By Brendan Carroll

The biggest cruise liner to visit the city this year sailed into Galway Bay at the weekend, for a one-day visit.

The 91,000-tonne Norwegian Star ship, which has a capacity of almost 2,300 passengers and more than 1,000 crew, is on a ten-day cruise around Ireland from Britain.

Several hundred passengers came ashore by tenders to visit Galway City or to embark on day excursions around Connemara and elsewhere after the ship weighed anchor off Mutton Island on Sunday morning.

Those who stayed on board enjoyed the sights of traditional sailing boats and currachs taking part in the An Tostal festival in Salthill over the weekend, which was blessed with fine if breezy weather.

Twice the length of the Croke Park pitch, at 294 metres, the 15-deck Norwegian Star cost $400 million to build in 2001. It also visited Galway last year.

Its current cruise brought it from the southern English port of Southampton, visiting Belfast and Killybegs before arriving in Galway on Sunday, sailing off again at 8pm that evening, bound for Dingle, Dublin and Cobh, before arriving back in Southampton tomorrow (Saturday).

Several smaller cruise ships are among the 18 due in Galway over the coming months, including the World Explorer tomorrow, with a more modest capacity of 200 passengers, waited upon by a crew of 125.

The next big cruise liner to visit will be the CFC Renaissance, with a passenger capacity of 1,100, arriving on May 29 as part of an 11-day tour from Le Havre in France.

On July 6, the 2,000-plus passenger Ambience, part of the Ambassador Cruise Lines fleet, is due to call, with the 1,380-passenger Fred Olsen ship Bolette following on August 28.

Pictured: A currach race passes by the 2,400 passenger Norwegian Star cruise ship during An Tóstal Salthill Festival last weekend.  Photo: Joe O’Shaughnessy.