Take a tour of the mega-cruise ship Ovation of the Seas in this archive footage from 2016.
The largest cruise ship to visit Bay of Plenty will return to Tauranga Harbour this week.
The Ovation of the Seas was expected to berth at the Port of Tauranga for the second time at 9am on Friday.
Mount Mainstreet manager Ingrid Fleming said the crowds from the last visit were the biggest to have ever gathered on Pilot Bay.
"I was kind of flabbergasted with the amount of people. I wasn't actually surprised as everybody I spoke to knew about the Ovation of the Seas coming in ... but it was amazing to see," Ms Fleming said.
"It really was a momentous occasion for the Bay of Plenty to have the fourth largest ship come in to our port and for our port to be able to handle such a huge machine."
Megaship Ovation of the Seas as it arrives in the Port of Tauranga. The large ship will return to the Bay this week. Photo/George Novak
Ovation of the Seas is longer than three rugby fields, weighs 168,660 gross registered tonnes and carries 4762 passengers and1600 crew, and is the fourth-largest cruise ship in the world.
Ms Fleming said the weather conditions were so good last time many people stayed on after farewelling the ship, ordering fish and chips and picnicking on the beach.
Tourism Bay of Plenty head of marketing Katherin Low said it was absolutely thrilled to welcome the ship to Tauranga again.
"It was a joy to see so many of our community both welcoming and farewelling the Ovation on her maiden voyage to New Zealand and the Port of Tauranga," she said.
"Tourism Bay of Plenty were delighted to see heightened social media activity, particularly from our pool of talented local photographers who were out in force capturing the moment the ship glided past Mauao, waved on by hundreds of locals and visitors alike.
"The warm, hospitable nature of our community led to a heart-warming letter to the editor of the Bay of Plenty Times from a passenger on board the ship, highlighting how touched passengers were with the 'magnificent send-off'. It would be wonderful to see our community offer the same treatment when the Ovation of the Seas returns this Friday."
The Gourmet Night Markets will be held at Coronation Park from 5pm onwards, as it usually is each Friday.
When to see the Ovation of the Seas Ovation of the Seas is expected to arrive in the Port of Tauranga at 9am Friday, and is scheduled to leave at 8.45pm that day.
