Maria Manzella joins the New Orleans CVB

The New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau (CVB) recently announced that Maria Manzella has joined their staff as a tourism sales manager and will work with tour operators in Latin America, Asia-Pacific and Canada to attract international travelers to New Orleans.


Prior to joining the New Orleans CVB team, Manzella worked for the Windsor Court Hotel for 12 years, the last four years as a revenue manager. A native of Honduras, Manzella moved to New Orleans to pursue her undergraduate degree in Hotel, Restaurant and Tourism Management from the University of New Orleans. She also completed her MBA.

“Maria’s position in tourism sales is extremely important, as her markets cover Latin America, Asia-Pacific, and our largest international market, Canada,” said Kim Priez, vice president of tourism sales for the New Orleans CVB. “International travelers tend to stay in New Orleans for an average of five nights and spend twice as much as domestic travelers, so attracting these visitors to New Orleans is key to the success of our industry.”

According to an annual survey conducted by University of New Orleans Hospitality Research Center, in 2009, New Orleans hosted 7.5 million visitors to the city and travelers spent $4.2 billion. A total of 6.9% of respondents came to New Orleans from other countries. The highest percentage of international visitors was from Canada, the United Kingdom and Mexico.