(From the home page)….Visit seven ports in the Sea of Cortez. The cruise will allow a seven day cruise without having to cross any borders and the vast majority of Mexican nationals will be able to get onto the cruise without having to suffer the arduous task of obtaining a passport or Visa beforehand. This cruise will create the only itinerary in the Pacific that can accommodate seven ports in such a short length of time.
Puerto Peñasco as a Home Port for major cruise ships has long been a dream and it’s approval will no doubt catapult the tourism and infrastructure of Puerto Peñasco into exponential growth as it becomes a world class destination.
The Sea of Cortez has been referred to as the aquarium of the world and consists of a wondrous variety of sea creatures that can only be found in the Sea of Cortez. This Sea has mesmerized the likes of John Steinbeck and Jacques Cousteau as a previous writer (Jim Ringquist) so deftly wrote. Through the decades the Sea of Cortez has lured Sport fisherman and adventure seekers from all over to spend time on the emerald waters.
The renderings for the proposed Home Port have been provided by the design team hired by the State Tourism Commission.
The City of Puerto Peñasco has been chosen as it is conveniently located within driving distance from the Phoenix and Tucson, AZ cruise markets. These markets provide more than 350,000 passengers every year to the current cruise line market. The Market is currently ripe for new cruise experiences. The coastal Highway that has been completed between Puerto Peñasco and Mexicali has opened the city to another 1,400,000 tourists that would be interested in the new cruise experience.
Three essential requirements had to be met before any cruise line could consider a cruise itinerary in Puerto Peñasco.
A steady supply of the special fuel required by a mega cruise ship had to be readily available. This special fuel is currently supplied through Guaymas and could be available at the Home Port location in Puerto Peñasco.
Government authorization had to be obtained to operate casinos on the Sea of Cortez. The Sea of Cortez is not considered international water and is part of the Mexican territorial water. The Federal Government has officially authorized the operation of Casinos on board cruise ships in the Sea of Cortez.
The Government had to authorize the operation of Duty Free stores on board the cruise ships. The application in this regard has been authorized by the federal government for casinos on board cruise liners in the Sea of Cortez.
So dear reader the facts are that you are witnessing the birth of a new international destination for travel and cruises in the little city of Puerto Peñasco. This is probably one of the greatest tourism discoveries in recent history and the opportunities for great investments are endless. Do not say we did not warn you.
Although this project has been dragging along and met with various obsticles, it has again received the go ahead from the federal government. It has been placed on the budget for 2017 and a further $ 300 000 000.00 pesos will be poured into completing the home port. This will be added to the $ 500 000 000.00 Pesos that had been used to date. This is yet another sign that the project will be completed.
In December 2019, after years of struggling with the completion of the Home Port the first Cruise liner has arrived in Rocky Point and successfully completed the first cruise down the Sea of Cortez. History has been made and was very well received by the international community in Rocky Point, Sonora, Mexico.
We look forward to building on this foundation and many years of cruises from this destination.
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