Carnival Corporation & plc Signs Agreement to Build and Operate Cruise Terminal in Roatan, Honduras
Development of Two-Berth Facility Expected to Start This Fall
MIAMI, March 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Carnival Corporation & plc (NYSE/LSE: CCL; NYSE: CUK) has signed an agreement to build and operate a cruise terminal on the island of Roatan, Honduras.
Development of the facility - to be called "Mahogany Bay - Roatan" - is expected to start in fall 2007 and be completed by summer 2009 at a cost of $50 million.
The cruise facility will be situated on 20 acres on the Roatan waterfront and will consist of a two-berth cruise terminal capable of accommodating super post-Panamax vessels and up to 7,000 passengers daily.
Partnering with Carnival on the project is Jerry Hynds, a local business leader and a member of the Honduran Congress. He is also the owner of Coral Cay, a resort property located adjacent to the planned port facility.
Within five years of operation, "Mahogany Bay - Roatan" is expected to host 225 cruise ship calls and 500,000 passengers annually.
Adjacent to the facility will be a 35,000-square-foot Welcome Center including retail shops, restaurants and bars, along with a 60-foot-high lighthouse, a lagoon with cascading waterfalls, and a nature trail.
A transportation hub with the ability to accommodate taxis, rental cars and tour buses is also planned. A variety of shore excursion opportunities, to be provided by local tour operators, are being developed, as well.
A tropical island distinguished by a lush landscape of rugged mountains with beautiful white-sand beaches, crystal clear waters, and colorful coral reefs, Roatan is a 165-square-mile island located 40 miles north of Honduras in the southwestern Caribbean Sea.
The island is currently featured on the western Caribbean itineraries of Carnival Corporation & plc brands Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America, Princess Cruises, Costa Cruises, and P&O Cruises. The new "Mahogany Bay - Roatan" facility will further enhance guests' shoreside experience on the popular island destination.
The new Roatan project continues Carnival Corporation & plc's efforts at developing Caribbean ports to provide consumers with an even greater variety of destination choices within the region. These include the new Grand Turk Cruise Center, which in its first year in operation hosted nearly 300,000 passengers.
"The Caribbean remains the world's number one cruise destination and Carnival Corporation & plc is always looking for ways to capitalize on many distinct attributes that make the region so attractive to consumers. 'Mahogany Bay - Roatan' is designed to build upon the success of our other projects by providing cruise ship guests with an unparalleled landside experience, with modern facilities and wide range of shore excursion choices, along with opportunities to explore this fascinating and beautiful island," said Giora Israel, Carnival Corporation & plc's vice president of strategic planning.
Carnival Corporation & plc is the largest cruise vacation group in the world, with a portfolio of cruise brands in North America, Europe and Australia, comprised of Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Seabourn Cruise Line, Windstar Cruises, AIDA Cruises, Costa Cruises, Cunard Line, Ocean Village, P&O Cruises, Swan Hellenic, and P&O Cruises Australia.
Together, these brands operate 82 ships totaling 147,000 lower berths with 19 new ships scheduled to enter service between April 2007 and June 2011. Carnival Corporation & plc also operates the leading tour companies in Alaska and the Canadian Yukon, Holland America Tours and Princess Tours. Traded on both the New York and London Stock Exchanges, Carnival Corporation & plc is the only group in the world to be included in both the S&P 500 and the FTSE 100 indices.
SOURCE Carnival Corporation & plc
CONTACT: Media, US, Tim Gallagher of Carnival Corporation & plc,
+1-305-599-2600, ext. 16000, or UK, Richard Jacques or Sophie Brand ,
+44-0-20-7404-5959, both of Brunswick Group, or Investor Relations, US and UK,
Beth Roberts of Carnival Corporation & plc, +1-305-406-4832
