Dominican Rep tourism news digest MAy-June 2001

> DR1 Daily News -- Wednesday, 13 June 2001
> ********************************************************************
> 9. US$38 million travel advertising campaign
> The Ministry of Tourism presented its US$38 million advertising campaign yesterday. The campaign seeks to promote the DR in Europe, the US and Canada. The Minister of Tourism Ramon Alfredo Bordas said 45% of the budget will be invested in the European market, 40% in the US and Canadian markets and 15% in domestic markets.
> The European campaign will focus on the hospitality of the Dominican people, the traditions, history and music. The North American campaign will primarily focus on the DR as a sun and beach destination. The domestic market stresses the diversity of destinations within the country.
>
> 10. High cost of airfares affects Dominican tourism
> The vice president of Asonahores, Johnny Bernal, said the higher cost of airfares is one of the reasons for the lull in European travel to the DR. European travel only two years ago was 65% of total travelers. Bernal explained that European travel fell due to the slowdown in the European economy, the declining value of the Euro and the high cost of petrol.
> He said Europeans are traveling to closer destinations, and as a result Dominican hoteliers are trying to attract tourists from neighboring countries like the US, Canada and the Caribbean.
> Pedro Dajer, International Markets director for the Ministry of Tourism, said that efforts to the effect have been successful. He said that during the first four months of 2001, US travel grew to 45% of the total, while European travel was 44% of the total.

> DR1 Daily News -- Tuesday, 12 June 2001
> ********************************************************************
>
> 13. Dominican to head up CHA
> Caribbean hoteliers elected Simon Suarez to preside over the Caribbean
> Hotel Association. Suarez, who is executive vice president of Coral
> Hotels & Resorts in the DR, was elected during the general assembly of
> the Caribbean Hotel Industry Conference in Puerto Rico. He will lead
> the organization from 2002 to 2004.

> DR1 Daily News -- Monday, 11 June 2001
> ********************************************************************
> 13. Standardizing taxes on Caribbean holidays
> The Caribbean Hotel Association wants standardized taxes for the
> region. Simon Suarez, candidate for the presidency of the CHA for
> 2002-2004, said at a press conference that this is an old objective of
> hotels in the DR. He explained that differences in taxes place
> different countries at a comparative advantage or disadvantage. Taxes
> in the DR are among the highest. President Hipolito Mejia will attend
> the Summit of Presidents and Prime Ministers in the Bahamas in October
> where the matter will be discussed.

> DR1 Daily News -- Friday, 8 June 2001
>
> 5. Prostitution rings court Dominican women
> El Caribe newspaper has revealed the findings of a study on the
> trafficking of Dominican women. Carried out from 1996 to 2000 by the
> Ministry of Women and the International Organization for Migration, the
> study reveals that around 50,000 Dominican women work as prostitutes in
> the US, Europe, Venezuela, Argentina and the Caribbean.
> The study says operators convince unknowing Dominicans to accept
> legitimate work contracts and finance their travel abroad. Once the
> women arrive, the traffickers confiscate their passports and impose
> their working conditions. The study calls attention to the need for
> educational campaigns to alert women as to what they are getting into.
> The research was presented during an International Organization for
> Migration seminar held in Jamaica.
>
> 6. Study shows investment needed in water treatment plants
> The Listin Diario reports that the Peter Anderson survey that tested
> waters off the southeastern coast of the DR concluded the country needs
> to invest in more water treatment plants in the area to meet the
> increasing population.
> It showed that biological contamination has been going on for years and
> is moderate, but urges governmental attention in order to preserve the
> coasts where numerous tourism destinations have sprung up and the
> populations continue to increase. The study says the worst
> contamination was found at the river mouths in the areas studied. The
> Peter Anderson ship surveyed the waters from the Haina and Ozama rivers
> in Santo Domingo to San Pedro de Macoris province, in the southeast.
> The research was requested by the Ministry of Environment and was
> funded by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The findings were
> presented by the Ministry of Environment on World Earth Day.
>
>
> 11. Selling Puerto Plata
> The Ministry of Tourism announced the start of an advertising campaign
> in the US exclusively focusing on Puerto Plata. Ramon Alfredo Bordas
> announced that a committee will seek to relaunch the destination that
> has been affected by a crisis of services and infrastructure, at a time
> when German travel to the Caribbean and Latin America is down.
> Sosua is the big loser because of the many small independently owned
> hotels in the area, many dating back to the start of tourism in the DR.
> The entry of larger all-inclusive operations forced many of the small
> hotels out of business. These were especially affected by the mergers
> in the European travel industry that resulted in the elimination of low
> cost charters on which the hotels depended for most of their guests.
> El Siglo published yesterday that another 29 hotels with 2,356 rooms in
> the area could close, as they are having occupancies of under 20%.
> Earlier this year 1,496 rooms closed in 26 properties.
> Iris Perez, president of the Sosua and Cabarete Hotel Association urges
> governmental attention focus on infrastructure problems in the area.
> Says there has been negligence in resolving the water treatment
> situation, the improvement of five kilometers of Sosua River, the
> relocation of the inhabitants of El Tablon and La Jedra, paving of
> streets, paving and lighting along the Puerto Plata-Sosua-Cabarete
> highway as well as the improvement of Sosua Beach, that has been
> overtaken by vendors.
> Interested parties have delayed the implementation of a World Bank loan
> for water and sewage infrastructure, and now Minister of Tourism says
> that the government wants to secure a major loan for infrastructure in
> all tourism destinations, not just Puerto Plata.
>
> 12. DR attracts 34% of Germans to Latin America
> The Dominican Republic attracted 34% of all German tourists traveling
> to Latin America and the Caribbean in January through March, according
> to German travel statistics. For the DR, though, the 119,000 travelers
> are 13% less than in 2000, reflecting the downward trend in German
> travel. German long haul travel is affected by the economic
> difficulties in Europe and the weak Euro.
>

