The numbers weren't high but the interest and curiosity was as the new Deco City Discoverer service kicked off in Napier yesterday.
The long awaited bus trips in Deco style from the National Aquarium park to Ahuriri began at 9am. It will run daily, on the hour, until 6pm.
Napier City Council Tourism Services manager Neil Fergus conceded the timing was not the best, with visitor numbers down and the school holidays still a week away, but the main priority was to get the service up and running. The buses had been delayed through the need to fix faults found after they had been shipped in from the US last October.
The early runs saw only seven or eight people embark, with some choosing to stay in Ahuriri for a time before returning to the aquarium depot later.
The numbers increased slightly during the day and for the time of year were "reasonable", Mr Fergus said.