Waiting on shore for 1500 European and American passengers and crew would be 20 tourist coaches to ferry them to Canberra, wineries, Mogo Zoo, shops and Montague Island, where they'd off-load hundreds of thousands of dollars in trade.

But with less than 48 hours remaining until the Holland American Line's world cruiser's arrival, its Seattle headquarters cancelled the visit.

Eurobodalla Tourism marketing manager John Pugsley said it was extremely disappointing for the businesses of Batemans Bay, tourism operators, the community and Eurobodalla Tourism and council, who had been working hard for 12 months to ensure the passengers and crew would be warmly welcomed. Risk management, logistics planning, an indigenous welcoming group, school choirs and volunteers trained in catering for international tourists were at the ready.

''We can drown in our tears or we can look forward, and I am looking forward to getting to the bottom of it, to solve the issues and make sure that when we have them [cruise ships] in the next season, which starts in November, we actually do deliver and everything comes through,'' Mr Pugsley said.

A spokeswoman for the MS Volendam said the reason was ''operational''.

For more on this story, see the print edition of today's Canberra Times.