Our New Orleans economy is growing stronger every day, and we have tourism, our largest industry, to thank for a large portion of that success. More and more people are traveling here to experience New Orleans as our reputation for being one of the best cities in America spreads. Every visitor to our city brings important revenue into the mix of our economic life here in NOLA, and even if you don’t work in the tourism or hospitality industries, tourist spending affects every one of us.

It’s no surprise tourists love shopping on our charming Magazine Street. (photo from Anthony Posey SIR:Poseyal Desposyni on Flickr)

The Path Of A New Orleans Tourism Dollar

There are many different kinds of people that visit New Orleans for different reasons. Let’s envision the journey of a group of women who are here on a “Girls Getaway” type trip. These four or five women, Traveling Tricia and Friends, have finally found the time to take a little adventure together, and they choose New Orleans. While they are here, they are enchanted by the shopping and dining on Magazine Street and they pop into several shops and start spending. From local t-shirts to housewares with New Orleans flair, Traveling Tricia and her girlfriends manage to find several items for themselves and even buy things to bring back home to friends and family. Every dollar they spend is important to our economy on the whole. When Traveling Tricia buys a New Orleans pot holder set, Boutique Owner Betty gets revenue to keep her New Orleans shop thriving, her employees continue to get paychecks, and our local government gains sales tax revenue.

Boutique Owner Betty can use her growing income to renovate her kitchen. (photo from Sterin on Flickr)

Now that those tourism dollars have entered into our economy, they are spent several more times before leaving; every dollar matters. Boutique Owner Betty uses her growing income to renovate her kitchen at home, which means she will pay a construction company, a plumber, an electrician, a designer, and more, keeping those tourism dollars circulating locally. Then Electrician Earl uses his income to pay for his daughter’s prom dress. And the economic stimulus to our economy continues.

All of this is important to keep in mind, especially since we encounter tourists so often in our city of New Orleans. The more out-of-towners you see, the better our economy is doing. It just goes to show that we really are in this together; as each of us thrives, no matter what industry we are a part of, our success translates into a stronger economy for all New Orleanians.