Fred Olsen ship Balmoral, which was hit by a vomiting bug last week, has returned to Dover a day early to undergo a deep clean before departing on its next cruise.

The norovirus struck passengers onboard the ship early last week as it sailed around the Scottish islands. It had been due to call at Guernsey in the Channel Islands on Sunday but instead sailed directly from Falmouth to Dover to finish the cruise a day early. 

Fred Olsen made the decision to give it more time to clean the ship before it departs tonight (Monday) on a 12-night Baltic cruise.

Around 100 passengers and several crew members were affected by the virus which is believed to have come from a passenger who fell ill shortly after the cruise left Dover on September 5. Infected passengers were confined to their cabins during the cruise.

Balmoral had been carrying 1,200 passengers and 540 crew on a nine-night cruise around the UK. The ship was originally due to finish the trip at Dover today.