The global cruise industry’s prestigious 2026 Seatrade Cruise Awards, one of the sector’s most respected international honors, has named Port Cabo Rojo in Pedernales, Dominican Republic as one of three finalists for the coveted Port of the Year title.
The Dominican terminal went head-to-head with two established European ports: the United Kingdom’s Portsmouth International Port and Norway’s Skjolden Port. Final judging and the awards ceremony took place on September 16 during the Seatrade Cruise Med industry gathering, hosted this year in Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain. Ultimately, Norway’s Skjolden Port claimed the top prize, with Cabo Rojo and Portsmouth International Port finishing as runners-up.
The journey to the finals was already a significant achievement for Port Cabo Rojo. Initially, an independent panel of 15 seasoned cruise industry professionals narrowed down more than 20 initial nominees to the three finalists, selecting the Dominican port to advance to the final round. This nomination put the relatively new Pedernales terminal in the same global spotlight as long-standing, well-known European cruise ports, shining a well-deserved spotlight on the rising international profile of Pedernales and the Dominican Republic’s entire southern tourism region.
Since launching commercial operations, Port Cabo Rojo has emerged as a cornerstone of the Dominican Republic’s strategy to grow tourism in its southwestern region. The terminal has opened Pedernales to entirely new cruise routes, dramatically boosting the destination’s visibility and accessibility across the competitive international cruise market.
This landmark recognition comes at a time when the Dominican Republic is actively expanding its national port infrastructure and working to diversify its cruise tourism offerings beyond the country’s traditional, well-established cruise hubs. Even though Port Cabo Rojo did not take home the 2026 Port of the Year award, its selection as a finalist stands as a meaningful international validation of the terminal’s rapid development and its growing, transformative role in the Dominican Republic’s burgeoning cruise tourism sector.