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With hotels full, tourism leaders expect big boost from LSU and Alabama matchup

5 years 4 months 3 weeks ago Friday, November 02 2018 Nov 2, 2018 November 02, 2018 5:46 PM November 02, 2018 in News
Source: WBRZ

BATON ROUGE - Tourism leaders are expecting the sold-out hotel weekend in the capital region to generate at least $3 million just from hotel stays.

Paul Arrigo with Visit Baton Rouge said seeing all the Alabama fans in town has him seeing a lot of green.

"We're going to have so many hotels filled, so many people visiting Baton Rouge from outside," Arrigo said. "New money in the community, spent on restaurants, attractions at the game, grocery stoers what have you."

The exact dollar figure won't be known until Wednesday when the exact figures begin coming in, but the economic impact will be significant according to Arrigo.

"This is going to be one of the biggest games in LSU history," Arrigo said. "Certainly, now we have more hotels in the area to fill."

Around Baton Rouge, Alabama fans began filling the streets. Taylor Overman flew in town from Chicago to suppport the Crimson Tide.

"Everyone thinks they are rivals with Alabama because everyone we play wants to beat us," Taylor Overman said. "But, for us it's not really a rivaly. It's just another game for us."

His friend Rob Buddo was a little less blunt. He came in from Houston.

"I feel like it's a little different than the rivalries of Tennessee and Auburn," Buddo said. "Those are fueled more off of hate. I feel like it's more admiration and respect. I feel like the team has a lot of similarities with the talent and it's been fun to watch over the years."

Arrigo said some of the hotel rooms have been selling for as little as $250 per night and as much as $600 in Baton Rouge. They are expecting a full sell out.

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