As many as 21 Central America and the Caribbean Tourism ministers will come to the country to participate in the 17th annual cruise ship conference next week, hosted by the Florida and the Caribbean Cruises Association (FCCA). Tourism Deputy minister Magaly Toribio said the event is from Monday to Friday next week in Santo Domingo’s Jaragua and Melía hotels, with cruise line executives, tour operators, travel and ship agents and suppliers attending.
The Port of Miami set a new world record for cruise traffic in Fiscal Year 2009-2010 with approximately 4.15 million passengers traveling through the Port over the last year. Port officials attributed an especially strong summer season to the record numbers as dollar conscious vacationers opted for cruise vacations as a way to get high value for their travel budget.
As Princess Cruises ships begin to return to the Caribbean this month for the fall cruise season, they will also introduce 16 new shore excursion options for passengers, including a series of Connoisseur tours with smaller groups for a more personal experience. Options range from hiking mountains to exploring caves, and watching monkeys to discovering a cocoa plantation.
A new Cunard Queen was launched today at a lavish and quintessentially British ceremony in Southampton. With the immortal words, I name this ship..., Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II, resplendent in head-to-toe blue, smashed a bottle against the hull of the 92,400-ton, 2,092-passenger Queen Elizabeth, triggering an explosion of red, white and blue streamers, and a surge of cheers from hundreds of VIP’s, media and travel industry honchos.
Paul Gauguin Cruises will host the 10th Annual Digital Photography Workshop Cruise, during which 20 photographers will spend two weeks capturing travel, nature and documentary images in the Marquesas, Tuamotus and Society Islands to be published in a fine arts book.
Princess Cruises will introduce 16 new shore excursion options for passengers for Caribbean and Panama Canal itineraries. The new tours are part of the approximately 550 shore excursion options available in 38 Caribbean ports during the season.