DP World participated in the International Cruise Tourism Confernece held in Miami, Florida between 13 and 16 March. The gathering was a good chance for DP World to show what offers and projects are there in Dubai in this regard, especially Port Rashid which will be open its first phase on 1st June 2017.
DP World took part in this international gathering as part of a delegation that included the General Directorate of Residency and Foreign Affairs (DNRD), Dubai Tourism, Drydocks and Emirates Airlines.
Mohammed Al Mannaei, Director – Port Rashid said on the sidelines of the conference Dubai delegation had a number of meetings with major cruise lines including Royal Carribean International and Costa Cruise to promote Dubai as a cruise tourism preferred destination.
Al Manaei explained that cruise tourism in Dubai saw a big growth since 2014 thanks to the multi-entry visa which opened the door to emerging markets like India, China, South America and Russia to have their ships call in Dubai.
"We expect this growth to continue during 2017/2018 season. The strategic plan to attract a million cruise tourists by 2020 is on track following a clear road map" he added.
The emirate of Dubai received 157 cruise ships during the current season 2016/2017 which started last October and will continue until next April.
This means a 16% increase compared to last season which received 134 cruise ships. It is expected that Rashid Port will receive 650,000 cruise tourists which means a 30% increase over the same period of last year.
Al Manaei pointed out the UAE and Dubai have all what it needs to become an international cruise tourism hub.
Port Rashid can receive seven cruise ships simultaneously on a 1900m quay and capacity of 18,000 tourists through terminals 2 and 3. Cruise Terminal 3 is the biggest of its type worldwide with a capacity of 14,000 passengers and 125,000m2 of area. The current quays will be expanded and an additional terminal will be built for more capacity to accommodate the increasing number of cruise ships.
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