Celebrity Solstice Opens Eden’s 2026-27 Cruise Season
At Snug Cove, alongside berthing lets passengers walk ashore without tenders, while Eden Welcome Centre offers tour bookings and onward transport links.
Celebrity Solstice opened Eden’s 2026-27 cruise season with 3,000 passengers on its maiden visit to the New South Wales Far South Coast port. It is the first of 25 cruise ships scheduled to visit during the season, which runs through April 2027.
The opening follows a 2024-25 season in which cruise activity generated more than A$14.3 million for the local economy. Of the 52,660 passengers who visited that season, more than 85 per cent went ashore to explore Eden and the Sapphire Coast.
The Port Authority of NSW, Bega Valley Shire Council and Eden Tourism are working together to attract additional cruise visits. The partners are also developing tourism opportunities for businesses across the region.
“Supporting the growth of trade and tourism across NSW, including in our regional port communities, is a key focus for us,” said John McKenna, chief executive officer of the Port Authority of NSW.
Cruise Eden manager Debbie Meers said cruise visits bring business to market traders, local shops, cafes and tour operators. Arriving passengers are also supported by local volunteers who serve as guides and welcome ambassadors, a group Eden has developed over the past 20 years.
Snug Cove’s Eden Cruise Wharf mainly handles transit calls. Alongside berthing allows passengers to walk ashore without using tenders. The nearby Eden Welcome Centre, which opened in 2022, provides visitor information and a tour-booking desk, with bus bays and taxi pick-up areas supporting onward transport. Market stalls, regional products and gallery exhibitions may also be available at the centre on cruise days.
“Cruising in Eden started 21 years ago with one ship,” McKenna said, adding that annual arrivals now bring tens of thousands of visitors to the town and surrounding coast.
Bega Valley Shire Mayor Russell Fitzpatrick welcomed the visits. “Cruise presents the opportunity to showcase our region to thousands of visitors and encourage them to come back to explore more of the Sapphire Coast,” he said.
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