The paradisiacal beaches, the mountains, the rivers, the monuments, the sea, Iván Tovar and many more surprises welcome visitors in an immersive DR that forces us to dream about it.
The new and striking immersive experience of the stand of the Dominican Republic, that allows the visitor to see “up close” various Creole spaces, was relegated yesterday to the background when the Minister of Tourism, David Colladoannounced that the prestigious Ritz-Carlton hotel chain will open an all-inclusive luxury hotel in the country.
It all happened during an agreement with the investment fund manager Pionneer, which announced the Yanuna hotel project in which it plans to invest US$2 billion over the next ten years.
The details of the investment were offered by the executive vice president of Pioneer, Yamil Isaías, who spoke of the amount and of the rooms that will be built, but not of all the brands that will do so due to a “jurisdiction issue.”
Collado, however, decided to jump into the water and made the announcement during a brief intervention in which he said that he appreciated the importance of the project.
Returning to Yanuna, Isaías explained that this is an ambitious project that will be developed in an extension of almost three million square meters located in Macao, in the Punta Cana area.
On the other hand, Isaías recalled that they are an investment fund authorized by the Superintendency of Securities and that their first investment was in 2018 in Miches: Club Med Playa Esmeralda and later the St. Regis Cap Cana Resort and Residences.
In this sense, he indicated that the purchase of the land for Yanuna was made with his funds, with the support of Afp Popular and other developer partners such as Javier Tejada, who was also present.
The first two hotels to be built are with 300 and 250 rooms and will be operated by the Marriott chain.
The first investments to be made, added Isaías, will begin this year and will have a total cost of US$250 million.
After Isaías’ intervention, Tejeda highlighted the atmosphere of trust that the president Luis Abinader and Minister Collado have impregnated institutional investors.
When he talks about institutional investors, he refers to pension funds and public capital investment funds. “We have all turned to the tourism industry because we see security, long-term prospects, growth, profitability and above all that it contributes to the economic and social development of the Dominican Republic.”
Tejeda also highlighted that Yanuna is a project that is being developed from scratch, which is why it has an organized master plan that upon completion will have more than 4,000 hotel rooms.
the opening of the stand.
Full of image and flavor, the Dominican stand was inaugurated a little late because it was waiting for Kings Felipe VI and Letizia to come by to say hello, which happened a few minutes after 12 noon.
After they greeted the Minister of Tourism, the formal inauguration ceremony was held, headed by David Collado and the presidents of the two banks that are giving the most support to the fair: Christopher Paniagua, from Banco Popular Dominicano; and Samuel Pereyra, from Banco de Reservas.
When delivering the first speech, Paniagua affirmed that it is a pleasure for the Banco Popular Dominicano to be part of the Fitur delegation, as they do every year.
“As always we have felt the enthusiasm, energy, of the participants, and the great interest that exists to continue investing in the Dominican Republic”Paniagua said.
After highlighting the commitment of the public and private sectors that sustain the growth of the economy, Paniagua congratulated the president Luis Abinader and Minister Collado for the commitment and effort they have dedicated to the tourism sector.
On his side, Pereyra explained that within the framework of the fair, business executives from banreservas They have been meeting with tourism entrepreneurs to whom they have made known the offers that the Dominican Republic has as a destination. In this sense, he recalled that important destinations such as Miches and Punta Bergatín, which is in Puerto Plata, will be announced at the fair.
Subsequently, Minister Collado thanked the support of the popular banks and Reserves to Fitur but also stated that last year was the best in the history of the Dominican Republic in terms of tourism.
He also said, referring to Shakira’s latest album, that you can go to the Dominican Republic with Rolex and Casio.
The inauguration ceremony of the stand was also headed by Manuel Alejandro Grullón, president of the Board of Directors of Banco Popular; Juan Bolívar Díaz, ambassador of the Dominican Republic in Spain; Aníbal de Castro, Dominican ambassador to the World Tourism Organization; and Gabriel Escarrer, CEO of the Meliá Group.
Also in the front row were Encarna Piñero, CEO of Grupo Piñero; Frank Rainieri and Haidée Kuret, from the Punta Cana Group; Héctor José Rizek, from the Rikez Group, and Rita Abinader Corona, sister of President Luis Abinader, among other representatives of hotels, companies and government officials.
