High-seas royalty on way
THE luxury liner Queen Victoria will sail into seas off Port Douglas tomorrow.
The $522 million cruise ship is expected to arrive in waters between Port Douglas and Low Isles by 7am.
At Quicksilver tours, hundreds of spots on a dawn jaunt to see the super-liner were snapped up within days.
"We've got 230 people on board and it sold out in a matter of 48 hours," Quicksilver's Megan Bell told The Cairns Post.
Day trippers braving a 6.30am start will have to use their imaginations to conjure up the liner’s 6000 volume library, 1007 staterooms, 800 seat theatre, and restaurants where passengers quaff 351,900 bottles of wine and champagne each year.
But they will still be able to marvel at the 90,000 tonne ship's picture-postcard black hull and red funnel, towering 54m above the waterline.
"Up close you get to see the ship in all its magnificence," Ms Bell said.
"It's that old world. It's that romance. It’s that life on the high seas."
The Queen Victoria's visit had piqued the interest of international tourists holidaying in the region, the owner of luxury charter catamaran Synergy II Gary Hunt said.
"We've got some people from Spain that’ve chartered the boat," he said.
"They're very excited about seeing the Reef and sailing around the boat at the same.
"It's state of the art. It hasn't been in the water very long and it is on its first visit to these waters on its maiden voyage around the world."
Port Douglas Coast Guard deputy commander John Deblaze urged boaties heading out for a look-see to stay a safe distance from the massive liner and to carry regulation safety gear.
"A ship of that size can produce some very large wake even at slow speeds," he said.
"Smaller boats need to be wary of that."
The Queen Victoria will leave Low Isles by 6pm on Friday.
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Luxury experience: The Queen Victoria is expected in waters off Port Douglas early tomorrow morning. The ocean liner has been on its maiden voyage in Australia, stopping in Sydney and Brisbane on the way up the east coast.
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