New Orleans News | Press

New Orleans' monthly Media Update covers the latest travel and tourism developments around town. Please email jhollings@neworleans.com to be added to our media mailing list.

What’s New in New Orleans Hospitality Industry – June 2019

NEW DEVELOPMENTS:

• We look forward to several new developments this year, including a new airport, cocktail museum, children’s museum and more. For a full list of developments, click here.
   
• Summer is a great value-added time in New Orleans and the perfect time to plan the ultimate getaway. Check out our new Summer Packages here.

• The New Orleans Museum of Art (NOMA) officially opened the six-acre expansion of the Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden last month. The expansion features new sites for sculpture, an outdoor amphitheater and stage, pedestrian bridges and walkways, a new gallery and an outdoor learning environment.
  • The sculpture garden is free and open to the public seven days a week.

• Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport has delayed their May opening and is now on track to open the new 972,000 square-foot facility this fall.   
  • This new, world-class terminal complex will completely replace the current facility.
  • The $1 billion project includes in-line baggage screening, a consolidated security checkpoint to three concourses and 35 gates, a 2,200-car parking garage and more concessions options located down the concourse center aisles. 
  • Food and beverage concessions and news, gift and specialty treat retail concessions will feature a mix of local brands representative of Louisiana and New Orleans as well as national brands that appeal to both the local and visiting passengers, including Shake Shack, Mondo, Leah’s Kitchen and Midway Pizza.
  • The new facility is expected to increase the airport’s economic impact by approximately 20% in the next five years and will support 64,000 jobs and $6.4 billion in local spending.

UPCOMING EVENTS:

• The 10^th annual New Orleans Oyster Festival will take place June 1^st-2^nd at Woldenberg Park.
  • Admission to the festival is free and will include oysters and food from some of the city’s best oyster bars and restaurants.
  • The festival will have cooking demonstrations, the P&J Oyster Shucking Contest and the Acme World Oyster Eating Contest. There will be live music from Maggie Koerner, Amanda Shaw, The Brass-A-Holics, Bag of Donuts and more.
  • The New Orleans Oyster Festival strives to educate the country about the benefits of the Louisiana Gulf Oyster and to help raise money for Coastal Restoration.
     
• The 9^th annual New Orleans Pride will return June 7^th-9^th for a weekend-long celebration of the LGBTQ community.
  • The weekend is packed full of events and the famous Pride Parade which will proceed throughout the French Quarter on Saturday, June 8^th.
     
• The 33^rd annual French Market Creole Tomato Festival will take over the city’s historic French Market June 8^th-9^th.
  • The festival will include delicious red creole tomatoes, live music, food, cooking demonstrations, contests and a Bloody Mary market.
  • Creole tomatoes are seasonal to South Louisiana and only available during the summer months.
     
• The 9^th annual FestiGals, a local women-centric conference, will take place June 21^st-23^rd as the first and only festival that inspires, connects and celebrates women while supporting causes important to their well-being.
  • FestiGals features several educational sessions, the Step-Up Second Line Parade and the Drag Queen Brunch on the final day.
     
• The 13^th annual Cajun-Zydeco Festival returns to Louis Armstrong Park June 22^nd-23^rd for the only festival that offers exclusively Cajun and Zydeco music. Admission is free.

For a full list of events, click here.

HOTELS:

• The French Ministry of Culture included The Degas House in the Maisons des Illustres, a prestigious French designation which recognizes the famous museum and bed and breakfast as a French landmark.
  • The Maisons des Illustres honors homes for their historical value and for the people who lived in them. Their network includes the homes of writers, musicians and composers, actors, scientists, designers and world leaders.
     
• Virgin Hotels New Orleans will open their latest lifestyle hotel in the city’s Warehouse District located at 550 Baronne Street in 2021. The project officially broke ground last month.
   
• Local hospitality group Leblanc + Smith has added The Corsair Hotel to their portfolio, a boutique-style hotel, featuring 15 rooms including four suites, a restaurant, a pool, pool bar and lobby bar. The Corsair will be located Uptown on Saint Charles Avenue and is expected to open Fall 2019.
   
