More cruise terminals planned for PH tourism hotspots
The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) is lining up several cruise terminal projects on the back of an anticipated 18-percent growth in the number of luxury ship passengers this year.
The ports regulator projected that the number of cruise passengers would grow to 103,899 this year from 88,080 a year ago as tourism continued to recover.
PPA General Manager Jay Daniel Santiago, in an interview last week, said they were eyeing to develop cruise terminals in Siargao, Camiguin, Boracay, Palawan and Puerto Galera.
He stressed the need to expand the sea terminals to provide tourists more ways of going into the country, apart from flying.
As of April 24, the country received over 2 million international visitors, a 15-percent growth from the same period last year.
Earlier this month, the PPA issued a notice of award to IBC International Builders Corp., a contractor based in Iloilo, for the P742.98-million port in Aklan, the gateway to popular beach getaway spot Boracay.
The regulator is awaiting further documentary requirements before actual construction starts. It will take about two years and five months to build the cruise ship port, which is designed to cater to over 580,000 passengers, 1,314 vessels and 182,361 metric tons of cargo annually by 2027.
PPA previously said that “building cruise ship ports in the Philippines plays a crucial role in enhancing not only the maritime trade and regional integration of the country but mainly the economic development of our local communities.”
