FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Media Contacts
Mary Beth Romig
504-566-5019
mbromig@neworleanscvb.com

Erica Papillion
504-566-5019
epapillion@neworleanscvb.com

NBC’s The Today Show Honors New Orleans as the Second Most Beautiful Place in America
Today Show’s “America the Beautiful” series featured New Orleans and Gulf Coast on Sept. 6, 2007 broadcast

NEW ORLEANS – Sept. 6, 2007 – The New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau (New Orleans CVB) is pleased to announce that New Orleans and the Gulf Coast were featured on NBC’s the Today Show as number two in the top ten most beautiful places in the nation.

Today Show’s “America the Beautiful” series has featured, among other destinations, Yosemite National Park, the islands of Hawaii and the country’s fabled Route 66. Sept. 6, 2007’s edition showed the Gulf Coast’s Santa Rosa Island, Florida; Biloxi, Mississippi and New Orleans—a place where, according to jazz musician Irvin Mayfield, who was interviewed in the segment, “we live our art.”

The Communications & Public Relations department of the New Orleans CVB assisted the Today Show producers with filming, story ideas and other key elements of the segment.

This honor is the latest accomplishment in a string of awards bestowed on a post-Katrina New Orleans. Last December, the city was chosen by Orbitz.com as an “in location” for experience-seeking vacationers and in August 2006, they named New Orleans a future top-five international hotspot. Also in 2006, AAA named New Orleans one of America’s top-ten most walkable cities and Travel + Leisure magazine included New Orleans in its 2007 annual list of “Where to Go Next.”

New Orleans’ tourism industry is thriving. Airlines are adding new flights to Louis Armstrong International Airport; the city has one of the freshest hotel products in the country; the French Quarter is cleaner than it has been in decades and we continue to receive extremely positive testimonials from visitors. Major corporations such as Carnival Cruise Lines, Southwest Airlines and others are investing in New Orleans’ hospitality industry; new restaurants are opening; and festivals are enjoying record-breaking attendance. The time to visit America’s second most beautiful place is now!

To read Today Show Travel Editor Peter Greenberg’s update on New Orleans, please visit http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20604315/.

About New Orleans Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau (NOMCVB)
The New Orleans CVB (www.neworleanscvb.com) is the driving force behind New Orleans' most important industry, tourism. Today the cultural riches, sensual indulgences and unparalleled service that define the New Orleans experience continue to flourish, as they have for centuries. The most celebrated and historic core of the city - including the French Quarter, Central Business District, Warehouse and Arts District, Magazine Street, Faubourg Marigny and Garden District - not only remains intact, both physically and spiritually, but is thriving. The New Orleans CVB is proudly welcoming visitors and business travelers every day.

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