A liner of Star Cruises, the largest cruise line in the Asia-Pacific region, arrived in Keelung Harbor Friday to begin its seasonal cruise service connecting the northern Taiwan port city and Japan's Ryukyu Islands. The vessel, the SuperStar Libra was scheduled to depart from Keelung at 10 p.m. Friday with 1,400 passengers on board for Japan's Yonaguni Island. The four-day cruise will make port calls at several destinations in the Ryukyu Island chain, including Ishigaki Island, said Lu Kuan-chun, president of Star Cruises' Taiwan operations. Yonaguni Island is the westernmost island of Japan and the last of the Ryukyu Island chain, and it lies 108 kilometers east of Taiwan's east coast. The SuperStar Libra, which has 740 cabins, is scheduled to operate 74 tours between Keelung and the Ryukyu Islands from now until Oct. 24, Lu said. Keelung Harbor Bureau authorities welcomed the start of the cruise season. Last year, the SuperStar Libra served 178,208 passengers who boarded the ship in Keelung, bureau officials said. The bureau forecast that over 400,000 cruise passengers, including passengers taking cruises to the Ryukyu Islands aboard the SuperStar Libra, will pass through Keelung in 2010, far exceeding the total at other ports in Taiwan. Keelung has long been the top destination of foreign cruises visiting Taiwan because of its proximity to Taipei. 