DR1 Travel News - 25 September 2019

D

Dolores

Guest
Tapas Night and Restaurant Week in Santo Domingo
219,000 visitors to Puerto Plata’s skylift and botanical gardens
XL Airways announces cease of its operations
British government assists stranded Thomas Cook tourists



Tapas Night and Restaurant Week in Santo Domingo
Chefs of nine of the best restaurants in Santo Domingo are participating in the Tapas Night by SDQ Gastronomic on 27 September. Participating restaurants are Epic Center at Blue Mall, SBG Santo Domingo, Mitre, La Cassina, Bottega Fratelli, Allegra, Ajualä, Samurai and Julieta Brasserie.

Tapas Night will take place at the Epic Center Gran Salon on the 5th floor of the Blue Mall at Av. Winston Churchill and Av. Gustavo Mejía Ricart. Tastings of the tapas begin on Friday, 27 September 2019 at 8pm. Tickets are RD$5,900 for two persons and RD$3,540 for one person and include tapas and drinks.

Restaurant Week starts on 27 September and continues through 6 October 2019 with special menus for RD$995 plus taxes at around 70 participating restaurants in Santo Domingo. A special passport is issued to those participating in the offer.

Both Tapas Night and Restaurant Week are part of the SDQ Gastronomico 2019 organized by the Dominican Association of Restaurants (Aderes) with the backing of the National Hotels & Tourism Association (Asonahores).

Tickets can be purchased online at Uepa Ticket and the passport at any of the participating restaurants.

https://www.sdqgastronomico.com/conoce-tus-restaurantes-de-tapas-night/


219,000 visitors to Puerto Plata’s sky lift and botanical gardens
The Puerto Plata sky lift to the Isabel de Torres Botanical Gardens has received over 139,000 visits in the first nine months of 2019, according to Rafael Núñez, the director of the Teleférico de Puerto Plata. The trip up the mountain behind the city of Puerto Plata is a popular attraction for those visiting the north coast.

Núñez told Listín Diario that there has been annual increases in ticket sales of 12 to 15% a year. He expects the year to close with around 230,000 visits. Last year, they serviced 219,000 tourists.

He explained 55% of the visitors are locals that come from all around the country. He said the sky lift tour is especially popular with Canadian tourists.

https://listindiario.com/economia/2019/09/24/583978/teleferico-puerto-plata-recibe-139000-visitas


XL Airways announces cease of its operations
Punta Cana loses a low-cost flight from France. XL Airways announced last week it was shutting down its ticket sales and flight operations due to financial issues.

XL Airways had connected France with the US cities of New York and San Francisco and the tourist attractions of Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic, Varadero in Cuba and Cancun in Mexico.

According to Reuters, XL Airways is in conversations with Air France and French authorities for a rescue deal.


British government assists stranded Thomas Cook tourists
The UK Embassy in Santo Domingo has informed the National Association of Hotels and Tourism (Asonahores) that the British Civil Aviation Authority will be responsible for the repatriation of tourists affected by the bankruptcy of the British tour operator Thomas Cook.

Menzo Herwegh, manager of Thomas Cook in the Dominican Republic, told AFP that the stranded tourists are being sent on direct flights to Britain on different airlines. Some 1,650 tourists, including 670 from the UK on vacation in the DR, would be flown out on flights contracted by the British government.

The plan is that British tourists will be able to finish their vacations and return to their countries on flights that are being organized by the authorities. The first flight departed on Monday, 23 September 2019.

Thomas Cook was the second-largest international tour operator in terms of client numbers and had subsidiaries in France, Germany and Italy along with other markets.

As reported, the bankruptcy will further affect resort profitability this year. The bankruptcy means that some 5,000 British tourists that were booked to travel to the DR with Thomas Cook will be no shows.

In August, the BBC had reported that Thomas Cook would sell majority stake to China’s Fosun.

https://www.diariolibre.com/economi...inicana-por-quiebra-de-thomas-cook-FE14320207
https://listindiario.com/economia/2...icana-con-thomas-cook-en-lo-que-resta-de-2019
https://listindiario.com/economia/2...dos-hay-en-el-pais-por-quiebra-de-thomas-cook
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-49493876