In a striking milestone for the Dominican Republic’s emerging cruise tourism sector, Port Cabo Rojo in Pedernales has secured a spot as one of three finalists for the 2026 Seatrade Cruise Awards’ prestigious Port of the Year honor. This nomination places the young Caribbean terminal in the same league as two of the most well-regarded international cruise ports, marking a major breakthrough for the nation’s fast-growing travel and shipping industry. The final winner of the award will be revealed on September 16 during the Seatrade Cruise Med trade event, hosted this year at the Port of Las Palmas in Gran Canaria, Spain. Port Cabo Rojo is competing for the top prize against two established contenders: Portsmouth International Port of the United Kingdom and Skjolden Port of Norway. What makes this nomination particularly remarkable is how recently the terminal launched its cruise operations. Port Cabo Rojo only began welcoming commercial cruise vessels in January 2024, making its rise to international recognition an exceptional achievement for a new entrant in the competitive global cruise market. The finalists across all award categories were selected by an independent panel of 15 seasoned cruise industry professionals, who evaluated more than 20 submissions across multiple categories to narrow down the shortlists. Since opening its doors to cruise traffic just over a year ago, Port Cabo Rojo has scaled its operations at an unprecedented pace. By January 2025, the terminal had already welcomed 19,628 cruise passengers and 7,747 crew members from visiting lines. Just three months later, the port made headlines by docking the Oasis of the Seas—one of the largest cruise vessels operating in the world today—carrying 6,502 passengers and 2,126 crew. By the time of that historic visit, Port Cabo Rojo had already accommodated 14 separate cruise calls, hosted more than 41,600 total passengers, and established regular operations with six major international cruise lines. The terminal hit another major milestone in November 2025, when it welcomed two large cruise vessels simultaneously for the first time: the Brilliance of the Seas, with 2,518 passengers on board, and the AIDA Sol, carrying 2,161 passengers. Industry analysts note that this finalist nomination does more than honor Port Cabo Rojo’s own rapid development. It also spotlights the Dominican Republic’s strategic push to position the Pedernales region and the country’s entire southwest coast as a high-potential, up-and-coming destination within the multi-billion-dollar Caribbean cruise sector, a key driver of economic growth and job creation across the region.