Visit by replica 17th Century Spanish galleon

A replica 17th Century Spanish ship has arrived in Manx waters.

Operated by Fundación Nao Victoria, Galéon Andalucía is 160ft (48m) long, weighs about 500 tonnes, and serves as a floating museum.

Modelled on ships that were primarily Spanish and used in long trade routes or maritime discovery expeditions during the period, the replica galleon was built in 2009.

The vessel is set to be in Douglas Harbour until Monday, however tidal conditions saw Wednesday's booked visits called off on safety grounds, with Thursday's opening postponed.

The ship's operators said the original opening times of 10:00 to 20:30 BST have been reduce to 16:30 to 20:00, with a schedule for the bank holiday weekend set to be confirmed on Friday.

They said the reduced opening times were down to "unforeseen logistical issues".

Tickets for Wednesday or earlier on Thursday could be used for later visits during the ship's stay, or would be refunded, operators said.

However, given the reduced timeframe, purchasing new tickets was "not recommended", they added.

The armed trade ships journeyed between Spain, America and the Philippines in fleets between the 15th and 17th centuries

The full size replica vessel, which tours the globe, took four years and 10 months to create, including a 16-month construct period.

The vessel has a number of interactive exhibits, videos and projections on board.

The ship is next due to set sail for Whitehaven.

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