Mahogany Bay Cruise Center Officially Opens in Roatan

The $62 million Mahogany Bay Cruise Center in Roatan, Honduras, officially opened Feb. 10 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by local dignitaries and VIPs. The ceremony kicked off the center’s 2010 cruise season, which will see about 200 cruise ship visits and 500,000 passengers in the coming year.

Mahogany Bay is a joint project between Carnival Corp. & plc and local businessman Jerry Hynds. Among those attending the ceremony were Hynds; Honduran President Porfirio Lobo Sosa; Giora Israel, Carnival Corp. senior vice president of port and destination development; and Capt. Salvatore Rassello of Carnival Cruise Lines’ Carnival Valor, which was docked at the facility during the festivities.

More than five years in development and two years under construction, the Mahogany Bay Cruise Center encompasses 20 acres of waterfront property and includes a two-berth cruise terminal that can accommodate up to 8,000 passengers daily. Mahogany Bay has a new chair lift system that takes cruise ship guests from the welcome center to Mahogany Beach, a 10-acre private island featuring an 825-foot-long white-sand beach with a beach volleyball court and watersports.

Eight cabanas are also available for rent. In addition to Carnival, other Carnival Corp. brands call at the facility, including the Yachts of Seabourn, Princess Cruises, Holland America Line, Costa Cruises and P&O Cruises. Several non-Carnival Corp. brands also visit the center.