Disappointed tourism chiefs who discovered at the 11th hour a giant cruise ship carrying 700 passengers had snubbed Bristol in favour of quaint Dartmouth have called on port authorities to work with them to lure similar vessels to the city in the future.

Civic leaders in Bristol were poised to stage a major welcome party for the Regent Seven Seas Voyager and hundreds of mainly American passengers who were due to arrive at the city's Royal Portbury Dock on Sunday.

But just as thousands of pounds was being spent organising the gala welcoming bash, it emerged today that the ship, which would have been the first cruise liner in 10 years to sail up the Bristol Channel, is now being re-routed to call at the South Devon resort of Dartmouth, rather than the South West's biggest city.

As the Western Daily Press exclusively revealed last Saturday the cruise liner's planned visit to Bristol was being heralded by tourism chiefs as the dawn of a new era for the industry and was expected to bring a £60,000 boost to the economy.

The cancellation has meant a significant financial loss for Bristol Port Company

But yesterday, Regent Seven Seas Cruises said visiting Dartmouth instead of Bristol would provide a better experience for its passengers because of its "charm and character".

In a statement, the company said the primary objective for the captain of a Regent ship was the guests' experience.

"This is why Regent Seven Seas Cruises have chosen one alternative port call during (Bristol-born) Captain John McNeill's homecoming cruise," the statement said.

"Seven Seas Voyager will sail into historic Dartmouth, home of the Britannia Royal Naval College on September 7, instead of her originally-planned call into Bristol.

"Although Bristol is a city of culture and famous for the ss Great Britain, on this cruise, Regent felt that the picturesque fishing town of Dartmouth has the intimate charm and character guests of the Home Coming Cruise would appreciate.

"This choice has been made to ensure all the guests onboard Seven Seas Voyager are able to appreciate the best out of each port.

"Regent thanks the ports of Bristol and Dartmouth for their help and understanding with this decision and look forward to visiting them again in the future."

Tourism organisation Destination South West said while it was disappointed Bristol was losing out after the hard work and effort its Destination Bristol arm had put into securing the planned stop at Royal Portbury Dock, it was relieved an alternative stop in the South West had been chosen rather than losing out to another stop elsewhere in England or Ireland.

Destination South West's director of cruise operations, Bob Harrison, said he now hoped bosses at Royal Portbury Dock would strengthen its relationship with the organisation so they could work together to bring in similar business to Bristol in the future.

Mr Harrison said yesterday: "We are very, very disappointed given the hard work we've put in to get the ship to come to Bristol.

"But we have to move on and the fact the ship is calling at another South West port and the tours around the region are still available to passengers, is surely a plus for all of us.

"Unfortunately, (Royal Portbury Dock) is not a part of our cruise ship network at the moment so perhaps now is the time for Bristol to join.

"It's a successful network which benefits other parts of the country and we'd dearly love people at Bristol to be a part of that.

"I'd love Bristol to come and join us but it's up to the bosses at Royal Portbury Dock and people in the city of Bristol to do that. We've been up to see them many times so hopefully something can be done."

However, the Bristol Port Company, which runs Royal Portbury Docks, insisted yesterday it was already working closely with Destination Bristol, the city council and other partners to bring cruise liner business to the city.

A spokesman said: "We are very happy when we told Destination Bristol in May 2007 that this ship was coming (to Bristol).

"The cancellation has meant a significant financial loss for the Port and for many others in the Bristol area.

"Like all of those who have worked together to see this visit was a success, we're very disappointed.

"We're very happy with the close working relationship we've been developing with Destination Bristol, Bristol City Council and others over the last couple of years in relation to cruise (ship) visits, and we look forward to working closely with them in the future."

Both the Bristol Port Company and Mr Harrison expressed disappointment at being given just five days' notice of the cancellation from Regent Seven Seas.

Mr Harrison said: "It's happened before that we've had to cancel stops or change plans at the 11th hour because of the weather so we just have to accept this and move on."

John Hallett, director of Destination Bristol, said: "This was meant to be a watershed for us and the fact the first (liner) coming in for a decade has been subject to an itinerary change is very, very disappointing indeed.

"I suspect there were a range of factors, including the time and, I suspect, some economic ones, which were impacting on its ability to dock at Bristol.

"But there are a number of inquiries with cruise companies in the pipeline and we will continue to carry on and try and attract more cruise liners to Bristol."

Passengers on board will still be given the opportunity to enjoy day trips into the heartland of the West Country – from the Georgian splendour of Bath, to Wiltshire's ancient Stonehenge site after the ship docks in Dartmouth.