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Unflappable Aussie Tourists Won't Be Sunk By Ship's Gastro Outbreak

Unflappable Aussie Tourists Won't Be Sunk By Ship's Gastro Outbreak
Emily Verdouw

A dream cruise has turned into a floating hospital ship after 182 travellers were stricken with gastroenteritis, but in stoic Australian fashion, disembarking passengers have taken the outbreak in their stride.

Royal Caribbean cruises ship Explorer of the Seas arrived in port in Sydney on Wednesay, with medics forced to notify NSW Health authorities of the extent of the stomach flu contamination on board.

But passengers told The Huffington Post Australia the outbreak won't blow out their holiday plans.

“It’s pretty scary, but it will be fine," said one woman passenger.

A man travelling with his wife and children said staff moved quickly to disinfect the ship soon after the illness was detected.

"They couldn’t have done it better. It was a great experience, we did it for two weeks, there is five in our family and it was wonderful," he said.

Other passengers said the ships corridors were flooded with medics going in and out of rooms. The spreading illness was made worse by rough conditions at sea.

"Just about everybody was sick," one of the passengers told 9NEWS.

Another passenger who fell ill said they initially isolated themselves in their cabin, but they began feeling better after visiting on-board medics.

"We went to the medical and once they gave us the injection and tablets we were fine and enjoyed the rest of the cruise," the passenger said.

Nonetheless, authorities were cautious when the ship docked at 6am on Wednesday, with ambulance crews on standby at the Overseas Passenger Terminal at The Rocks.

No passengers required hospital treatment. NSW Health was informed due to the extent of the viral outbreak.

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