Downtown Mobile businesses and hotels anticipated a major boost in January 2008 as Mardi Gras festivities coincided with the Senior Bowl, according to WKRG.
Mobile police estimated that nearly 30,000 people attended the Order of the Polka Dots parade despite cold weather. The Mobile Bay Convention and Visitors Bureau said January tourism numbers were higher than the previous year.
The Renaissance Riverview Plaza Hotel said it was nearly full for a nine-day stretch, while downtown business owners prepared for the crowds.
This is a historical summary of a 2008 tourism and local-economy report.