Cruise ships Silver Nova and Noordam bring thousands of visitors to Gisborne

Silver Nova and her 600-plus passengers enjoyed a picturesque welcome to Gisborne on Sunday in the first completed cruise visit of the season. Photo / Murray Robertson

Beautifully calm seas in Turanganui-a-Kiwa/Poverty Bay on Sunday and Monday created ideal conditions for cruise ships Silver Nova and Noordam to come calling.

They were the second and third scheduled cruise ships to come to Gisborne this shortened season.

Scenic Eclipse II was forced to pass Gisborne by at the start of December due to heavy swell conditions in the bay.

Silver Nova came into the bay from Tauranga about 10am on Sunday and sailed for Napier at 7pm.

At capacity, the ship can carry more than 700 passengers.

Passengers from Silver Nova were welcomed to the city at the inner harbour after they stepped off the ship's tenders. Photo / Murray Robertson

The Silver Nova brought 600-plus this time, and more than half came ashore for the day.

“This place is beautiful,” said a man from Parramatta in western Sydney. “The view as we came in this morning was stunning.”

He and his wife were looking forward to exploring the city during the day.

A ships agent said the visit had been a success.

“There were plenty of excursions for the visitors to go on and the feedback we got was positive,” he said.

The much-larger seagoing hotel Noordam, with a 2300-passenger capacity, nosed its way into the bay about 6.15am on Monday.

Noordam brought almost 1900 visitors to Turanganui-a-Kiwa/Poverty Bay on Monday and they, too, enjoyed a "perfect" bay day. Photo / Murray Robertson

Like Silver Nova, she went to anchor, but further out, off the end of the harbour navigation channel.

“There were 1898 passengers on board her this trip and a large number of them came to Gisborne city for the day,” the agent said.

“The bay was absolutely perfect, better than Sunday even, with flat, calm conditions. It was ideal for tendering the passengers.”

On the shore, steam train Wa165 was running for them, there were bus trips to Eastwoodhill Aboretum and the stingrays at Tatapouri, cycle tours and other excursions.

Many of the Noordam passengers, like Robert and Wayne, of Port Macquarie in New South Wales, opted for a nice lunch or a coffee at the city's eateries. Photo / Murray Robertson

“With the overhead conditions sunny and warm, it could not have been better.”

The city's riverbank walkway and the botanical gardens were popular with the visitors on Monday, while many others enjoyed a walk to the shops. Photo / Murray Robertson

The next scheduled cruise visit features the Norwegian Spirit, which is to make its maiden visit to Gisborne on New Year’s Day.

At capacity, it carries just over 2000 passengers.

It will be the first of two visits by the Norwegian Spirit this cruise season.

The ship is now on a cruise from Singapore to Sydney.

Silver Nova will call in to Gisborne again next month. Photo / Murray Robertson

Silver Nova will make its second visit here on January 11.