MONTEGO BAY, St James – Having broken ground last week for a $-billion marine theme park at Point, Hanover, Stafford Burrowes, the managing director of Dolphin Cove, is now planning to expand his operations to the Eastern Caribbean and Europe.

“We are looking now at two islands in the Eastern Caribbean and as far as Europe to set up attractions,” Burrowes told the Observer West from his Dolphin Cove attraction in the Cayman Islands.

According to Burrowes, construction for at least one of the proposed attractions in the Eastern Caribbean could begin in the second half of next year, following the opening of the attraction at Point.

The successful businessman, however, declined to give details, arguing that negotiations with other business interests are at a delicate stage.

Jamaica has two Dolphin Cove attractions in Ocho Rios and Montego Bay.

“Dolphin Cove has grown since 1998, when a ‘swim with’ facility was first being conceptualised for Ocho Rios. We could not in our wildest dreams have imagined what was to happen in the hospitality industry,” Burrowes said at the groundbreaking ceremony for the attraction at Point last Thursday.

“We started with four dolphins, which are still with us, and we now have 26 dolphins, counting all locations,” he added.

The first phase of the attraction, which is being built on a 20-acre seafront property at Point at a cost of $500 million, is scheduled to open next May and will provide employment for more than 200 persons.

Sited midway between the resort towns of Montego Bay and Negril, it comes in the wake of exhaustive calls by the cruise-shipping industry for more such attractions.

Burrowes said the new attraction will be the largest marine park in the western hemisphere.

“Montego Bay and the western region have always needed a marquee attraction. The cruise ships berthing in Montego Bay have been sending its passengers to Ocho Rios. The hotel guests in Negril have had to spend six hours in a bus to travel to Ocho Rios and return, and so this first-class attraction we are building will enhance the western Jamaica destination,” he said.

The facility will have a lazy river, ecological mangrove tour, crocodiles and camel riding and will offer Dolphin Human Therapy (DHT), which involves the use of dolphins to provide positive reinforcement to children with special needs.

“It (DHT) is an international programme that has been able to help participants from all over the world. Motivation and confidence are critical for success in almost anything. For the special needs populations, it is hard to imagine anything more motivating than working with dolphins,” he said.

He added that children with special needs in Jamaica who are unable to pay for the treatment would be accommodated.