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News • Louisiana • United States • 2012-11-15

New Orleans Tops the Charts as “America’s Favorite City” Travel + Leisure Magazine releases results of annual, high-profile survey Survey results show that travelers recognize New Orleans personalities, shopping, live music and girlfriend getaways

This week, Travel + Leisure (T+L) Magazine revealed the results of their 2012 America’s Favorite Cities survey, which asks people to rate 35 cities across the country in 66 different categories. For the first time, T+L included a category for America’s Favorite Cities overall, with New Orleans placing in the top spot.

“This is yet another major honor for our city and testament to the more than 78,000 New Orleanians who work in the cultural economy,” said Mayor Mitch Landrieu. “Despite all that our city has endured, visitors have stated clearly that we are still one of the best and most unique destinations on the planet for a vibrant, unforgettable experience. This ranking, on top of receiving the World Tourism Award last week, cements our place as a top global destination.”

According to visitors, New Orleans also ranked number one in a range of sub-categories, including live music/concerts and bands, wild weekends, cocktail hour, singles/bar scene, offbeat personalities, cafes, antique stores, flea markets and girlfriend getaways. T+L also found that New Orleanians are most proud of their city compared to residents of the other 34 cities in the survey.

\"To receive even a mention in Travel + Leisure\'s readers\' survey is a huge honor for any city, but to find out visitors consider us their favorite city overall is truly over the top,\" said Mark Romig, President and CEO of New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation. \"Our industry\'s hard work and steady vision to deliver the best tourism experience in America is being rewarded with this honor.\"

“This annual, prestigious survey has become a way for us as an industry and city to gauge how we are being perceived by visitors,” said Stephen Perry, President & CEO of the New Orleans CVB. “The fact that New Orleans consistently tops the charts in a variety of categories, not only shows the diversity of our city and culture, but also that we can provide any visitor with the type of unique experience they are looking for.”

Visitors ranked New Orleans in the top three in the following subcategories:

Shopping

Antique Stores (1)

Flea Markets (1)

Independent Boutiques

Type of Trip

Girlfriend Getaways (1)

Wild Weekend (1)

Best Times to Visit

New Year’s Eve (1)

Fall

Food/Drink/Restaurants

Cafes (1)

Fine Dining Restaurants

Coffee

People

Off-Beat (1)

Proud of their City (1)

Charming Local Accent

Diverse

Nightlife

Singles/Bar Scene (1)

Live Music/Concerts and Bands (1)

Happy Hour (1)

Quality of Life and Visitor Experience

People-watching (1)

Lots of Hotel Options

In addition to the honors voted by visitors, locals were also given the chance to tout their city and gave New Orleans a top three ranking in the following subcategories:

Shopping (1)

Antique Stores (1)

Flea Markets (1)

Independent Boutiques (1)

Type of Trip

Wild Weekend (1)

Cultural Getaway

Girlfriend Getaways

Best Times to Visit

Fall (1)

New Year’s Eve

Spring Break

Food/Drink/Restaurants

Cafes (1)

Fine-Dining Restaurants

People

Proud of their City (1)

Diverse

Friendly

Off-Beat

Sports-Crazed

Charming Local Accent

Nightlife (1)

Cocktail Hour (1)

Live Music/Concerts and Bands (1)

Singles/Bar Scene (1)

Quality of Life and Visitor Experience

People-Watching (1)

Lots of Hotel Options

Architecture/Cool Buildings

The annual online survey appeared on travelandleisure.com from June 1, 2012 to September 1, 2012. Respondents were asked to identify if they were visitors or residents, then asked to rank their choice of 35 cities from across the country in different categories on culture, hotels, shopping, people, food and other characteristics. Respondents were asked to rate a city for each applicable characteristic, using a scale from 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest score. Responses were collected and tabulated by travelandleisure.com. New Orleans and other Favorite Cities winners are featured in T+L Magazine’s December 2012 issue, which is on newsstands November 16.

Complete survey results can be found at www.travelandleisure.com/americas-favorite-cities/2012.

Cities also included in the 2012 America’s Favorite Cities survey were: Anchorage; Atlanta; Austin; Baltimore; Boston; Charleston; Chicago; Dallas/Fort Worth; Denver; Honolulu; Houston; Kansas City; Las Vegas; Los Angeles; Miami; Memphis; Minneapolis/St. Paul; Nashville; New York; Orlando; Philadelphia; Phoenix/Scottsdale; Portland, Maine; Portland, Oregon; Providence; Salt Lake City; San Antonio; San Diego; San Francisco; San Juan; Santa Fe; Savannah; Seattle; and Washington, D.C.

About New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation

The New Orleans Tourism Marketing Corporation promotes the city as a leisure tourism destination throughout the year. Annually, NOTMC’s marketing campaigns include strategic print, broadcast, and Internet advertising and public relations. Web sites: www.NewOrleansOnline.com; www.NewOrleansMuseums.com; www.RadioFreeNeworleans.com; www.gonola.com.

Facebook: www.facebook.com/NewOrleansOnline. Twitter: www.Twitter.com/visitneworleans.

About The New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau

The New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau is a nationally accredited, 1,000-member destination marketing organization and the largest and most successful private economic development corporation in Louisiana. We help create $5 billion in new capital each year- more than any other business sector- by attracting millions of visitors, special events and conventions. The CVB and its members influence thousands of decision-makers and millions of visitors to choose New Orleans through direct sales, marketing, public relations, branding and visitor services at our New Orleans headquarters and offices in Washington, D.C., New York, Chicago and four foreign countries. Consistently recognized as one of the top five CVBs in the country, the New Orleans CVB celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2010. For more information, please visit www.neworleanscvb.com.

About Travel + Leisure

With an eye for the authentic, the innovative, and the irresistible, Travel + Leisure (www.travelandleisure.com, @travlandleisure) fuses expert reporting on culture, food, style, and design with stunning photography, transporting readers to the places—and the travel experiences—that matter now. T+L, the monthly title from American Express Publishing and the long-standing authority in its field, has the largest audience of any travel magazine and is an indispensable guide for global nomads. Travel + Leisure has a network of international editions, including Travel + Leisure Mexico, Travel + Leisure Turkey, Travel + Leisure China, Travel + Leisure South Asia, and Travel + Leisure Southeast Asia.

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