• HI New Orleans, the latest development from Hosteling International, will open this year at 1028 Canal Street. The hostel will feature 24 private rooms, 122 dorm beds, a large common space, public café and community room.

RESTAURANTS/BARS:

• Coquette’s co-chefs Kristen Essig and Michael Stoltzfus are opening a new restaurant, Thalia, in the Lower Garden District in the coming months. The 37-seat restaurant will be an establishment for the neighborhood and will have a focus on community and sustainability.

OPEN

• Chef Donald Link opened his latest concept, Gianna, an Italian restaurant.
  • James Beard Award-winning Chef Rebecca Wilcomb is the executive chef of Gianna, located at 700 Magazine Street in the city’s Central Business District.
     
• Jewel of the South, the latest concept by bartender’s Chris Hannah and Nick Detrich, recently opened on St. Louis Street in the French Quarter. The bar features a thoughtfully curated cocktail menu as well as a small plates from the kitchen.

NEW DIRECT FLIGHTS:

• Delta Air Lines announced a new nonstop weekend service to Raleigh-Durham (RDU) beginning on June 8^th, 2019. The flight will be a Saturday and Sunday only service.

MEETINGS & CONVENTIONS:

                Meetings (3,000 or more in attendance) includes:

• Big Easy Con | June 1^st-2^nd
  • Brent Spiner, Felicia Day, Grace Rolek and Lennie James are among this year’s celebrity guests.
  • Big Easy Con is a two-day pop culture convention that celebrates the culture and people of New Orleans.
  • Projected attendance: 10,000
     
• Institute of Food Technologies (IFT) Annual Meeting & Food Expo | June 2^nd-5^th
  • This year’s conference covers a variety of topics such as the latest products and trends in organics and the newest advancements in the world’s food traceability.
  • IFT’s Annual Meeting & Food Expo is one of the largest events of its kind bringing together science of food professionals from around the globe.
  • Projected attendance: 17,000
     
• American Society of Safety Professionals (ASSP) Annual Safety Meeting | June 9^th-12^th
  • Safety 2019 is an industry-defining event for occupational safety and health development.
  • The conference includes more than 240 concurrent sessions, 300+ speakers and 600 companies presenting cutting-edge products and technology for occupational safety.
  • Projected attendance: 5,000
     
• Marijuana Business Daily MJBizConNEXT Annual Meeting | June 12^th-14^th
  • MJBizConNext is the place for cannabis business executives, lead cultivators, extractors and innovators in the industry to learn more about the new advancements in the cannabis industry.
  • Projected attendance: 5,000
     
• World Educational Congress for Laundering and Dry Cleaning’s Clean Show | June 20^th-23^rd
  • Seminars delivered by leading industry experts and live demonstrations of the machinery and ancillary products will allow attendees to learn the latest techniques and strategies in the industry.
  • The Clean Show is biennial and is the main event for the laundering, dry cleaning and textile services industry.
  • Projected attendance: 14,000
     
• Louisiana Department of Education Annual Teacher Leader Summit | June 26^th-28^th
  • This annual summit fosters a culture that celebrates and engages educators in Louisiana by building their knowledge and skill in key areas related to their lives.
  • Projected attendance: 6,500

New Orleans & Company is a nationally accredited, 1,100-member destination marketing organization and the largest and most successful private economic development corporation in Louisiana. New Orleans & Company and its members and partners influence thousands of decision-makers and millions of visitors to choose New Orleans through direct sales, marketing, public relations, branding, visitor services and local advocacy initiatives at our New Orleans headquarters and offices in Chicago, Columbia, SC, Washington, D.C., the United Kingdom, France, Germany and China. Consistently recognized as one of the top five destination marketing organizations in the country, New Orleans & Company celebrates its 58th anniversary in 2018. For more information, please visit: Neworleans.com/about, Facebook.com/neworleansandco and Instagram.com/Neworleansandco.

Media Contact
Julia Hollings
504-566-5019
jhollings@neworleans.com

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