Puerto Vallarta, Mexico - The international cruise season began in Puerto Vallarta on Thursday, September 22, 2011, with the arrival of a total of 5,409 passengers and 2,078 crew members on the Carnival Splendor and Celebrity Millennium cruise ships.

The Port Authority (API) of Puerto Vallarta confirmed that Celebrity Millennium Cruises will bring four arrivals to the port this year and four more next year. Puerto Vallarta's high season runs until May 2012, and the 2011 year will close with 20 cruise ship arrivals in the month of October, 17 in November and 23 in December.

Alex Casarrubias García, CEO of API, reported that as of last July, cruise ship arrivals had fallen by 23%. However, this loss will decrease in the current year due largely to the increase in Celebrity Cruise high season port calls.

In total it is projected that, during October 2011 to May 2012 high season, Puerto Vallarta will welcome 319,886 visitors from cruise ships.

Cruise ships scheduled to dock in our port this season are: Westerdam, Disney Wonder, Carnival Splendor, Oosterdam, Crystal Symphony, Carnival Spirit, Statendam, Pacific Ocean Star, Inspiration and Rotterdam, among others.

It should be noted that during the month of July, before the beginning of the 2011-2012 cruise season, the Port Authority, the Jalisco Ministry of Tourism and the Puerto Vallarta Tourism Trust joined together in a combined effort to strengthen safety measures and increase awareness of the importance of proper training for taxi drivers, tour guides and tour operators working in the Maritime Terminal.

Alex Casarrubias García, Ludwig Estrada y Salvador Peña, representatives of the three organizations, took turns addressing 80 participants, explaining how the port community as a whole can help cruisers feel safe in Puerto Vallarta and the importance of the role they play in our tourists' overall experience.

They also commented on the importance of creating a culture full of friendly respect for our visitors and instructed participants on how to make clear and timely reports of any suspicious activity that they may see on the streets of the city, saying that this would be a benefit for tourism and for Vallarta.