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Royal Caribbean International's Brilliance of the Seas docked into the new port of Bahrain, Khalifa Bin Salman, this week as part of the company's newly-launched five stop, seven-day winter cruise programme in the Arabian Gulf.
Officials from the port and the Ministry of Information Tourism Sector joined the traditional ceremony, where the ship and the city exchange the 'Plaques & Keys' to remember ports visited and no doubt hope the furore over exorbitant taxi fares being touted to furious passengers will blow over before the next liner arrives.
"Bahrain is aiming to become a major player in the Gulf's cruise ship market. We expect to receive 100,000 passengers from November to April - this is double the figure that the former port had," said Culture and Information Ministry Tourism Sector executive director and adviser Dr Heba Aziz.
Brilliance of the Seas is one of the most elegant cruise ships in the world, featuring an open Centrum with 10-deck high windows and ocean-facing glass elevators, both of which will offer spectacular views of the passing shoreline and sea.
It boasts one of the highest space-per-guest ratios in the industry, and will add more than 32,000 guests in her first four-month season to the region's burgeoning cruise sector - which is expected to double the current passenger numbers in Bahrain over the next two years, according to the Ministry of Information.
Royal Caribbean International's regional sales director, international representatives, EMEA, Helen Beck, said the arrival of Brilliance of the Seas was an important catalyst in driving forward regional cruise tourism growth and announced Brilliance of the Seas' 2011 return to the region following this year's inaugural season.
"The Middle East's prospective growth figures for luxury cruising is remarkable and we expect Brilliance of the Seas to establish itself as the leading cruise option for years to come," she said.
And, for some, it truly was the journey of a lifetime. Australian Trent Redmond, 20, explained how his cruise of Arabian Gulf ports marked his first overseas visit.
"I have to say I was a bit dubious at first but the region has turned out to be fantastic and much different to what I thought. I am looking forward to discovering even more about it now," he said.
Aboard the vessel, cruise guests were to experience the contrasts of sun, sea, desert, city life, culture, luxury and Arabian hospitality in just one single holiday.
The ship features indoor and outdoor pools, fitness centre and day spa, an indoor and outdoor sports deck with golf simulator, sports courts, a rock-climbing wall and a jogging track.
It also boasts a wide range of dining options with an Arabian flavour added especially for the Gulf cruises, shopping arcades and a theatre.
Although the majority of guests at present come from traditional Western markets on fly-and-cruise packages, Ms Beck believes that as regional awareness grows about cruise holidays as a viable vacation option, there will be a significant increase in local and regional passengers signing-up.
"Already there is high demand from our key global source markets; but as news of our on-board facilities, great shore excursions and exceptional service has spread, we have also seen strong levels of interest from the more traditional Middle Eastern markets," said Ms Beck.
With an overall length of 293 metres, and a breadth of 40 metres, Brilliance of the Seas - which was built in Papenburg, north-west Germany, and registered in the Bahamas - weighs 90,090 tonnes and can travel at a speed of 24 knots. It has two anchors each weighing 12 tonnes and it even generates its own fresh water.
Royal Caribbean's hope to entice passengers on shore excursion programmes in Bahrain included a heritage tour taking in the Grand Mosque, a 4x4 Extreme Adventure at the BIC and a visit to Al Areen Wildlife reserve.
The behaviour of some taxi drivers will have to be curtailed if tourism chiefs do not want a repeat of the scenes at the weekend which saw passengers vote with their feet ... and walk back to the luxury of the liner rather than be ripped off on a ride into Manama.
Passengers paid between BD225 to BD752 for the cruise.
