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 NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The final weekend leading up to Mardi Gras has been a boon for hotels, restaurants and bars, with business generally brisker than last year, the first Carnival since Hurricane Katrina devastated the city.
"The weekend was surprisingly busy," said Earl Bernhardt, co-owner of two bars and a blues club in the French Quarter. "The crowd is bigger and they're spending a lot of money."
Merchants, hotel operators and others felt the crowd would exceed the 700,000 the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau said visited the city during the same time period last year.
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