What a difference a port makes.
Falmouth, Jamaica, the site of what will be Jamaica's fourth cruise port and the newest cruise port facility in the western Caribbean, is emerging from its sleepy, backwater status to become a "marquee destination," according to Craig Milan, Royal Caribbean International's senior vice president of land operations and president of Royal Celebrity Tours.
Royal Caribbean is investing $170 million in the Historic Falmouth Cruise Port project, a 32-acre, two-berth port now expected to open in January after a year's delay.
Royal Caribbean enlisted Idea Inc., an Orlando-based team of designers, planners and operations experts, to come up with a development plan that would reflect the small scale of the port's historical location yet be able to accommodate up to 9,000 visitors per day.
Pihl, the Danish contractor, was retained to construct the port, which will be owned by the Port Authority of Jamaica and managed by Royal Caribbean.
The three-phase project, already three years in the making, grew out of the need to accommodate Royal Caribbean's two largest ships, Oasis of the Seas and sister ship Allure of the Seas, scheduled to launch in November.
Royal Caribbean's Navigator of the Seas will call at Falmouth on Jan. 7, with the Oasis and the Allure beginning port calls in March on seven-day itineraries out of Miami.
The project is a partnership between Royal Caribbean and the Port Authority of Jamaica, according to William Tatham, vice president of cruise shipping for the Port Authority.
"Cruise port investment offers good returns and great guest satisfaction," Tatham said.
Falmouth, located midway between Montego Bay and Ocho Rios on the island's north coast, was the original port of Jamaica and served as the landing point for many slaves arriving in the New World.
It was known as the wealthiest New World port south of Charleston, S.C., and was a leading export port for sugar and rum, according to Falmouth Mayor Colin Gager.
Shipping activity eventually moved to Port Royale in Kingston, and once shipping ceased, the harbor filled in with silt and later was abandoned altogether.
"We are trying to create a living district where our big ships call," said John Tercek, vice president of commercial development for Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd.
"We want our passengers to feel as if they are in the old world of the Caribbean when they arrive," Tercek said.
The master plan includes a $45 million commercial center, housed on an 11-acre wharf, which will feature low-rise, warehouse-style, red-roofed buildings with shops below and residences above; horse-drawn buggies; cobblestone pedestrian streets; market kiosks; a trolley station; costumed characters; and walking paths for self-guided tours.
More than 100 tenants have signed leases for retail shops, whose offerings will include handcrafted jewelry, Blue Mountain coffee and Jamaican food and drink.
Close to 60 Jamaican tour operators have applied to offer sightseeing tours that will include an Appleton rum plantation and a coffee plantation as well as tours of attractions in Montego Bay and Ocho Rios.
The town of Falmouth, population 3,000, has a new slogan and promotional theme: "Discover a Treasured Past."
Many classic Georgian-era buildings, now in disrepair, still line the town's narrow side streets, but the remaining designated historical buildings gradually will be restored, according to Tercek.
Construction of the port has been "a massive and careful undertaking that has involved hundreds of environmentalists and divers as well as engineers," Tercek said. "Once completed, Falmouth and its new port will account for thousands of new jobs for Jamaicans."
This report appeared in the June 21 issue of Travel Weekly.