Various announcements of tourism projects in the Dominican Republic's diverse tourist destinations, made during the second day of the International Tourism Fair (Fitur), held in Madrid, Spain, totaled more than US$1.5 billion yesterday, according to David Collado, Minister of Tourism.
On day two, Collado presented Punta Bergantín, Puerto Plata; Cabo Rojo, Pedernales and Miches, the small municipality of about 442 km², located in the province of El Seibo, as the new jewels of the Dominican nation, highlighting their charms and motivating potential investors to bring their capital to Creole soil.
“More than US$1.5 billion in investments have already been announced,” and the figures will be seen today after the banks resumed holding meetings at the fair.
North Coast
The CEO of Punta Bergantín, Andrés Marranzini, announced that this year, with the support of Banco Popular and Banco de Reservas, construction will begin on the Hyatt hotel, followed by the Meliá and Westin hotels in 2026. They project the completion of the hotels and the opening of the Clubhouse and Beach Club in 2027, and the golf course in 2028.
Regarding Puerto Plata, he indicated that it receives 65,000 tourists and registers a growth of 30,000 airline seats annually, bringing the number of arrivals by air closer to about 400,000 visitors.
Punta Bergantín is a beach destination and Santiago a business destination, which has nearly RD$1 billion earmarked for the start of the project that will have 4,000 hotel rooms and 4,000 real estate units.
Puerto Plata has 6,000 hotel rooms, a 63% hotel occupancy rate, and significant growth in complementary activities. It also receives 2.2 million cruise ship passengers.
The Punta Bergantín project, which began 16 months ago, is expected to be completed in seven years. The Hyatt, Maliá, Westin, and Karima hotels will collectively add 2,100 rooms, Marranzini said at a breakfast hosted by the Ministry of Tourism for investors.
Business leaders and government officials. (EXTERNAL SOURCE).
Miches
William Phelan of ProMiches revealed that the private sector has driven investments of over US$1 billion in Miches. He detailed that by mid-2026 there will be seven hotel projects with nearly 3,000 rooms, generating 3,500 jobs.
He highlighted the opening of Viva Whindam, the Uvero Alto road and the conservation of Playa Esmeralda, as well as the Pro-turtle program.
Flints
The Minister of Public Administration, in his role as director of the Pro-Pedernales Trust, Sigmund Freund, indicated that the Cabo Rojo International Airport is under construction and is expected to be completed by mid-2026.
He said that the Iberostar hotel with 580 rooms will partially open this year, and the Secrets hotel with 507 rooms will also partially open in 2025, while the Dreams hotel is expected to open in the first half of 2026.
He explained that this is a social development project expected to attract 133,000 cruise passengers and more than 30 cruise ships this year. So far, 19,000 cruise passengers and eight cruise ships have arrived at the port of Cabo Rojo, he indicated.
Cabo Rojo will begin operations at some of its hotels by the end of the year. He said that the participation of a private investor in the Pedernales project will be announced at the end of March.
Call to invest in the Dominican Republic
Vice Minister Jacqueline Mora, speaking at the event, said that if she were an investor, she would bet on marrying the Dominican Republic, a position echoed by the Superintendent of the Dominican Republic's Securities Market, Ernesto Bournigal.
In her speech, the Minister of Tourism highlighted that last year 2,700 rooms were approved with investments of US$800,000 to US$900,000 million that will attract almost 300,000 potential new tourists.
Furthermore, he praised Minister Collado's vision in supporting diversification in sports tourism and cruises, among other activities that generate added value and attract luxury and semi-luxury tourism. He indicated that each hotel room generates more seating, public investment, gastronomy, culture, and sports.
Investment announcements
Banco Popular Dominicano announced a US$71 million loan to the Advanced Opportunities II Closed-End Development Investment Fund, managed by Advanced Asset Management (AAM), for the purchase and complete renovation of the Playa Hotels & Resort, which will operate under the prestigious international Wyndham Alltra brand, part of Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. Popular Bank, a subsidiary of Grupo Popular operating from Panama under an international license, is also participating in the financing.
BHD Fondos, a company of the BHD Financial Center that channels resources from institutional investors to the real sector, announced the signing of an agreement with Grupo Prime to jointly develop a tourism real estate project under international standards in Playa Esmeralda, Miches.
