A significant drop in the number of calls and visitors is forecasted for this coming 2014/15 cruise season in Uruguay, according to tourism officials. While in the last season Uruguay received 238 cruise calls, beginning November the number is expected to drop to 187, this apparently because of the very high costs in the ports of Buenos Aires and Brazilian terminals.
During the 2013/14 season, 237 cruise vessels called in Uruguay's two main ports, Montevideo and Punta del Este, with 409.367 visitors, a 6,3% increase in calls over the previous season, according to a report released by the country's presidential web-site.
Even when Uruguay's official cruise season is scheduled for November this last Sunday Montevideo received “Costa Neo Romantica” a vessel on a world tour. She was expected to call at the Atlantic seaside resort of Punta del Este, but adverse weather conditions cancelled the visit.
The Uruguayan 2012/13 cruise season experienced a 10% increase in the number of calls to the ports of Montevideo and Punta del Este totalling 240 and approximately 400.000 visitors between passengers and crew members.
Last Wednesday April 17 ‘Splendour of the Seas’ and its 1.940 passengers marked the end of the 2012/13 cruise season for Uruguay, which took off on 23 October and totalled 222 calls between the port of Montevideo and Punta del Este sea resort.