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Hundreds of passengers on a cruise ship arriving at the Port of Melbourne on Monday evening are expected to set foot on dry land for the first time in more than a week after a build-up of marine creatures and plants was cleaned off its hull.
- The Viking Orion was due to dock in Christchurch, Dunedin, Hobart and Adelaide after departing Wellington
- It was denied permission due to a build-up of "biofoul" on its hull, with passengers stuck on board
- The vessel pulled into the Port of Melbourne on Monday evening after being cleaned by divers off the SA coast
The Viking Orion, a 227-metre cruise ship which can carry up to 930 passengers, was cleaned by divers on Sunday about 12 nautical miles (22 kilometres) off the coast of the South Australian town of Victor Harbor.
The luxury vessel, which is only four years old, hadn't docked since casting off from Wellington in New Zealand on Boxing Day, according to ship-tracking website VesselFinder.com.
It was reportedly denied permission to dock in Christchurch, Dunedin and Hobart before setting course for Adelaide.
Before it could arrive there, Australia's National Maritime Coordination Centre established that the ship had small amounts of biofoul — marine microorganisms, plants, algae, or small animals — on its hull.
Authorities then ordered the Viking Orion's agent to have its hull cleaned before entering Australian waters.
"The vessel is required to undergo hull cleaning to remove the biofoul and prevent potentially harmful marine organisms being transported by the vessel," the federal fisheries department said in a statement over the weekend.
"Professional divers were engaged directly by the vessel line/agent to clean the hull while at anchor outside Australian waters.
"The management of biofoul is a common practice for all arriving international vessels."
Passengers on board the ship have been airing their complaints on social media over the course of the voyage, with one writing on Twitter: "After 2 years of waiting, Viking disappoints. Great food but poor ship hygiene. Buyer beware."
"I have cried repeatedly for both the significant financial hit after saving for 2 years and the loss of memories and experiences with my dad," wrote another.
The ship's master, Marko Snajdar, wrote a letter to passengers on Friday apologising for the situation.
"We acknowledge that the current cruise falls short of your expectations," he wrote.
"Viking is interested in keeping you as lifetime travellers, and we hope to see you under less exceptional circumstances on one of our ships in the future."
A Viking representative said the company was "working directly with guests on compensation for the impact to their voyage".
ABC/AAP