Minerva II docked at the John Fernandes Wharf, Port Georgetown, at 06:45 hrs with 550 tourists, most of them British who later went off on guided tours of the capital City and local tourist sites in the hinterland.

Sixty of these people visited Kaieteur Falls, 100 went to Timberhead Resort in the Upper Demerara River, 35 traveled to Baganara Resort and 55 went to Shanklands Resort in the Essequibo River. Some 250 of them toured the capital City.

This number of visitors in a single day accounts for 22 per cent of the number of foreign visitors coming to Guyana in one year, tourism officials has said.

Wilderness Explorers was partly responsible for organizing the cruise coming to Guyana and according to its Director, Mr. Shawn McGrath, with whom the Chronicle spoke at noon yesterday, there were early indications that things had been going very well.

"If the day goes off with out a hitch as it so far seem to be doing, then the prospects would be exceptionally well for more and more passengers and bigger cruise ships coming to Georgetown", he commented.

McGrath said of the cruise ships that came into Port Georgetown before, the Minerva II is bigger than all of them combined.

Swan's Hellenic Discovery Cruises is one of the bigger players in the tourist cruise industry.

The cruise ship Captain Ian Sabet who spoke with the media personnel aboard the vessel said all immigration facilities and the welcoming side of things worked very well for their arrival. Passengers returning to the vessel were reportedly very happy, he said. "It is unusual to go into some ports and be welcomed the way we have been here", he commented.

Tourism Minister Mr. Manzoor, who went aboard the ship and was briefed by the Captain on his passengers reaction to the visit said Guyana would now have to adapt what is found at other cruise destinations. This would mean changing certain aspects of the Laws of Guyana to facilitate such tourism ventures.