> 15. Get your papers in order
> The General Department of Migration urges all foreigners that are
> illegally residing in the DR to visit their Centro de los Heroes
> offices to regularize their situation. Says it is giving 45 days for
> the granting of the provisional residency card to all fulfilling the
> legal requirements. Afterwards, the Department alerts that it will
> apply the law. Migration offices at Avenida 30 de Mayo corner Heroes de
> Luperon are open from 8 to 5 pm, Tel. 508-2555 ext. 242 and 380 for
> more information.

> DR1 Daily News -- Wednesday, 6 June 2001
>
> 6. New focus on ecological attractions
> Minister of Environment Frank Moya Pons announced that his
> government has begun an intense program that will encourage
> Dominican and foreign tourists to enjoy the many eco tourism
> and adventure travel attractions of the country. He mentioned the
> nation’s invaluable wealth of mountains, forests, caves, dunes
> and coral formations. He stressed the importance of developing
> eco tourism, pointing out that so far, the only natural resources
> that have been exploited are the beaches.
> “Until now, all the other niches have been underutilized by
> international tourism because of the lack of infrastructure and
> adequate marketing,” he said.
> He said an educational program needs to be put into place to
> teach Dominicans to value these resources. If this is not done
> he fears they will instead be destroyed through ignorance.
> Speaking on the occasion of World Earth Day, Moya said that
> 32% of Dominican territory is under some kind of environmental
> protection, be it scientific reserves, national parks, forestry
> reserves or natural monuments.
>
> 13. Dominican president of CHA?
> Dominican Simon Suarez of Coral Hotels, a Dominican hotel
> chain, has a good chance of becoming the next president of the
> Caribbean Hotel Association. The next election will be held
> during the Caribbean Hotel Industry Conference (CHIC) at the
> Wyndham El Conquistador Resort in Fajardo, Puerto Rico, 10-13
> June. The National Hotel & Restaurant Association urges all
> Dominican hoteliers to participate in the conference and to back
> the candidacy of Suarez.
> If elected, Suarez could become the first hotelier from the
> Spanish-speaking Caribbean to preside over the organization.
> For the DR, it would be a recognition of its hotel industry. The DR
> has more than 50,000 hotel rooms, by far the largest inventory in
> the Caribbean.

> DR1 Daily News -- Friday, 1 June 2001
> 10. Canadian tourism continues to increase
> Canadian Ambassador Bruno Picard said that travel over the
> April 2000 - April 2001 tourism year was up to 314,000 tourists.
> This is nearly double the 1999-2000 year, when 170,000
> Canadian tourists visited.
> “The forecast is that Canadian travel to the DR will continue to
> grow in coming years,” he said. He said the hospitality of
> Dominicans and good holiday package prices are what attracts
> the Canadians.
> Speaking during a visit to Santiago, he said trade between both
> countries is at US$100 million a year but should increase to
> US$500-US$600 million in years to come. Canadian companies
> are making major investments in mining, tourism,
> telecommunications and banking.
>

> DR1 Daily News -- Thursday, 31 May 2001
>
> 4. British tourism up in 2001
> Minister of Tourism Ramon Alfredo Bordas forecasts a 25%
> increase in British tourism this summer. He said some 20,000
> more British tourists are expected to visit this year than last year.
> Puerto Plata and San Pedro de Macoris (Juan Dolio)
> destinations will benefit most. Last year, 90,000 British tourists
> visited.

