Mexico’s ITM Group has announced plans to build a cruise ship port on the site of the Puerto Plata city cargo port, on the north coast of the Dominican Republic. This would be the second terminal, and strengthens the positioning of Puerto Plata, as one of the leading cruise passenger destinations in the Caribbean.
The company’s chief marketing officer Robert Shamosh has announced that Mexico’s ITM Group will be investing US$80m into the first stage of Taino Bay’s development, according to a report in Seatrade website. ITM Group operates the Puerto Costa Maya in Mexico.
Reportedly, the company won the tender competing with 13 companies from around the world. The local authorities have yet to officially announce the winner of the tender for the construction of the port. ITM Group’s Shamosh said President Danilo Medina would announce the project on 30 July 2018 and construction was set to begin in 60 days.
Plans are for the first ships to arrive as early as winter 2019, with the entire project to be ready by summer 2020. A million passengers are projected during the 2020/21 season.
“This is a major project for the Dominican Republic,” Shamosh told Seatrade. “Things are aligned. The cruise lines are coming. This location is very strategic for Eastern Caribbean itineraries of four, five and seven days. As reported, Royal Caribbean, MSC Cruises, Norwegian Cruise Line and Virgin Voyages have already expressed interest in the project.
“The demand is there. The [cruise] infrastructure in the US keeps expanding and growing, and new destinations are needed,” Shamosh told Seatrade.
The country’s prime cruise ship facility, Amber Cove, a Carnival Cruise venture, is already operating in Puerto Plata city, in Maimon, about 12 kilometers from the new port’s site. Amber Cove offered shopping facilities on site, and passengers were encouraged to take local tours and taxi rides to see the local attractions.
The Taino Bay port will accommodate the largest cruise ships in the world with passengers disembarking right into the city of Puerto Plata, next to several of its main attractions. The first pier will be able to handle two cruise ships per day.
The first port, the successful Amber Cove was developed by Carnival Corporation and opened just under three years ago is located about a 15-minute drive from Puerto Plata city with limited facilities for passengers that were taken on tours to sites on the north coast. Amber Cove primarily has catered to cruise ships from Carnival Cruise Line, Princess Cruises, and Holland America Line.
The new Taino Bay instead includes facilities on site to keep the tourists in the port facility, with attractions similar to popular experiences located in the Puerto Plata area. The Taino Bay port masterplan includes a themed village based on the culture of the Taino people (Taino Village), a monkey jungle with everything from a botanical garden to capuchin moneys. Another Buccaneers Village will offer entertainment, shopping, bars and restaurants. And Fort Cibao will house the water park for swimming with stingrays and cat sharks or enjoying an afternoon the lazy river. The water park will also have waterslides. Zip lines will encircle the area.
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Seatrade
24 July 2018
