Barbados to get floating hotels for World Cup

With the World Cup less than five months away, Barbados is gearing up to play host to plenty of cricket fans. The latest initiative is to have 14 cruise ships docked at its port, of which six will serve as permanent floating hotels to make up for the lack of conventional hotel rooms.

The Jamaica Gleaner quoted Noel Lynch, the country's tourism minister, as saying that these ships will accommodate around 12,000 fans and help handle the huge influx of fans expected during the tournament. "We are expecting about 20,000 fans for the finals," Lynch said. "Of that number, our ports will accommodate some 12,000 and the land-based entities the other 8,000 people."

Lynch also confirmed that much of the extra accommodation had already been sold out. "The Indians, particularly, have eaten up all of the rooms."

The World Cup has also meant an opportunity for the West Indies to showcase itself as a tourist destination with sound infrastructure, and Lynch indicated that plenty of work was in progress in Barbados to ensure that the country would be in top shape when the tournament starts. "When cricket fans arrive in Barbados, they will see a new-looking Kensington Oval, and major infrastructure work showcasing Barbados as a seriously developing nation on the cusp of being developed."