SANTO DOMINGO.– Only hotel brands aligned with the target demographic will be brought to Punta Bergantín, and its real estate development aims to create a community that lives seasonally or permanently within the complex.
This concept will combine sun, beach, cinema, technology and innovation, and aims to attract investments from specific hotel brands, "because we don't want to build hotels just for the sake of building them.".
Among its main attractions are the film studio of actor Vin Diesel's One Race Films company and a "seaside village" intended to develop shopping tourism and gastronomic tourism.
Located in the municipality of Villa Montellano, in Puerto Plata, the project, which does not yet have an official name, aims to make the area an urban tourism development destination and also intends to eventually encompass the entire Amber Coast.
The Amber Coast stretches from Montecristi, Puerto Plata, Espaillat, and María Trinidad Sánchez. “It has never been seen as a single project; Punta Bergantín is the relaunch of that entire area,” says Vice Minister of Tourism, Jaqueline Mora.
The difference
The project, which has been presented to investors both inside and outside the country (recently at the International Tourism Fair in Madrid), has elements that will differentiate it from other destinations, according to the vice minister.
According to the economist, what is being done with Punta Bergantín will mean that in 20 years, "the history of Dominican tourism will be rewritten.".
He argues that Punta Bergantín is different from the rest because it brings a value proposition of innovation and technology, which will not only be developed outside the country, but will remain within it.
The 9.6 million square meter plot of land, acquired in 2021 by Grupo Reservas, is 17 minutes from Gregorio Luperón Airport, 23 minutes from Puerto Plata, and will have better connectivity with the Santiago-Puerto Plata highway.
What are the distinctive elements of this project? It is a specific hotel development, where the aim is to find hotel brands that are aligned with the segments that are to be attracted; "it's no longer about putting a hotel in just for the sake of it.".
Mora, who offered details at the project presentation held during Fitur 2023 by Banco del Reservas and the Ministry of Tourism, said that another differentiating element is the real estate development it will have, because in addition to creating a destination, a community will be created where people can live seasonally or as a second home.
He explained that the project, which will generate 83,250 jobs, is divided into three phases, and the first, which covers 30% with 277 hectares, is open for two months to receive specific investments and will start in mid-2023.
“The project is at the master plan stage, fully designed. The first phase will begin with the development of a hotel, apartments, green areas, a beach club, hospitals, shops, and offices,” he emphasized
In addition to the seaside village, an innovation district and the film studio, Punta Bergantín will feature: a residential and mixed-use area, 18 golf courses, a hospital, shops, a beach club, an equestrian club, a tennis club, villas, a sports club and parks.
Text with modifications from publication in Acento.
