The £400m, 151,000 tonne vessel has a crew of 1,253 and, at 1,132 ft, is 147ft longer than the Eiffel Tower is tall.

The Queen Elizabeth carries about 600 fewer people.

The news comes as it was revealed that talks are “going well” with Peel Ports over a business plan to turn Liverpool into an international cruise hub.

City leaders want to more than treble the number of cruise ships using the Pier Head’s Cruise Liner Terminal from 15 to 50 a year. This would see the city’s share of the UK cruise market rise from 2% to 7% within five to 10 years.

The research will also examine how the council could lease the £20m terminal to a private operator and crucially provide a “turnaround” facility from the Pier Head, including baggage handling and customs.

Among the economic benefits is the greater spending of turnaround passengers (£253 a day) compared with day passengers (£70 a day).

This year’s cruise season kicks off on May 22 with the arrival of the Ocean Nova.

A total of 17 vessels will call in this year, including Cunard’s third star liner the Queen Victoria on July 26.