Haiti raises cruise fee to fund local community projects
Haiti’s Prime Minister Laurent Lamothe has announced his government will charge Royal Caribbean an extra $2 per passenger for each visit to the cruise line’s Labadee seaside resort.
Lamothe said the fee will go towards funding social and economic projects in the local area, located close to the country’s second largest city, Cap-Haitien.
Lamothe said he struck an agreement with Royal Caribbean’s CEO, Adam Goldstein to increase the port fee from $10 to $12.
The new fee will take effect from March 2015.
"We will invest the money in improving the village environment, and building schools and health centers for the Labadee village population," Lamothe said.
"We want to make sure the local population can directly benefit from the big cruise ships they see coming to their village."
Around 600,000 cruise passengers came ashore at Labadee last year.
A project was also announced to improve security and repair basic infrastructure in Labadee to smooth the way for shore excursions which will be offered to cruise passengers.
TravelMole Editorial Team
Editor for TravelMole North America and Asia pacific regions. Ray is a highly experienced (15+ years) skilled journalist and editor predominantly in travel, hospitality and lifestyle working with a huge number of major market-leading brands. He has also cover in-depth news, interviews and features in general business, finance, tech and geopolitical issues for a select few major news outlets and publishers.
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
France prepares for a massive strike across all transports on September 18
Turkish tourism stalls due to soaring prices for accommodation and food
CCS Insight: eSIMs ready to take the travel world by storm
Germany new European Entry/Exit System limited to a single airport on October 12, 2025
Airlines suspend Madagascar services following unrest and army revolt