Including Amber Cove in Puerto Plata, Catalina Island, La Romana, Punta Cana and Santo Domingo, the country already boasts some of the busiest cruise ports in the Caribbean area.
Tourist arrivals reached a record number in the Dominican Republic during July, driven by an increase in cruise passenger arrivals of nearly 100,000 passengers, which is likely to be surpassed in the coming months and years.
Traditionally a country that relies on all-inclusive vacation packages, the DR is steadily increasing the opportunities it has to welcome more tourists to the country. One option the government is taking with both hands is to bring more cruise ships to one of the island’s many cruise ports.
Such a strategy is certainly paying dividends; as during the month of July, the Dominican Republic welcomed 98,389 cruise passengers, according to statistics from the Ministry of Tourism (Mitur), with the steady accumulation of several cruise ports in the country, this number is likely to increase significantly in the coming years.
Including Amber Cove in Puerto Plata, Isla Catalina, La Romana, Punta Cana and Santo Domingo, the country already has some of the busiest cruise ports in the Caribbean area. With the addition of Puerto Cabo Rojo, which will be able to handle up to one million passengers per year, the country almost doubles its capacity.
Add to this the expansion and renovation of Samana Bayport, which has a capacity of 10,000 passengers per day, almost the same as Puerto Plata . The country seeks to significantly increase the financial impact of cruise passengers on local economies.
In this regard, the executive director of the Dominican Port Authority (Apordom), Jean Luis Rodriguez, indicated that “we have had a great boom in cruise ships and we intend to continue expanding, we are talking about having a projection of going from three to six terminals.
“Cases like Cabo Rojo in Pedernales, with the new terminal, Barahona; a province where it has always dreamed of receiving cruise ships and we are already working on a plan, as well as in Samaná and Arroyo Barril, which will be carried out through Public Private Partnerships,” he added.
Learn More: Tourism
