Costa Rica to renovate Limón cruise terminal

The 193,000 cruise passengers who arrive annually to Costa Rica’s Caribbean will soon enjoy renovated facilities.

The Costa Rican government announced this week it is investing more than $200,000 to renovate the Hernán Garrón Salazar terminal in Limón.

The “innovative design” was created in conjunction with community leaders and will feature improvements to the boarding halls, lookout point and courtyard.

“We want to take your breath away from your first look, so that later you will fall in love with the flavor, nature, music, culture and beauty of all the cantons of this Caribbean province,” said the Executive President of the Board of Directors of the Atlantic Port Authority (JAPDEVA), Andrea Centeno.

According to the Costa Rican Tourism Board (ICT), 193,733 passengers arrived aboard 93 cruise ships to the Limón terminal in 2018-19. Semanario Universidad reports that at least 20% of passengers did not disembark from their cruise ships in Limón.

“Limón is able to make tourists fall in love through their nature and the quality of their people,” said President Carlos Alvarado. “Our goal is to encourage the stay in the province and thereby reactivate not only the local and national economy, but to position the province as a destination that can compete with others, offering a quality tourist experience based on the culture and tradition of Limón.”

ICT says the renovations are “a first step to serve cruise passengers arriving in the Costa Rican Caribbean, while progress toward a new specialized terminal continues.”

The improvements are reportedly set to be completed over the next four months.