Sea Princess kicks off Tassie cruise season in beautiful Burnie

CLOSE to 2000 cruise ship passengers will explore Tasmania's North West today, kicking of what is expected to be a record cruise season.

CLOSE to 2000 cruise ship passengers will explore Tasmania's North West today, kicking of what is expected to be a record cruise season for the state.

The Sea Princess, carrying 1900 passengers and 900 crew, was due to arrive in Burnie very early this morning.

Tomorrow the ship, which set sail from Sydney, will travel past the spectacular cliffs of the Tasman Peninsula to moor just offshore from the Port Arthur Historic Site, before heading down to Hobart in the evening.

It will be the first ship to use Hobart's new cruise ship terminal in Macquarie Wharf.

The cruise goers will have all day on Thursday to explore the city and southern tourist regions.

Tourism director for the Port Arthur site Anne McVilly said the management authority had been working for years to attract more cruise ship visits to its harbour.

"We are really starting to see that effort bear fruit this season, with nine visits scheduled between now and next April," Ms McVilly said.

A total of 64 cruise ship visits are scheduled for ports around Tasmania this year, compared with 54 last year.

Hobart is expecting 36 visits, Burnie will host 12, Port Arthur nine, Coles Bay and Wine Glass Bay three each and Devonport one.

The 2012-13 passenger season report revealed that more than 100,000 cruise passengers and crew members arrived in the state last season.

A study commissioned by Cruise Downunder estimated that each passenger visiting Tasmania spends about $113 a day.

Ms McVilly said Port Arthur's efforts in securing ship visits would further boost the economy.

"Every vessel that visits Port Arthur is adding a day to its Tasmanian itinerary, so the economic benefits are cumulative and spread around the region," she said.

See the full cruise ship schedule here: http://www.tasports.com.au/port_services/arrivalscruise.html