the first Four Seasons-branded property in New Orleans. The 34-story, mixed-use development houses a 341-key hotel on the lower floors and 81 luxury condominiums on the upper floors. The property includes two restaurants, approximately 29,000 sf of event space, a spa and fitness center, a rooftop pool and bar area.

The National WWII Museum recently opened its Liberation Pavilion, its final permanent exhibit hall, and officially dedicated last November the Col. Battle Barksdale Parade Ground, a 24,000-sf multi-purpose, outdoor space for private events. The Pavilion marked the completion of the $400 million Road to Victory Capital Campaign that expanded the museum from its original one exhibit hall to seven pavilions over the past two decades.

Corporate groups can use spaces such as the US Freedom Pavilion: The Boeing Center among other pavilions, and onsite theaters and auditoriums. In addition, the Higgins Hotel & Conference Center, the official hotel of the museum, offers 14 event and meeting spaces.

Lindsey Rinaudo, regional sales manager of PRA, a DMC that books corporate events in New Orleans, says that New Orleans is a “small city with a big personality, full of character and excitement.”

“The people and the culture are unlike any other city in the U.S. Many of our clients are surprised to find that New Orleans is so much more than a party city or Mardi Gras,” says Rinaudo.

New Orleans is also gearing up to host next year’s Super Bowl, with a slew of expansions either recently completed or in the works, including $500 million in renovations to the recently branded Caesars Superdome, which offers 162,434 sf of space for group buyouts.

“We are increasing what we do in the corporate world,” Turner says. “If you think about us hosting the Super Bowl in February, when there are a lot of corporate people here, we think there’s opportunity to speak to that market.”

Also new, last October the Louisiana Civil Rights Museum opened in the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center. The convention center itself, which offers 1.1 million sf of space, has been in the news for its extensive $557 million upgrade, which will be ongoing for several years, bringing it “out of the 1980s and into the modern meeting era,” according to Michael Sawaya, president and general manager of the convention center.

Projects recently completed or currently underway include a $40 million roof replacement. The new 40-acre “cool roof” reflects heat, which will increase energy savings. That along with other sustainability efforts helped the center receive LEED Gold certification, the largest LEED-certified project in Louisiana.

The upgrades also include a $65 million, 7.5-acre pedestrian park and transportation center, modernized public spaces with charging stations and renovations to its 140 meeting rooms and public gathering spaces.

The convention center’s governing board plans to buy a property directly across the street and partner with Omni Hotels & Resorts to build New Orleans’ first headquarters hotel, which will have up to 1,000 hotel rooms and 100,000 sf of venue space.

“We did a feasibility study in 2022 and our expectation is that this hotel will bring a minimum of another 22 to 25 event days to the convention center per year,” Sawaya says. “Our expectation is that it will contribute another 96,000 hotel rooms per year consumed in New Orleans.” According to Sawaya, it will have about a $280 million a year economic impact.

Brandon Sparling, manager of events and meetings at True Value Company, organized the True Value Spring Reunion using the convention center in New Orleans this past winter. The biannual trade show successfully brought together retailers from across the country utilizing the convention center’s exhibit hall among other spaces. “I enjoy working in New Orleans,” Sparling says. “The show went well.”

Nearby, Caesars New Orleans, which was formerly branded Harrah’s, is opening this fall a 340-room Caesars Tower with 15 floors, according to Jason Gaudet, associate director of sales at Caesars Entertainment. The $435 million investment​ will also include a 54-key Nobu Hotel and a Nobu Restaurant. The new tower will add to the existing Harrah’s Tower, which offers 450 guest rooms and suites​. The towers together will offer 790 total rooms and suites. Options for groups include private dining areas at restaurant Emeril’s Brasserie, which opened last fall. Caesars New Orleans offers 20,000 sf of meeting space.

“It’s been a shot in the arm as far as the redevelopment of that downtown district,” Gaudet says. “Carrying the Caesars flag is going to be beneficial for customers who want to have a little bit more upscale experience. We plan to continue to be a part of the citywide conference experience, which I think is why the convention center is excited for us with this build, as is New Orleans & Company.”

Improvements include a refurbished, Roman-inspired casino floor. A new hotel lobby experience will offer space for receptions for about 700 people. Octavia, which is replacing the former Masquerade nightclub in the center of the casino, is set to open this summer.

Caesars has also opened a new food hall featuring celebrity chefs such as Bobby Flay. Other restaurants welcoming groups include Manning’s Sports Bar and Grill, whose courtyard and outdoor space is perfect for an iconic New Orleans crawfish boil.

“I am excited to sell a couple of the new restaurants in Caesars including Emeril’s Brassiere and Nobu,” she adds. “Emeril Lagasse is a huge icon in New Orleans so I am thrilled to see a new Emeril restaurant in the city. Nobu will be the first elevated Japanese dining experiences that we welcome to New Orleans.” Groups can also hold a reception or concert on the Fulton Street Promenade.

Rinaudo says, “I think the Caesars brand will certainly draw people to New Orleans — everyone knows the Caesars brand to be elevated and first-class. The Caesars Superdome is now part of our skyline, which is a huge part of our city. It is also home to the New Orleans Saints, which will naturally draw people to the new hotel.”

