by Donald Wood
Last updated: 5:54 PM ET, Thu October 8, 2015
Photo courtesy of Carnival Corporation & plc
Carnival Corporation & plc officially opened its expansion in Cozumel, Mexico, by celebrating the addition of a third berth to the cruise company's pier at Puerta Maya.
Carnival has invested more than $20 million into the expansion of the port at Puerta Maya by adding a third arm to the existing pier in order to allow three ships to be moored at the terminal at the same time.
The occasion was celebrated by having three of the company's vessels arrive on Thursday to become the first ships to use the new three-berth pier. They included the Carnival Breeze, Carnival Freedom and Carnival Triumph.
Cozumel is already the busiest cruise destination in the Caribbean, serving 3.3 million cruise passengers every year, and the addition of the third berth will only drive numbers up, as all 10 of Carnival's brands will be able to use the port.
Carnival Corporation Senior Vice President Giora Israel released a statement about the addition of the third berth at Puerta Maya, saying, "Cozumel is the Caribbean's most visited cruise ship destination and consistently receives high ratings from our guests. So the destination is in demand by our guests, and we are excited about officially opening the third berth to our pier, since it gives our brands greater flexibility for visiting Cozumel and more of our guests the opportunity to enjoy the island."
The addition to the port comes after a long history of work being done in the area. Planning started in 2005 when Hurricane Wilma destroyed the original pier, but work didn't get started until May 2014.
Located just five miles from San Miguel, the Puerta Maya pier and welcome cruise center are located on the southwestern part of Cozumel. The cruise center also houses over 50 different outlet stores.
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