Two large cruise ships were in port in St. John's Harbour on Saturday, bringing in more than 5,000 passengers and at least 1,200 crew members.

The Emerald Princess made an unexpected stop in the harbour, after bad weather forced the vessel to cancel a visit to Greenland.

The Emerald Princess is 20 storeys high. (CBC)

The ship was carrying over 3,000 passengers and 1,200 crew.

Meanwhile, the Artania was also in port, carrying close to 2,000 people on a tour of the Atlantic provinces.

The city estimates each person who comes in generates $100 of income.

"My wife is doing the retail therapy and supporting your economy," said Randy Webster, a former banker from Barbados.

Mayor Dennis O'Keefe was on the Princess Saturday to welcome it to port.

"We've gone from being an unknown quantity to being on a first-name basis with the main cruise lines and the executives of those cruise lines," said O'Keefe.

He says hosting ships costs the city about $150,000 a year, but brings in millions in revenues.

One of the pools on board the Emerald Princess. (CBC)

"It's money wisely spent. And it has to be spent in order to bring these ships here. If we didn't go out and market and promote, they wouldn't come."

The profits from visiting cruise ships aren't just from souvenir sales; ships also spend money on supplies and security in port.

Bling on board

Some of the ships that come to St. John's can feel like a small city on board. At 20 storeys high, the Emerald Princess almost dwarfs downtown St. John's.

It has five restaurants, four swimming pools, a gym and a spa.

"For 16 days, all I do is eat and sleep, and sit on my butt," said Alan Chin, a businessman from Los Angeles.