El Salvador has been trying to position itself as an attractive destination for cruise tourism and that dream is about to become a reality according to Jose Napoleon Duarte, Minister of Tourism.
Duarte said that El Salvador has been in negotations with Royal Caribbean to include El Salvador in their cruise routes and are in the advanced stages of planning.
"We are very close to achieving the first cruise route to El Salvador in history through the arrival of Royal Caribbean country," she confirmed.
Although no exact date has been revealed when the project could become official, it's estimated that in 2012 El Salvador could receive the first cruise ship stop.
This project, according to Duarte, will bring great economic benefits for the country, mainly to small tourism businesses.
He noted that cruise passengers have a high purchasing power, such as the MS Europa cruise that docked last April in Acajutla, created revenues of over $ 60,000.
"I always thought that cruising is an excellent business opportunity for El Salvador. Anything that creates opportunities for people is a great benefit, "he said.
The arrival of these luxury cruise is a regional initiative to promote the creation of the tourist route to the Pacific, landing in the main ports in the region. In the case of El Salvador, cruise ships arrive at the port of Acajutla and La Union Also do to.
Duarte estimated that a cruise could bring travelers from 750 to 7.000, which is measured independently of the arrival of tourists by traditional media (air or land).
