Taipei, Aug. 30 (CNA) Asia's biggest luxury cruise ship, Voyager of the Seas, is scheduled to dock at Keelung Port in northern Taiwan Friday along with various other cruise ships, which will set a record for daily cruise ship traffic in Taiwan's seaports, according to a transport official.

The ship, operated by the U.S.-based Royal Caribbean Cruises, will bring 1,600 passengers to Keelung from Shanghai, said Keelung Port Vice Manager Wei Shuo-liang.

The 140,000-ton ship will later take 3,800 local tourists to Fukuoka in Japan and Jeju Island in South Korea, Wei said.

Since the port will also host other cruise liners, including the SuperStar Aquarius, some 10,000 tourists will arrive in the country through the port, making it Keelung's busiest day, he said.

"It will also set a record high for daily cruise traffic in all ports in Taiwan," he added.

Royal Caribbean's Taipei Office said earlier this year that the plan for a port call at Keelung signals the liner's determination to make inroads into the Asia market.

The cruise company is also evaluating the possibility of making Keelung its home port in the Asia region, the office said.

Keelung Port, which handles the heaviest cruise ship traffic among all ports in Taiwan, recorded over 461,000 visits by cruise ship passengers in 2011, a 2.6 percent increase from the previous year.

(By Lee Hsin-Yin)
ENDITEM/J