ARTICLE - ROYAL CARIBBEAN IN HAITI

THE ROYAL CARIBBEAN CRUISE LINE, IS INTERESTED IN OUR HISTORIC SITES (Haiti Libre) -

This Tuesday 1 May 2012, fifteen crew members from the "Freedom of the Seas", one of the cruise ships of Royal Caribbean Cruise Line (RCCL), have visited the Citadelle and Sans Souci Palace, classified as historical heritage sites, in order to verify the quality of tourism products, and the structures of receptions.

This visit could foster the establishment of a circuit of visits to historical monuments and sites for the thousands of tourists cruising on the RCC, that dock each week on the north coast, and whose stay is limited to the private beaches of Labadee, and to the local visits of local crafts shops, without leaving Cap Haitien.

Ms. Dieudonne Luma Etienne, Director of the Ministry of Tourism in the North, who accompanied the crew members in these exploratory visits, welcomed this initiative. "This is a victory, to be able to get tourists from the Royal Caribbean to the citadelle [...] They gave us some tips on improving the reception, and to better control the services of travel on horseback, as well as for the sale of our craft products".

That same day, Stéphanie Balmir Villedrouin, the Minister of Tourism, was in Jacmel to attend the Mass celebrated on the Feast of Jacmel, May 1st. Subsequently she went to the marina, where she was awarded an Honorary Citizen of the city of Jacmel, because of her dedication to the cause of tourism in Haiti, and particularly for the city of Jacmel. During this ceremony, the Mayor of Jacmel symbolically handed her the keys to the city.

The Minister expressed her gratitude to the local authorities, and to the population of Jacmel, and reiterated her commitment to implement tourism projects, restoration work and of construction of certain sites in Jacmel, the city of Simon Bolivar; that the Colombia will fund as part of their bilateral relations.