THE world’s largest commercial sailing ship, the Golden Horizon, could visit Weymouth Bay in June.

Talks are being held to bring the unusual cruise liner to the Dorset resort with plans to anchor in the Bay and ferry around 200 passengers ashore by tender.

Weymouth harbourmaster Jamie Joyce has confirmed that talks are going ahead with the company which operates the vessel, although he says that an agreement has yet to be concluded and may yet change in the light of Covid restrictions.

“This is a welcome boost to tourism for us,” said Mr Joyce, “It’s a very luxurious vessel,” he told Wednesday's Dorset Council harbours committee.

He said that the cruise company itself would produce a passage plan for off-loading passengers which would need to be agreed by the harbourmaster’s team.

The SV Golden Horizon is listed as a steel-hulled five-masted fully rigged tall ship, built in Croatia, based on the France II, a French windjammer built in 1911.

She is on charter to Tradewind Voyages and is expected to hold her first cruises of the season with the company from May this year.