The Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) is ramping up the construction of four cruise terminal projects worth P2.8 billion to address the anticipated growth in cruise passengers.
These cruise ship terminals are located in the ports of Camiguin, Boracay, Puerto Galera and Coron, Palawan, with project cost of about P700 million each.
The PPA said the dedicated cruise passenger terminal at the Siargao Port is now operational.
Jay Santiago, PPA general manager, said the cruise terminal is expected to be inaugurated this year.
“We have the first cruise terminal that we’ve completed. We are opening up Siargao to cruise tourism because as you know, most foreign tourists go to Siargao,” Santiago said.
Coron’s cruise terminal will open by next year.
From January to May 2024, PPA has recorded 58,648 cruise passengers and 65 cruise ship calls.
PPA said it expects the number of cruise passengers this year to increase by 30 percent to 103,899 from about 80,000 last year.
In 2023, 164 cruise ships with over 80,000 passengers from various shipping companies such as Norweigan Cruise Lines, Holland America Line, Silversea, Windstar Cruises and AIDA visited the Philippines, which was recognized as the “Best Cruise Destination in Asia” by the World Cruise Award.
The budget for the construction of the dedicated cruise terminals in provincial ports is included in PPA’s P16 billion budget for the next four years.
There are five other big-ticket projects lined up in Luzon, six in Visayas and three in Mindanao.
Projects located in Luzon include the ports of Capinpin, Currimao, Jose Panganiban and Bologo and the wharf in Claveria Port, Cagayan.
Projects in the Visayas are the construction of a wharf and operational area in Catagbacan Port, Loon, Bohol; Tapal Port expansion project in Ubay, Bohol; new port development projects in Lavezares, Northern Samar and Babatngon Port in Leyte: Banago Port improvement in Negros Occidental; and Ormoc Port extension project in Leyte.
The projects in Mindanao are the construction of a cargo ship port in Dapa, Surigao del Norte; upgrading of a general cargo berth in Davao City’s Port of Sasa; and the Plaridel Port expansion in Misamis Occidental.
