New Zealand's largest cruise ship Voyager of the Seas docked in Tauranga yesterday fresh from a multimillion-dollar makeover that included a new FlowRider surf machine - the first of its kind to visit the country.
The 3400 passengers spent a day in Tauranga before heading off to Napier as part of an 11-night New Zealand cruise. The ship will also stop at Wellington and Picton before returning to Sydney on Saturday.
When the Bay of Plenty Times was taken aboard for a tour, the Voyager of the Seas loomed over the cruise ship terminal at Salisbury Wharf.
The ship was spotlessly clean, with cleaning crews seen in every corner and hand sanitiser stations set up outside eating areas.
The first place the Bay of Plenty Times visited was the Royal Promenade, a strip-mall filled with boutique shops, cafes and an English pub.
The Sapphire Dining Room occupies three floors with a giant crystal chandelier hanging in the middle.
A large crystal chandelier graces the main dining hall and the casino in the centre of the ship is filled with flashing lights and glamour.
The FlowRider, which comprises jets shooting water up a ramp to create waves, was installed on the mega-liner in October and has been up and running for almost a month.
The machine is on an outside deck near the full-length basketball court and is surrounded by benches and a glass wall so the ocean is still visible.
On finer days than yesterday, observers line the benches and get splashed by water as their friends attempt to stay on the wave.
Riders can choose to try and stand up on a special surfboard or take the easier route of lying on a boogie board.
I like the fun of it. Riding whenever you can is extremely addictive.
To install the FlowRider, workers had to use a crane to pull away a section of the ship "just like Lego", then replace it with the surf machine, Royal Caribbean sports manager Eddy Sabatie said.
It is the first time a FlowRider machine has visited New Zealand and Mr Sabatie, a certified FlowRider instructor, said people of all ages had been lining up to give it a go.
"It's going every day. On the port days we try to open it first thing in the morning and again in the afternoon. When we're at sea, it can be open from eight in the morning to five or six at night. Of course, that also depends on the weather."
Mr Sabatie has worked on other Royal Caribbean ships featuring a machine and is an experienced FlowRider. He has instructed seven other crew members on how to manage the surf - something they are still learning.
Glass elevators allow views over the different decks.
"I like the fun of it. Riding whenever you can is extremely addictive. If the weather is not nice, if you have the time you can go outside and go practise.
"It's a lot of fun when you get used to standing up. You can learn boogie boarding straight away but standing up is much harder. It's different to surfing but if you have that balance it helps."
Mr Sabatie has witnessed many funny moments when people have been "wiped out", including several cheeky incidents when people's swimwear has been yanked off by the pressure of the waves.
"Every day you see some bottoms - and it's not always pretty," he joked.
The FlowRider is one of numerous additions and renovations as part of the Voyager of the Seas' US$80 million ($103 million) makeover.
As well as the surf machine, the Voyager of the Seas has an ice-skating rink, a theatre, numerous specialty restaurants and bars, a nightclub, and an area for children and teenagers.
