2010 French Quarter Fest breaks attendance record | - NOLA.com
By Keith Spera,
The dense throng that swamped the Abita Beer Stage for Anders Osborne’s April 10 set at the French Quarter Festival certainly felt like a record-breaker. It apparently was. Organizers say the just-completed 27th edition of the free festival set a new attendance record. Over three days, approximately 512,000 visitors listened at the 18 stages between Woldenberg Park and Esplanade Avenue. That beats the ‘09 total of 441,000, and surpasses any pre-Katrina total. Because the event is free and no tickets are issued, an exact count is impossible. Organizers base attendance figures on clicker-counts at the major stage areas, including Jackson Square, then adjust that figure downward to account for repeat entrances and exits.But plenty of anecdotal evidence supports the record-breaking total. Some 45,000 riders took the Algiers-Gretna ferry to the festival, more than double the number of riders last year and a third more than the 2010 Mardi Gras. Hotel occupancy reportedly hit 99 percent last Friday and 100 percent on Saturday. Abita beer drained 944 kegs at the festival, up from 748 last year. And the Rouses crawfish boil burned through 30,000 pounds of mudbugs, up from 20,000 last year.See article on-line Leave A Comment
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