The first cruise ship of the season has arrived in Invergordon – bringing thousands of German tourists to explore the Highlands.
The giant AIDASol, which departed Hamburg on Saturday, docked at the Cromarty Firth Port’s Quay West berth this morning.
Its 2,300 passengers are enjoying a 10-hour-stay in the Highlands before the giant ship sets sail again for Orkney.
The ship arrived in the Easter Ross town at about 9am, one hour ahead of schedule, and passengers were then taken to the town centre on shuttle buses.
After speaking to residents yesterday, The Press and Journal returned to the port today to hear from the season’s first visitors.
They said they were impressed with the beauty of the Highlands and the “stunning weather”.
German tourists arrive in Invergordon
Two of the first passengers to arrive were sisters Franziska Stuerwald, 31, and Rebecca Stuerwald, 33, from near Cologne.
They told The P&J their first impression of the Highlands was how “beautiful and green” everything is.
They said: “We’ve always wanted to visit Scotland, and we went to the travel agency and heard of this cruise ship, and we decided to go.
“We’ll visit the Culloden Battlefield, we’re really excited about that.”
Parents Alexander, 42, and Milena Bremerhaven, 36, were joined by their daughters Leonie, eight, and Felia, 11, who described the Highlands as “beautiful”.
Meanwhile, Fabian, 45, Katrin, 43 and Tom, 14, from Hannover, told The P&J they were “excited to see Loch Ness”.
They said: “It’s our holiday and we wanted to see something special.
“We’ll go to Loch Ness and Inverness”
Surprisingly good weather in the Highlands
Also from Hanover, Tania, 49, and Michael, 52, were delighted by the weather in the north, saying they “weren’t expecting the sunshine”.
A trio of friends visiting Scotland for the very first time were “amazed” by the Highland landscape.
Daniel Horne, 38 and his friends Matias and Julian, from Munster, travelled on the cruise with his friends, Matias and Julian.
He said: “We want to go to Loch Ness and from Loch Ness to Inverness.
“We’ve never been to Scotland, and we wanted to see it.”
Cruise ship passengers enjoy their visit to the ‘movie-like’ town of Invergordon
Dusseldorf couple Christoph, 55, and Uta, decided to head further north to see the waterfall at Falls of Shin.
They said: “We definitely love it, and the weather is stunning.
“We’re going to the Falls of Shin, and we’ll also have an afternoon tea.
“Loch Ness is just a stamp it’s like okay I’ve seen it. It’s water, we’ve got water in Germany too.”
Some other passengers decided to stay closer to the ship and spend their day in Invergordon.
Florian Hanke, 42, Jessica Hanke, 39 and their 12-year-old daughter, Caroline, were exited to spend their day at Invergordon Golf Club.
“It’s my first time playing golf in Scotland,” the dad shared.
Exploring the High Street
Gina, 29 and Maike, 40, from Magdeburg, were enjoying a walk on the High Street when they stopped to talk to The P&J.
They said: “The landscape is really nice. We’re going to see Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle, but first we’ll spend two hours in Invergordon.
“We’ll just walk around to see how it is.”
Meanwhile, Sandra, 55, Alex, 42, and Alisa, 16, from near Cologne, were planning to spend the whole day in the Easter Ross town.
They explained: “We don’t have plans to just go and look around. We want to get to know it.
“It’s beautiful – we like the small houses and the small shops, it’s like a town from the movies, beautiful.”
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