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The Government of the Dominican Republic has granted Costa Cruises a five year extension on the public concession for the use of Catalina Island, continuing in its role as a private beach resort reserved for the exclusive use of Costa Cruises’ guests.
Originally discovered by Christopher Columbus, the ten km² island is only a stone’s throw from La Romana and is renowned for some of the most magnificent beaches and crystal clear waters throughout the Caribbean. Also home to a breathtaking barrier reef and nature reserve, the island is part of the Costa Mediterranea itinerary on 2009/2010 winter cruises.
From 22 December 2009 through to 13 April 2010, the ship will be in Catalina every Tuesday with a stopover from 9am to 4.30pm. With the ship anchored only a few hundred meters from the shore, there is a non-stop shuttle service by tender to and from the island. The beach resort is equipped with deckchairs, sun loungers and umbrellas, as well as barbecue and bar facilities.
The Costa Mediterranea will be offering seven-night cruises calling at a different island each day as follows: departure every Saturday from Guadeloupe, Sunday in St. Maarten, Monday at La Romana, Tuesday in Catalina Island, Wednesday in Tortola, Thursday in Antigua, Friday in St. Lucia, arrival back in Guadeloupe on Saturday.
The extension on the public concession granted for Catalina Island serves as further acknowledgement of the efforts made by Costa Cruises to develop the tourist industry in the Dominican Republic. As one of the first enterprises to recognise and invest in the tourism potential of this Caribbean nation, Costa Cruises’ ships have made regular stopovers since 1993, more recently bringing around 60,000 guests to the Dominican Republic throughout the winter 2008/2009 season.
In the last 16 years Costa Cruises has made investments worth several million dollars in tourism infrastructure on Catalina Island, where operations are run by its local company Operadora Catalina. In December 2002 the inauguration took place of the new Port of La Romana, the “Muelle Turistico International Casa de Campo”, built under an agreement between Costa Cruises and the Central Romana Corporation, which is a leading player in many sectors of the economy in the Dominican Republic.
The renewal of the concession for Catalina Island was also made possible due to Costa Cruises’ commitment to the promotion of responsible tourism, playing an active part in cleaning and preserving the beach at Catalina Island where waste streams are collected separately for recycling. Shoreside excursions are organized in accordance with the principles of environmental compliance and sustainable tourism, with the Italian company’s 2010 brochure including around 240 eco-tourism excursions comprising visits to parks, oases and nature reserves. Costa Cruises promotes programmes that both minimise the impact on the ecosystem and create economic opportunities for local communities. These include excursions departing from Cataliana Island and La Romana during the Costa Mediterranea’s port calls here.
Tatiana is the news co-ordinator for TravelDailyNews Media Network (traveldailynews.gr, traveldailynews.com and traveldailynews.asia). Her role includes to monitor the hundrends of news sources of TravelDailyNews Media Network and skim the most important according to our strategy. She holds a Bachelor degree in Communication & Mass Media from Panteion University of Political & Social Studies of Athens and she has been editor and editor-in-chief in various economic magazines and newspapers.
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