Western Australia has instituted a strict crackdown on cruise ships docking at the port of Fremantle in a bid to contain the spreading coronavirus outbreak.

Australians will be allowed to disembark, but they will then be taken to Rottnest Island where they will spend 14 days in quarantine.

So what awaits them on the former beach holiday hotspot?

From holiday haven to quarantine zone

There are three ships near the WA coast right now, but only one — the Vasco da Gama — is carrying Australians.

The Vasco da Gama cruise ship is due to arrive at Fremantle Port on Friday. ( ABC News: Tom Fedorowytsch )

It is due to arrive at Fremantle Port on Friday, and it is carrying 800 Australians — including 200 West Australians.

Those 800 people will be shipped to Rottnest Island, a holiday hotspot that sits just off the coast of Perth, about 20 kilometres west of Fremantle.

The famous Bathurst lighthouse on Rottnest Island is usually a drawcard for tourists. ( ABC Open contributor Scott Slawinski )

The island itself is about 19-square-kilometres and is famed for white sandy beaches, crystal-clear blue water and its population of selfie-loving marsupials called quokkas.

This friendly little quokka enjoys its snack on Rottnest Island, Western Australia. ( ABC Open contributor glanzpunkt )

It is accessed by ferry from Perth and Fremantle, and by private boat owners who can rent moorings off the island.

Posing for selfies with Rottnest Island's native marsupials is a popular pastime for tourists in regular times. ( Supplied: Facebook )

In the past two days all visitors have been ordered off the island, so it could be prepared as a potential quarantine site.

Rottnest Island saw close to 800,000 tourists visit in the 2018/19 financial year. ( ABC News: Elicia Kennedy )

WA Premier Mark McGowan said at the time preparing Rottnest as a potential quarantine site sounded almost "ridiculous" to him.

"But I'm so pleased we made that decision a couple of days ago, because we now need it," he said.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 1 minute 16 seconds 1 m 16 s WA Premier says two cruise ships are being prevented from docking in Fremantle

Ferries to transport passengers to Rottnest

Australian passengers will be transferred in a "controlled manner" to ferries belonging to the three companies that usually service the island at Fremantle Port.

It is expected there will be a number of trips taken to transfer the passengers to the island to allow for appropriate physical distancing on the ferries and any cleaning required between journeys.

Rottnest Express Ferry usually ferries tourists to Rottnest Island. ( Supplied: TripAdvisor )

Where will they be staying?

On the island they will be housed in the existing, and recently vacated, accommodation, which includes a hostel, bungalows, cabins and dormitories.

Hotel Rottnest will not be used because a revamp is still underway.

Rottnest Island has a range of accommodation options, including "glamping" tents. ( ABC News: West Matteeussen )

Some of the historic buildings on the island, like Vincent Way, date from the 1840s. ( 720 ABC Perth: Emma Wynne )

There are 699 individual rooms on Rottnest, but many of the 800 passengers will be couples who can be accommodated together.

Some of the historic cottages have up to eight beds in one house with shared kitchen and toilet facilities.

Rottnest offers premium accommodation like this eight-person heritage cottage. ( Supplied: Rottnest Island Authority )

There are three commercial kitchens on the island, which will be used to prepare meals for the passengers. One of the kitchens alone capable for preparing 700 meals in one sitting.

What is the staffing and medical equipment on the island?

The WA Government says current staffing levels on the island will be sufficient to cater for the passengers, but state and commonwealth emergency services personnel would also be made available.

All passengers will be assessed by medical staff and triaged if needed.

The island has a small airstrip and is regularly serviced by helicopters so has ample capacity to facilitate short medical evacuation flights to Perth hospitals.

Medical flights in helicopters and light aircraft can leave from Rottnest Island airstrip. ( Wikimedia Commons: Djanga )

The small nursing quarters on the island has been fitted out with two isolation units.

But WA Tourism Minister Paul Papalia said there was no indication that anyone onboard the Vasco da Gama was unwell.

"The intention is that we take people out there who are well, they isolate for 14 days, hopefully they come off at the end of that time and they can go back home," he said.

Who is in charge on the island?

The operation will be run by the WA Government with input from the Commonwealth, but Police Commissioner Chris Dawson did not rule out asking for military assistance should it be needed.

Some of the cottages look directly out over the ocean. ( ABC News: West Matteeussen )

Funding for the exercise will be drawn from the broader budget for fighting COVID-19 and it was expected the Commonwealth would provide at least half the cost.

The island will be strictly out of bounds for the public and, while it is not expected to be necessary, police will move on anyone trying to reach Rottnest in private vessels.

Why did these cruise ships come here?

Fremantle was always the scheduled final port of call for the Vasco da Gama cruise ship.

WA COVID-19 snapshot Confirmed cases so far: 665

Confirmed cases so far: 665 Recovered: 650

Recovered: 650 Deaths: 9

Deaths: 9 Total tests: 405,246 Latest information from the WA Health Department





The passengers and crew on board the ship who are foreigners, including 109 New Zealanders and 33 people from the United Kingdom, will be forced to remain aboard the vessel until arrangements have been made to fly them directly out of the country.

Unless they need urgent medical attention to survive, they will not be allowed to disembark other than to go directly to the international airport, under the WA Government's rules.

Consultations with the New Zealand Government are underway to arrange for a flight to take their citizens home safely as soon as possible, the WA Government has said.

Will we help foreign nationals on other boats who are sick?

Mark McGowan has said the passengers and crew on two other ships off the coast of WA, none of whom are Australian, would not be allowed to disembark at Fremantle.

"Those two ships need to leave and go home," he said.

"The Magnifica and Artania both need to leave and go back to their port of origin and leave as soon as possible."

"No one will be allowed to disembark unless a passenger is in a life-threatening emergency, where they will receive medical attention."

The Magnifica sparked a large-scale response on Monday when it told the Australian Border Force it was headed for Fremantle Port with 250 unwell passengers on board.

The MSC Magnifica cruise is circling the WA coast after being told it would be denied access to its next planned stop in Dubai. ( ABC News: Fiona Blackwood )

The ship later clarified it would only be refuelling in Fremantle before leaving for Dubai and no-one would disembark.

However, the ship has now reportedly been denied access to a port in Dubai and has been left circling off the WA coast.

Another ship, the Artania, arrived off Fremantle about 2:00am on Wednesday to refuel before it too was due to leave.

The Artania cruise ship has anchored off the WA coast after requesting assistance for the sick. ( ABC News: Rob Koenig-Luck )

But it unexpectedly reported that it had unwell passengers and crew on board and requested assistance.

The ship is reporting about 25 passengers and crew are suffering from respiratory symptoms, after a passenger who disembarked at an earlier stop tested positive for COVID-19.

The Artania was ordered to anchor off the coast and WA Health Department officials have boarded to conduct medical tests.

The results of those are expected to be available late on Wednesday.

What if the ships try to dock?

The Premier indicated Commonwealth support might be requested to prevent those ships from entering Fremantle Port.

That support could include stationing personnel at the Port if the Artania needs to refuel, to prevent it from declaring an emergency and trying to evacuate everyone from the ship.

Mr McGowan acknowledged there was a concern that the masters of either of those ships might refuse to leave, requiring a response similar to when SAS boarded the Norwegian freighter, the Tampa, in 2001.