The New Punta Cana Terminal B

What do you think of the new Terminal B?

  • 5 = Excellent

    Votes: 4 36.4%
  • 4

    Votes: 2 18.2%
  • 3

    Votes: 1 9.1%
  • 2

    Votes: 1 9.1%
  • 1 = Horrible

    Votes: 3 27.3%

  • Total voters
    11

NALs

Economist by Profession
Jan 20, 2003
13,368
3,150
113
One of the most exciting aspects of the Punta Cana International Airport was its very peculiar architectural and structural design. Passengers disembarked via a mobile staircase right unto the tarmac, were warmed by the sun rays, and their first impression heightened by the trees and the gigantic open air thatch roof terminal. It’s very much a unique experience that put thousands of tourists in their vacation mode before they were officially in the DR (once the immigration officer stamps your passport is when you are officially in the country.)

With time, the original terminal has been expanded, walls and air condition has been added to certain sections. The check-in area went from looking very rustic to ever more modern.

Now the Punta Cana Airport has entered a new stage in its development.

This is the newest terminal which breaks almost completely with the historical theme of the airport and is now much more in tune with most airports worldwide in terms of structural and architectural design.

What do you think of the new airport terminal?

What do you think of the new change towards a modern and less unique terminal?

Is the fact that now people disembark through jetways good or bad for the experience of arriving at Punta Cana?


The original terminal:

2OqZ55.jpg


Pag7j0.jpg


2Coz1w.jpg


bweRYb.jpg


10610737_10152438685492548_7086659635099736658_n.j  pg


[video=youtube;VNfq2HUfo9Q]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VNfq2HUfo9Q[/video]

The new terminal:

718.jpg


puj_tb.png


10784878_596749957118846_729268933_n.jpg


10724114_745761775493568_388754032_n.jpg


917195_386983974790233_295650590_n.jpg


10727495_489641301178996_313463371_n.jpg


hpQTM4.jpg


mKhRL8.jpg


928587_727291810688713_1780958906_n.jpg


10683898_298699806981671_282323508_n.jpg


5749216_orig.jpg


BTW, Punta Cana is now the busiest airport of the Dominican Republic, it has the most connections to Europe of any airport in Latin America, and its the second busiest in the Caribbean (San Juan, Puerto Rico is first.) Dominican Republic has the busiest airspace of any country (or territory) in the Central America & Caribbean region.

The old terminal is still in use along with the new one, but supposedly it will be subject to an upgrade.
 

mido

Bronze
May 18, 2002
1,522
14
38
I was told some time ago that the new terminal will have US border pre-clearance. Can anyone confirm this?
 

zoomzx11

Gold
Jan 21, 2006
8,367
842
113
"warmed by the suns rays"? Staggered by the blast of unbearable heat and overwhelming humidity is more like it. Its why god invented air conditioning.
 

LTSteve

Gold
Jul 9, 2010
5,449
23
38
Always love the small Merengue band the sample cups of Rum being handed out to visitors. Don't know if they still do this. It was a nice welcome to the DR.
 

CaptnGlenn

Silver
Mar 29, 2010
2,321
26
48
"warmed by the suns rays"? Staggered by the blast of unbearable heat and overwhelming humidity is more like it. Its why god invented air conditioning.

That's why it's called the TROPICS. If you like it chilly... that's why God created ALASKA...
 

CaptnGlenn

Silver
Mar 29, 2010
2,321
26
48
I wish they'd get their act together with the entry tax and passport clearance. It used to be very orderly, fast and efficient even a long line would move through quickly. NOW... long confused lines going nowhere, endless waits with staff directing tourists to random incomprehensible lines ... A VERY distasteful beginning to a vacation. And has gotten worse with each successive visit over the past few years.
 

NALs

Economist by Profession
Jan 20, 2003
13,368
3,150
113
Yesterday was the official inauguration and the president was there (not a surprise.)

