Cruise del Sur.RICARDO DEL VALLE, CONTROLLER OF THE PORT OF BUENOS Aires Buenos Aires (bwā`nəs ī`rēz, âr`ēz, Span. bwā`nōs ī`rās), city and federal district (1991 pop. , wants more than cargo at the dock. He wants people. Del Valle and other port officials in Argentina, Chile and Uruguay are urging the world's multibillion-dollar cruise industry to detour some of its nearly 10 million passengers annually from the Caribbean and Mediterranean--and set sail for South America South America, fourth largest continent (1991 est. pop. 299,150,000), c.6,880,000 sq mi (17,819,000 sq km), the southern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. . "A cruise ship doesn't took for a port, it looks for a region. Our goal is to integrate the ports to offer them as a regional product," says Del Valle, president of the fledgling South Cone Cruise Ports Association, or Surcruise. He says cruise traffic will create spin-off jobs for small and medium-sized tourism-linked companies. The push by Surcruise and its 14 member ports comes at a time when megaships crowd Caribbean ports, repeat passengers search for new itineraries and cruise lines seek markets to develop. Royal Caribbean has positioned a ship in Brazil for cruises to Argentina and Uruguay; it is targeting Latin American passengers. Celebrity Cruises calls at ports in Uruguay, Argentina, Chile and Brazil. Norwegian Cruise Line Norwegian Cruise Line (NCL) is a company operating cruise ships, headquartered in Miami, Florida. It is most well known for its Freestyle Cruising, which means that there are no set times or seating arrangements for meals, nor is formal attire required. , Orient Lines, Crystal Cruises, Princess Cruises and Costa Cruises ply the region on a limited basis. Buenos Aires receives about 60 cruise ships a year. Surcruise wants that figure to reach 200 by 2003. There are obstacles. ports lack passenger ship terminals, Customs and immigration immigration, entrance of a person (an alien) into a new country for the purpose of establishing permanent residence. Motives for immigration, like those for migration generally, are often economic, although religious or political factors may be very important. procedures need streamlining. Port taxes must be cut and docks beg for upgrading. Jose Daniel Barrera Saez, Surcruise's representative for Puerto Montt, Chile Puerto Montt is a port city in southern Chile located by Reloncaví Sound and is the capital of Llanquihue Province and the Los Lagos Region, at . The city has approximate 176,000 inhabitants in an area of 1.673 km². , predicts privatization privatization: see nationalization. privatization Transfer of government services or assets to the private sector. State-owned assets may be sold to private owners, or statutory restrictions on competition between privately and publicly owned will ease the association's efforts. He adds that Mother Nature is providing the biggest incentive. "Where else can you dock, then board a plane for a day trip to Antarctica?" he asks. |
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