> ********************************************************************
> DR1 Daily News -- Monday, 28 May 2001
> 6. Small hotels and adventure travel for the South
> The president of the National Hotel & Restaurant Association
> (Asonahores), Ramon Prieto, advocates that the Southwest of
> the nation adopt a different tourism development model. Prieto
> spoke at an American Chamber of Commerce luncheon and
> urged the businessmen of the Southwest not to adopt the mass
> tourism holiday package/big hotels model of Puerto Plata, Juan
> Dolio, La Romana, Bayahibe and Punta Cana. Instead, he
> proposes low density development with the construction of small
> hotels and inns versus large hotels. He proposed that the area
> promote itself as a complement to these destinations. He said
> the Southwest is rich in ecotourism and adventure travel
> attractions that would lure domestic and international travelers
> seeking something different.
> He urged the area to target a select and discerning traveler who
> would appreciate these more customized services.
> “The Southwest does not have the extensive and wonderful
> beaches of the East, but it has an inventory of natural resources
> with great diversity and can develop a product based on ecology,
> sports and adventures, using its abundant cultural resources
> and building an image of a unique area in our country and the
> Caribbean,” he said.
> Prieto foresees tourists booking a safari through dry forests, bird
> watching tours, trips to the tropical forests in the Sierra de Neiba,
> or scuba diving in Las Salinas (Bani) and along the South and
> Southwest Coast.
> He urged that any development model be based on the
> preservation of natural resources, the environment, development
> of human resources, and community participation in the tourism
> developed areas.
> He encouraged the businessmen to push the Senate to pass
> the bill to provide tax incentives for those developing projects in
> this area.

DR1 Daily News -- Wednesday, 23 May 2001
> 6. Deputies move on bill to provide tourism incentives
> The Chamber of Deputies gave second reading to a bill that
> would provide major incentives to companies building hotels
> and tourism businesses in less developed destinations. The bill
> would provide tax exemptions for projects in Jarabacoa,
> Constanza, Espaillat, Santiago, Juan Sanchez Ramirez, Maria
> Trinidad Sanchez (Rio San Juan and Playa Grande), Samana
> (Las Terrenas, Portillo, Las Galeras), Barahona, Baoruco,
> Independencia, Pedernales, Monte Cristi, Dajabon, Santiago
> Rodriguez, Valverde, San Cristobal, Monte Plata, Peravia, Azua,
> San Pedro de Macoris, Hato Mayor and El Seibo. The bill now
> returns to the Senate since it underwent major changes in the
> Chamber of Deputies.
>

> DR1 Daily News -- Monday, 21 May 2001
>
> 6. Quest for major hotel companies to improve tourism revenues
> The Dominican ambassador before the OMT has addressed
> concerns over the growth in number of hotel rooms versus
> demand. Critics say this imbalance has resulted in a drop in
> tourism revenues. World tourism organizations show that tourist
> receipts in the DR have declined from US$683 in 1985 to
> US$620 in 1999. The opposite has happened in Costa Rica.
> Federico Cuello says this is because there is more competition
> for air space in Costa Rica, while in the DR most tourists arrive
> by charter and American Airlines is by far the dominant carrier.
> He explains that in Costa Rica most of the hotels operate under
> international franchises and few are owned by tour operator
> affiliates. According to the International Federation of Tour
> Operators, the DR only receives 45% of the foreign exchange
> generated by the holiday packages sold here. He proposes the
> construction of a different type of hotel, one that caters to the
> individual traveler not the package traveler.
>

> DR1 Daily News -- Thursday, 19 April 2001
>
> 16. German contract cancellations affect Sosua
> ARA Hoteles, a small hotel chain with operations in Sosua, Las
> Terrenas and Cabarete confirmed it has closed down its operations for
> the rest of the season. Club Tropicana, Club Costa Tropical, Club Casa
> Linda, Club Villa Chelsea, Residencial Casa Linda, Club Las Orquideas
> were closed, affecting 234 employees.
> Tony Alvarez told the press he closed after German tour operator FTI
> Touristik and Caoba Tours announced the unilateral termination of
> their contract. He said the companies left ARA with an outstanding
> US$800,000 debt. Caoba Tours representative Ruben Gutierrez said in
> the Listin Diario today that the closing came after they received more
> complaints than usual from German tourists regarding hotel services.
> Furthermore, the Listin Diario reports that Britannia Airways would no
> longer transport the German passengers. Michael Leissler, president of
> Caoba Tours, said the airline had reduced its flights from 60 a month
> last year to 33 a month this winter season.
> Argentina Leon de Brugal, director of tourism in Puerto Plata, said
> that when the abrupt closing of the hotels occurred, the tourists were
> protected. They were given upgrades to better hotels in the area than
> what they had originally booked.
> She said the Tourism Ministry would be carrying out an investigation
> into what happened with the contract.
>
> ______________________________________________________________________
Received on Mon Jun 18 14:47:54 2001