[video=youtube;-ZlGVgYtUJg]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ZlGVgYtUJg[/video]

By the way, this is a private airport (open to the public) which is why I mention the presence of the president. Its actually the first privately owned international airport in the world.

Frank Rainieri is the "father" of Punta Cana. He dedicated his youth to developing the area, even though for decades he hardly saw a dignified cent. Even his closest family members told him multiple times that he was wasting his time out in the middle of nowhere, because not only was there no infrastructure what-so-ever, but also because most governments gave him very little support. The Punta Cana area is today what it is because Rainieri never gave up and never put attention to the naysayers.

Everyone that lives from the Dominican tourism industry should be quite grateful to him. Punta Cana is now the #1 tourist destination in the Caribbean.
 
Last edited:

NALs

Economist by Profession
Jan 20, 2003
13,368
3,150
113
Last edited:

InsanelyOne

Bronze
Oct 21, 2008
895
28
28
Can I presume the check-in counters are still in the main building and then you must find your way to the new terminal as needed?
 

Kipling333

Bronze
Jan 12, 2010
2,528
829
113
Firstly the Punta Cana airport is NOT the first private international airport opened in the world ...The Casa de Campo airport in La Romana preceded it by more than 10 years when that airport was at Cajuiles and planes came in from the USA and the caribbean .The airport has now a different location and is more like the original Punta Cana airports . There are several privately owned international airports in Australia also servicing the Pacific islands .
However,to the point .Punta Cana airport has been a total disgrace for quite a few years .The immigration and customs services are so slow that many tourists commence their holidays in a fuming bad mood . The walk from the planes would be ok if firstly all the passengers were young and highly active and secondly if the ground crews did not insist in keeping you waiting in the sun ,often for more than 30 minutes ,until there is space inside . Now to the parking which is completely inadequate and the parking attendants who are hopeless ..There is not enough space for cars waiting for arriving passengers or for cars carrying exiting passengers, the taxi service is chaos and it is hard to say a good word about this airport except it has many connections...when will there be an accident??? In contrast las Americas is quite superb except for the price of the parking . so I really do not care a fig about the facade in Punta Cana because everything else is horrible
 

NALs

Economist by Profession
Jan 20, 2003
13,368
3,150
113
Sorry to rain on your parade but Cancun is still #1 of the Caribbean (19.9 MM CUN vs . 5.3 MM PUJ, 2013 data)
Cancun receives a lot of flights from Mexico itself, I wouldn't be surprised if most of its visitors are Mexicans too. Sort of what happens in Orlando, Florida. Their figures is in the tens of thousands, but when you eliminate the domestic tourists the actual amount of international tourists that Orlando attracts is in the 4-5 million mark, more or less. Punta Cana will never have a domestic market source as big as Mexico's, not even if the DR becomes the richest country on the planet.

With that said, Cancun isn't the 'real' Caribbean as neither are any of the Central American or South American countries with Caribbean coasts.

Firstly the Punta Cana airport is NOT the first private international airport opened in the world ...The Casa de Campo airport in La Romana preceded it by more than 10 years when that airport was at Cajuiles and planes came in from the USA and the caribbean .
They don't receive their first commercial passenger flight until the 1990's and it was a joke of an airport that needed to shut down every time American Airlines sent one of its small planes that always blocked the runway whenever it was on the tarmac. -_-

Kipling333 said:
The airport has now a different location and is more like the original Punta Cana airports.
The current La Romana airport is not the same as the old Casa de Campo airport, even though the owners and administrators are the same. Neither is La Isabela airport the same as Herrera or Las Am?ricas the same as General Andrews or even the current Cibao airport the same as the old Santiago airport.
 
Feb 7, 2007
8,005
625
113
Last edited:
Feb 7, 2007
8,005
625
113
Forgot the charters

Jan-Dec 2013
TOTAL INTERNATIONAL PAX: 9,605,355
arriving international pax at CUN: 4,471,066
departing international pax at CUN: 5,134,289

That means it is ahead of Punta Cana by 81.1% in regards to international passenger movements.