PUNTA CANA,
Dominican Republic -- Among the Dominican Republics tourist areas
slated for growth are Punta Cana and Puerto Plata.
In Punta Cana,
hotels and a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course are under
construction; the airport terminal was expanded; and a 24-mile
boulevard is being built to facilitate travel to and from tourist
areas.
One of the newest
hotels is Sunscape the Beach, a 620-room property operated by
AMResorts that opened in April in Uvero Alto, about an hour from
Punta Canas airport.
Ocean Hotels
opened two adjacent, all-inclusive properties in Punta Cana last
winter: Ocean Blue and Ocean Sands, totaling 708 units.
Other recent
openings are the 228-room Club at Grand Paradise Bavaro (the second
Amhsa Marina Hotels & Resorts property in the Punta Cana area)
and the 1,200-room Gran Bahia Principe Punta Cana.
Sol Melia will
debut its 450-room Paradisus Palma Real on Bavaro Beach by
December, with 100 Royal Service Suites.
EMI Resorts is
building a 205-room timeshare, opening in December on Cofresi Beach
near Puerto Plata.
Under
construction are 144 Royal Service suites at the 1,044-unit Melia
Caribe Tropical, which will open in June. Sol Melia will welcome
Warner Brothers Flintstones cartoon characters at both the Caribe
Tropical and the Paradisus Punta Cana.
At Macao Beach,
20 miles west of the airport, construction is under way on the
Westin Roco Ki Beach & Golf Resort, opening in November
2006.
The 315-room
resort will include Jungle Luxe bungalows and 56 two- and
three-bedroom condo units as well as a Nick Faldo-designed golf
course.
An on-site museum
will exhibit Taino Indian artifacts found during
construction.
In the new
residential/resort development known as Cap Cana, construction has
begun on what is billed as the largest marina in the Caribbean,
with capacity for more than 500 boats.
No opening date
has been set for the adjacent Alta Bella Sanctuary Collection Golf
& Spa Hotel, a resort complex that will include the Punta
Espada, a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course.
Puerto Plata will
get a makeover within the next three years, according to Felix
Jimenez, minister of tourism. Jimenez said the government will
spend $20 million on projects, including a new amphitheater at San
Felipe Fort.
The cable car
Teleferico ride, which takes visitors to the top of Mount Isabel de
Torres, will be rebuilt.
Officials said
the government plans to acquire a group of Victorian-style homes
and develop them into bars and restaurants. A public bus system
also is planned.
Botanical gardens
and restaurants are planned for nearby Sosua as well as a new
highway linking Puerto Plata with Sosua.
To contact
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