Crescent City is a unique backdrop for your next meeting.

Louisiana’s largest city is more than Bourbon Street, Mardi Gras, and beignets. It’s also a top location for association conventions.

Colorful culture. Most folks know that jazz was born in the Big Easy. But it’s also home to more National Historic Landmarks than any other city in the United States. Many of these sites make for good meeting venues, including the Beauregard-Keyes House and the Degas House.

Give back. The New Orleans CVB has an extensive “voluntourism” program. You can choose from a variety of programs where attendees give time, money, or supplies to local nonprofits. Among the options are coastal-restoration, homebuilding, and tree-planting projects.

Central convention center. Meeting planners ranked the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center first out of 40 in the category of new or expanded convention centers in a report published by RRC Associates in 2011. The center contains more than 1 million square feet of contiguous exhibit space, 140 meeting rooms, two ballrooms, and a 4,000-seat auditorium. Plus, lots of shopping, restaurants, tours, and museums are within walking distance.

NOLA Fast Facts

Recent and Future Association Meetings: American Association of Immunologists, ­Association of Government Accountants, ­International Association for Human Caring, National D.A.R.E. Officers Association

Hotel Rooms Within Two Miles of Convention Center: 20,000

Convention Center Square Footage: 1 million plus

Distance from Airport to ­Convention Center: 16 miles

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