Above: the mountains outside Port-au-Prince (UN Photo/Logan Abassi)
By the Caribbean Journal staff
Haiti may welcome its first cruise ship to Port-au-Prince in 25 years, according to Minister of the Interior Thierry Mayard-Paul.
“Haiti is at a turning point as a nation,” said Mayard-Paul, who was speaking at a gathering in Alabama of “Cruise with a Cause,” which organizes cruises that join tourism and volunteer work.
The cruises are organized by Praisefest Ministries, which is looking to bring a cruise to Haiti with a 4,000-person cruise in 2013.
“When you sail into Port-au-Prince, my friends, you will be making history,” Mayard-Paul said. “This will be a milestone to remember. Yours will be the first cruise ship to visit our capital in a quarter of a century.”
According to the Minister, the government is working to prepare the port in Port-au-Prince for the ship’s arrival.
The move would be a boon to Port-au-Prince, which was for a long time a frequent port of call for cruise ships.