2004 Travel News Archive – Page 21

Puerto Plata revisited

Puerto Plata is enjoying a record winter. For the month of February it has become difficult to find a room on the North Coast if not secured in advance. Puerto Plata Village marketing director Carolina Berges attributed this to the thousands of US tourists who have been booking their trips to the pioneer of Dominican …

January tourism statistics

Travel was up to the Dominican Republic in January 2004, according to just released statistics from the Central Bank. Some 21,780 non-resident air arrivals represented a 6.9% increase over the same period last year. Statistics for January are the best in the past four years and foreign air arrivals were up 7.6% for the year …

Airport of entry statistics

Central Bank reports that 46.8% of all foreign arrivals entered via the Punta Cana International Airport on the East Coast, with 129.348 arrivals. Puerto Plata’s Gregorio Luperon International Airport, with 70,840 arrivals, ranked second, accounting for 25.6% of all national arrivals. Las Americas, with 43,773 arrivals, received 15.9%, and La Romana, with 27,515 arrivals, received …

A 2005 Baseball World Cup?

Paul Beeston, former president of Major League Baseball, believes a 2005 Baseball World Cup could mirror the success of the Soccer World Cup. According to Toronto Sun reporter George Gross, Beeston told him that while Major League Baseball will never participate in the Olympic Games (because of the summer schedule of the season), owners and …

84 baseball players in Major Leagues

Some 84 Dominican ballplayers are listed on the rosters of the Major League championship that starts 30 March. The American League has 44, while the National League has 40. National League: Cincinnati: D’Angelo Jimenez, Jose Acevedo, Wily Mo Pena. Houston: Octavio Dotel, Jose Vizcaino, Willy Taveras. Milwaukee Brewers: Luis Martinez, Luis Vizcaino, Leo Estrella. Pittsburgh …

DATE set for Playa Dorada

The Dominican Annual Tourism Exchange (DATE), the foremost marketing event for Dominicans hotels, will be held this year on 28-30 April. The convention will be held on the second floor of the Playa Dorada Plaza in Playa Dorada, Puerto Plata. DATE serves as a networking platform for both buyers and sellers to meet and contract …

Brighter outlook for travel in 2004

Travel to the Caribbean last year increased by 8%, although it was a year in which overall international tourism arrivals fell 1.2% — the biggest annual drop ever, according to the World Tourism Organization statistics for 2003. Travel to the Dominican Republic last year was up overall by 14.5%. Preliminary estimates of full-year results, published …

Dominicans make Billboard list

Five Dominicans are finalists for Billboard magazine’s Latin Music Awards. These honors are based on sales and radio airplay data compiled by weekly Billboard charts dated 15 Feb 2003 to 7 February 2004. Billboard’s charts are the world’s most authoritative music charts. The awards will be presented 29 April at the Miami Arena in Miami …

Eat them fruits!

Tourists should take note and follow the lead of Dominicans. El Caribe newspaper recently published a story on the positive side of the increasing cost of food. Dominicans who do not go home for lunch are increasingly found snacking on fresh tropical fruits sold by street-corner vendors. Most of these vendors are Haitian immigrants who …

Boston Globe on Cabarete kiteboarding

Travel writer David Arnold shares his experiences with Boston Globe readers after spending time in Cabarete, Puerto Plata, where he tested the fledgling sport of kiteboarding. Arnold writes this month of having captured the essence of Cabarete in his review, saying: “Cabarete, the new kiteboarding mecca of the Caribbean, thrives on a balance all its …

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