Hundreds of people lined the shores of Yarmouth Harbour to welcome the Nova Star as the ferry made its first North American stop Tuesday morning.

“At that very moment, it was nothing less than surreal. That’s the only way I can describe it,” said Yarmouth Mayor Pam Mood after the Nova Star sailed into the harbour.

The 161-metre vessel arrived after a month-long, 16,000-kilometre journey from Singapore, where it was built.

The Nova Star will offer a cruise-ferry experience for passengers, making daily round-trip crossings between Yarmouth and Portland, Maine. It can carry 1,215 passengers and hold 336 automobiles.

The maiden voyage from Portland is set for May 15, arriving in Yarmouth the next morning, with crossings continuing until Nov. 2.

“This is a proud moment for our government. It’s a proud moment for our community and I think a proud moment for all Nova Scotians,” said Yarmouth MLA Zach Churchill.

Business owner Sandy Dennis said it felt like the region would never rebuild after the province cut funding for a previous ferry in December 2009.

“We lost a lot of business, we’ve lost a lot of youth, we’ve lost a lot of young people who have moved out of town,” said Dennis.

After four years without a ferry, officials and business owners say the Nova Star is a great way to restore the link between Nova Scotia and New England.

“I am so happy that we have a ferry,” said Dennis. “It’s going to help a lot of businesses – the ones that are still here and hopefully we will have new businesses from this.”

“There’s going to be a lot more jobs here for young people, like at the tourist bureau,” said student Chelsea Huby.

Nova Star Cruises has signed a seven-year lease agreement with the Town of Yarmouth for the use of its municipal ferry terminal.

Under its lease agreement, the company will be responsible for operational costs and pay Yarmouth an annual lease and usage fee, based on passenger numbers.

Nova Star Cruises says, based on its projected inaugural passenger count of about 100,000, it estimates that the lease agreement will generate more than $350,000 for Yarmouth this year.

The provincial government has committed $21 million over seven years to support the ferry service.

Ottawa announced it will spend up to $2.5 million to upgrade the ferry terminal and customs annex building.

“What would normally take over a year to put together was done in a matter of months, so we’re very proud of being able to see this come in and be able to start this service,” said Steve Durrell, Nova Star’s chief operating officer.

Public tours of the new ferry are scheduled for Wednesday.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Suzette Belliveau and The Canadian Press