First ship of the season arrives at Lyttelton's new cruise berth
Kiwi-only cruises will soon get the green light to set sail, as the first passenger vessel to get a Government exemption docks in New Zealand.
Christchurch-based Heritage Expeditions flagship Spirit of Enderby arrived at the Port of Lyttelton on Monday.
The arrival marked a trifecta of firsts: the first cruise ship of the summer to arrive in New Zealand, the first captained by New Zealand’s first and only female marine pilot, Joanne Laing, and the first vessel to dock at Lyttelton’s new $67 million cruise ship berth.
Lyttelton Port Company general manager Phil de Joux said he was not expecting the berth would be used by a cruise ship so soon.
“Obviously Covid’s had a huge impact on the cruise market, so we’re just stoked really."
The Spirit of Enderby sailed directly from Vladivostok in eastern Russia, and the crew had been in isolation for 43 days now.
“They had two weeks and two Covid tests moored offshore, then 29 days of sailing.”
The crew had another test at 9am on Monday, and remained confined to the ship for now.
The 50-passenger boat will sail to Invercargill to pick up its first passengers on November 24.
It will then head out on an expedition to Fiordland and Stewart Island.
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