Bermuda got a taste of the cruise ship season to come this week with visits by six ships carrying more than 5,000 passengers.

The line-up of regular calling ships has yet to take shape. This week's visits were comprised mostly of incidental callers and regular callers re-positioning themselves for their New York-Bermuda schedules.

The most unusual of the incidental callers was the Royal Viking Queen , an exclusive vessel that is the sister ship of the renowned Seabourn vessels.

With a capacity for 212, Royal Viking Queen is designed to cater to the highest income travellers.

Meyer Agencies reported the ship carrying 133. She arrived in Hamilton on Monday from Florida and sailed later in the day for Ponta Delgada, Azores.

Another curiosity was Le Ponant . Harnett & Richardson said the 217-foot commercial three-master was enroute from the Caribbean to Azores. She has 32 cabins but only three passengers. Le Ponant was in port on Tuesday.

Other incidental callers included the Song of America and Sagafjord.

John S. Darrell reported the Song of America arriving in St. George's on Tuesday with 1,372 passengers. She shifted to Hamilton on Wednesday. Her repositioning cruise to New York from Antigua will resume on Friday.

Cunard's Sagafjord began her Bermuda stay in St. George's on Wednesday, shifting to Grassy Bay this morning and then to Front Street this evening after the departure of the Dreamward . She is carrying 547. The ship, which is sailing to Freeport from Charleston, has a capacity for 614.

Meyer Agencies reported the season-opening arrival on Thursday of Chandris's Horizon which is carrying about 1,500 passengers. The ship is passing through from St. Maarten to New York.

The Meridian was at Dockyard on Monday for her third visit of the season, this time with 973 passengers.

And Kloster's Dreamward is in the midst of a re-positioning cruise from Tortola today when she berths on Front Street for two days. She is carrying about 1,000.

In other docksider news, Meyer said the Esso tanker Iver Express is scheduled to arrive at the Esso Pier on Friday to deliver fuel. The 35,000 ton vessel is sailing up from the West Indies.

The Bermuda Islander was in port from Salem on Monday with 59 dry containers, four refrigerator containers, one boat, one excavator and a bundle of poles.

She sailed on Tuesday.

The Somers Isles is due in port on Friday.

Container Ship Management said the Ocean Eddy was in port on Monday with 127 dry containers, 37 refrigerator containers, six sailboats for International Race Week and two cars. The Oleander is scheduled to return possibly next week following drydocking in the US.

Meyer Agencies also said the cable ship Sir Eric Sharp was returning the Island this week for station duty following a trip to Baltimore where she delivered cable.

EYE CATCHING -- The sleek 440-foot, 200-passenger Royal Viking Queen stopped in Hamilton on Monday on her way from Florida to the Mediterranean. The two-year-old luxury liner features some of the most spacious and luxurious cabins in the industry and a "pull-out'' marina complete with swimming pool and water sports facility for calm days in port.