The world’s largest container ship arrives at the Port of Felixstowe today - with hundreds of people expected at viewing points to witness the occasion.

The CSCL Globe arrives on her first visit to Europe at 1pm to make her only UK call at the Port of Felixstowe.

Guests from across the shipping industry and community will then be invited to lunch on the quayside and enjoy a VIP trip round the vessel on Thursday.

A few years back, the port went through a succession of welcomes for vessels billed as the largest on the high seas, each one just a smidge bigger than the last.

But the CSCL Globe is truly huge – a behemoth of the waves, a new class of vessel able to carry a staggering 19,000 standard-sized shipping containers, even more than the Maersk Triple-E fleet.

The China Shipping Container Lines vessel – built by Hyundai Heavy Industries in a shipyard in Ulsan, South Korea, and launched last November – is as big as four football pitches.

Paul Davey, head of corporate affairs at Hutchison Ports (UK) Limited, which owns the Port of Felixstowe, said fully-laden, the 400-metre long CSCL Globe could carry 156 million pairs of shoes, or 300m tablet computers, or 900m tins of beans.

He said: “The cargo will include a huge range of consumer goods including food, drink, clothing, electrical goods and furniture as well as a vast array of other goods destined for the UK high street.

“The arrival of this ship represents a first for the UK.

“It is important economically, the direct call recognises the scale of the UK economy, and economies-of-scale provide the most efficient way to get UK exports to important Asian markets.”

While the vessel’s visit is celebrated tomorrow, it is expected to sail into Harwich Harbour, going alongside at Berths 8&9 after its journey from Port Kelang today at 1pm.