18 June 2007
Dubai: Dubai is studying construction of a new cruise terminal to handle an expected surge in the number of tourists coming by ship, a senior tourism official said.
The emirate beat its target for cruise tourists during the last season, running from October to May, when it received about 85,000 passengers, 20,000 more than it was expecting.
The present five-year-old cruise terminal at Port Rashid is big enough to accommodate the cruise passenger numbers projected in the immediate future but a new terminal may be needed later, said Awadh Seghayer Al Ketbi, executive director of the convention and heritage division of the Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing (DTCM).
"We are studying building a new cruise terminal. A decision will be taken this year," he told Gulf News.
During the next winter season Dubai is expecting 160,000 cruise passengers.
The Italian cruise line Costa Crociere assigned two ships last season to Dubai for Gulf sailings that included stopovers in Muscat and Bahrain.
The company will assign three ships during the next winter season and hopes to bring 103,000 tourists to Dubai.
"We expect about 55 calls. These will bring the 160,000 passengers that we are targeting," Ketbi said.
The DTCM and the Italian company have signed a five-year deal to deepen their cooperation and Costa will open a representative office in Dubai in October.
The cruise terminal will give berthing priority to the ships operated by Costa Crociere and other Carnival Corporation cruise lines.
"The agreement marks the creation of a full-fledged partnership between Costa Crociere and Dubai, providing for joint marketing actions promoting both brands worldwide, with special attention to Asia and China," the DTCM said in a statement yesterday.
Costa Crociere President Gianni Onorato said the cruises out of Dubai have proved "extremely popular" and the company's decision to start its Dubai operations turned out to be "a farsighted move."
By Shakir Husain
Gulf News 2007. All rights reserved.
