CRUISE ships have been turning up in good numbers in New South Wales, with the state recently welcoming three new vessels to its shores in one week.
On Wednesday 12 December, the 200-metre German-owned cruise ship AIDAaura made its first visit to Sydney while on the same day, the luxury cruise ship Seabourn Sojourn made its “debut” at Batemans Bay.
The Seabourn Sojourn brought about 450 passengers to Batemans Bay, with those onboard being taken from ship to shore via small boats.
The visit was seen as a boost to the cruise sector in regional NSW, following the recent visit of the luxury cruise ship MS Caledonian Sky to Trial Bay, South West Rocks.
Just a few days later on Sunday 16 December, Sydney experienced another ship making its first call to the city — the Viking Orion: Viking Cruises fifth ship which was named just months earlier in June 2018.
Each ship was welcomed in with a ceremonial exchange of plaques between the captains and representative from Port Authority of New South Wales, as has become a tradition in many of the ports of the world.