Rinaudo can also help integrate local culture into a meeting or event, including jazz musicians or a second-line parade. “We’ve had second-line parades with five-piece brass bands and a grand marshal leading the attendees,” she says. “We recommend high school marching bands for the larger groups. Both options are exciting and unique to New Orleans. Certainly, it’s an experience attendees will be talking about for years to come.”

New Orleans features a host of properties, including the 1886-founded Hotel Monteleone, which remains one of the city’s few family-owned hotels. The property recently renovated its luxury Iberville Tower, which features 160 upgraded guest rooms and 48 new suites. Its famed Carousel Bar turns 75 this year. Small groups or incentives can book a history lesson presentation about the Carousel Bar during off hours before it opens to the public.

“With corporate and incentive meetings, New Orleans is all about cultural experiences,” says Shari Fisher, director of sales. “We can enhance their meeting with local talent, such as the Mardi Gras Indians, to welcome their group to the hotel or do a second line parade or a dine-around with some of our wonderful restaurants that are within walking distance to the hotel.”

Gina Fierros, Phoenix branch office manager at Climatec, recently booked an annual conference in New Orleans for Climatec’s national sales team. The two-day conference was for roughly 180 people and was being held in New Orleans for the first time. They utilized Hotel Monteleone’s more than 26,000 sf of meeting and function space.

“Once we announced the conference was going to be in New Orleans everybody loved the idea,” Fierros says. “It’s such an iconic city and folks extended through the weekend so they could do their own personal tours. Some folks flew in their families and explored the city for the weekend. Everyone loved the food and the hotel’s history.”

Offsite, the Climatec executives had a dinner and walked through the surrounding French Quarter. The group used one of the hotel ballrooms for a vendor showcase and also breakout space. “We had a second line parade, which was amazing,” Fierros says. “The ballroom opens out onto the street, so we were able to take all of our vendors and our sales staff right out onto the street. They had a grand marshal, stilt walkers and a band. It was a great time. Everybody absolutely loved that.”

Fierros has been planning this events for more than 15 years, and she found the staff at Hotel Monteleone the best staff to work, from the sales personnel down to the captains they had at the event.

Kimpton Hotel Fontenot, located in New Orleans’ Central Business District, underwent an expansion in 2023, to bring its total to 12,000 sf of flexible events space, including the 5,500-sf Canray Ballroom and 554-sf Evangeline Ballroom. There is also an outdoor terrace overlooking Tchoupitoulas Street, and dinner or brunch space for groups at the hotel’s King Brasserie & Bar. The property also features a cocktail bar, Peacock Room, which hosts regular musical performances.

The organization, Great Place To Work, a UKG company, hosted an Executive Roundtable meeting at the Hotel Fontenot for approximately 40 people comprised of chief resource officers, chief diversity officers and chief innovation officers from some of the largest corporations in the U.S.

“We chose this location for a variety of reasons, including Kathy Werhan’s (sales manager at the Fontenot) incredibly helpful and smooth support in answering our questions and providing detailed responses,” says Katie Van Geffen, senior manager, strategic partnerships & recognition at Great Place To Work.

The hotel has a new event meeting space that is open and airy with large windows and good acoustics, Van Geffen notes. “The hotel rooms were some of the largest and most attractive I had toured in the city. A great mix of encapsulating New Orleans’ brand of funk, but still very modern.”

The location was also a factor, she adds, with its proximity to the French Quarter, while not being in the middle of it. “We felt safe in the Fontenot’s neighborhood and appreciated again, with the hotel being so recently renovated, that all the amenities were new and modern.”

The group stayed on property for the meetings and meals, but some attendees explored nearby attractions and restaurants. “We recommended Pêche Restaurant to our attendees and did an educational tour of the WWII museum, both wonderful as ancillary activities,” Van Geffen says.

One of the largest meeting hotels in the city is the 1,622-room Hilton New Orleans Riverside. Last year, they finished renovating 450 of its rooms and this year will complete another 250 in the main tower, with a projected finish by 2026. “We are in the top five for Hilton hotels as far as conventions during weeknights, and we do that by layering,” explains Susan Zimmermann, director of sales for the property.

She adds, “If you’re doing 1,000 to 1,200 guestrooms, that would be on the larger end, but what we’re finding with corporate meetings now is a lot of them are going smaller. We have the third floor of that hotel that is perfect for a group that has 350 attendees, and it’s like you’re in your own designated space.”

The property focuses on sustainability, including recycling oyster shells, according to Zimmerman. “Drago’s Seafood is the largest restaurant at the hotel. They do over 2 million to-go oysters a year. We donate the oyster shells to an organization called the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, and they actually will put the oysters back into the reef or build barriers to help save the coastline.” The program is called the Oyster Shell Recycling Program.

There are projects meeting groups can get involved in for CSR options. “We have a group marketing team here that works with our groups and with our external affairs,” Turner says. “We will talk to groups about what’s important to them, and then go to the community and see if we have a project that aligns so it’s not just a cookie cutter. If they’re a musical group, maybe they want to donate some instruments.”

The options for giving back can be tailored to make for a memorable experience in a city that attendees will never forget. C&IT