TOURISTS look set to be able to cruise down the Ouse again as soon as early July.

City Cruises York has revealed it is planning to re-launch its boat trips along the river from July 4.

The move could be a boost for the city’s battered tourism economy as it tries to recover from the coronavirus crisis lockdown.

City Cruises, which won Visit York’s Visitor Attraction of the Year award for over 50,000 visitors in 2019, said on its website that its health and safety teams were working hard behind the scenes to ensure that when it is able to re-open, it does so with new health and safety measures in place.

“We are all about the fun but safety is our number one priority,” it said.

“For your own safety and the safety of others, you must follow the instructions given by our crew when embarking/ disembarking or on board any of our vessels.”

It said City Cruises York had been closed since March 20 and all sailings had been cancelled up to and including July 3.

“If you are booked to sail with us from the 4th of July 2020, you will soon be able to find out more about what our health and safety teams are doing behind the scenes to plan for re-opening," it said.

“We will continue to update this section as we publish these plans in full. This will include new measures for social distancing pre-boarding, and whilst on board, along with our cleaning procedures and hygiene facilities supplied on board.”