Hurricane Katrina has had “minimal impact”
Around 80 people are feared dead, after the storm battered southern states with winds of up to 145 miles per hour.
Both ABTA and the Federation of Tour Operators said they had no reports of affected tourists from members. However, there have been reports of three British tourists among 10,000 people who took refuge in the Louisiana Superdome sports venue.
An ABTA spokeswoman said only a small number of Brits visit New Orleans during the summer due to extremely high temperatures, and visitors tended to be independent or specialist tailor-made holidaymakers.
FTO director-general Andy Cooper said: “It has had a minimal impact on Britons. It is not a big destination at this time of year as the weather is too hot.”
A spokesman for US specialist Travel 2/Travel 4 said it had around 20 clients in the New Orleans region who were being relocated to other gateways such as Memphis and Nashville. People due to travel were also being advised of alternatives, although the operator could not confirm numbers.
The entire city of New Orleans has been evacuated. Florida was hit last week. Areas in Mississippi and Alabama have also been affected. Katrina is now headed north where it has now lost power and been downgraded to a category 1.