Kalinda Jessett, senior events manager for Canaccord Genuity Group, tells us why she chose New Orleans for her financial company’s President’s Club Programme in April 2023:
For our five-day programme, we needed a luxury hotel and one of the reasons we chose New Orleans is because the Four Seasons had just opened. Located on Canal Street, its far enough away from the craziness of Bourbon Street, but close enough that you can walk and explore. It is also close to the Warehouse District , which has a ton of new restaurants.
We hosted our welcome reception in the Four Seasons’ garden followed by dinner at Miss River – the food and service was incredible.
Latrobes is a must, especially for those of us working in the finance sector. The venue was the first State Bank of Louisiana and has some incredible history.
You really must do a second line parade (people who follow the band to enjoy the music, dance, and engage in community). Connect with your DMC and do it. We started one of our evenings with a private concert at Preservation Hall. For all the people in my group who ‘hate jazz’ I can tell you they love jazz now!
Closing streets in the French Quarter, wearing the Mardi Gras masks and having the jazz band leading us through the city was incredible – the highlight of the trip.
We also did a lunch buy out of the courtyard at Napoleon House, an historic restaurant that set up a specialised menu for us.
Another venue that we used, which was a bit of a drive (although worth it) was Houmas House. We bought out the front lawn of the house and set up a magnificent harvest table. We had some lawn games and people had the best time. We used this as our day outside the city experience.
Why the destination?
Of all the components that make New Orleans an incredible destination, the people is first and foremost and there are fewer foods and cuisines in the world better than New Orleans.
New Orleans is unique with a long strong history, with French and Spanish roots. The architecture is stunning and you can feel the pride in the city.
Challenges
There are challenges with every programme, but the issue is never the challenge that is presented but how it is overcome.
We were the first group that took over the hotel patio, put a buffet outside and changed all the table arrangements, so I understand why that would be challenging for a restaurant! But our CSM, was incredible and very honest and because of this I was able to be honest with him and we planned the best welcome reception.
Latrobes is incredible but it is an old building, which means it has a tiny kitchen. So when my award speeches lasted 15 minutes instead of 40 (as was planned) the kitchen could not turn around the meals any quicker than they had already planned. That said, the food is incredible, and well worth the wait.
Tips for other planners
I would suggest never going in the summer because of the humidity.
Anytime after Mardi Gras before mid May, and then mid September to early December…golden!
I would highly recommend a Gospel Choir for entertainment. We had one in Latrobes to open our Gala and it was like nothing else.
I would recommend BBC Destination Management, the DMC we worked with. They want you to leave New Orleans loving it as much as they do. BBC truly became a part of my team and was invested in the success of the programme just as much as me.
