What the 73-year-old from the United States wouldn’t have expected was the extravagant welcome he received upon arrival at Wollongong’s Lang Park on Sunday.

Mr Burnett was one of first passengers from the Radiance of the Seas cruise ship to arrive at the park via a shuttle bus, just before 8.30am.

He was also the first international cruise passenger to be welcomed to Wollongong by the city’s lord mayor Gordon Bradbery

Dozens of volunteers lined the footpath, clapping and cheering, as busloads of passengers made their way into a festival-like welcome event in the park.

Mr Burnett – who hails from Goldsboro, North Carolina – was amazed by the reception he received. 

“Everybody seems to be very friendly and that is good news,” he told the Mercury.

“The world seems to be getting all angry towards one another more and more, but to see people acting like they’re doing today [Sunday], it makes you know that there’s still some hope and the good people outweigh the bad.” 

Mr Burnett was part of a group of 14 people from the US aboard the cruise.

“It’s been a long time getting here. I’ve always wanted to come to Australia,” he said.

“It’s just amazing to be almost halfway around the world.”

After spending time at the welcome event, the group headed on a day tour that included a visit to the Nan Tien Temple. 

The event at Lang Park provided passengers a one-stop snapshot of the plethora of activities on offer across the Illawarra.

Passengers who hadn’t pre-booked excursions were bussed to the park precinct, where they could explore more than 60 stores stalls – from art and craft to food, wine and entertainment.

Annie Peacock, from Horsley, was one of about 400 volunteers who helped roll out the welcome mat for the visitors. 

“It was really special. All the people had a big smile on their face,” Ms Peacock said.

“They probably wondered what on earth was going on at first. I think they were a bit taken aback … but on a whole it was just a fantastic feel.”

Earlier, the Royal Carribean cruise liner docked at Port Kembla amid much fanfare.

Doris Shields and Dennis McHugh travelled from Bowral to watch the the Radiance of the Seas arrive. 

Mr McHugh, 76, has worked on cargo ships at sea and said he “could never understand why Wollongong never took a cruise ship”.

“It’s such a central area; you’ve got the Southern Highlands, there’s so many places you can go from here tour-wise and I think for the economy of Wollongong it should have happened a long time ago,” he said.  

Wollongong’s Flagstaff Hill and Lang Park precincts were abuzz with activity on Sunday, as hundreds gathered to catch a glimpse of Radiance of the Seas.

The cruise liner’s arrival in the city drew large early-morning crowds to the beach-side vantage points.

The ship was visible on the horizon shortly after 6am, albeit somewhat masked by lingering cloud cover, and grew larger as it approached. 

As the sun broke through, dozens of people watched from the Ted Tobin observation deck as Radiance made a beeline for Port Kembla.

John La Riva, from Griffith, was among them. 

“It’s a bit of history for Wollongong, to see the first cruise ship sail into Port Kembla. It’s pretty exciting,” Mr La Riva said. 

Wollongong’s Michael Campbell was also upbeat.  

“It appears Wollongong’s going all out to make these people feel welcome,” he said.

“[I’m] hoping the ship cruising lines will take this on board and produce many more of these events.”