SAN FRANCISCO, March 8 (Xinhua) -- A U.S. cruise ship linked to a cluster of COVID-19 cases will dock on Monday in Oakland, a California port near its original destination San Francisco, media reports said.

The ship Grand Princess with more than 3,500 people aboard had been idling in waters off California after being forbidden to return to San Francisco over its link tracked to a cluster of cases of COVID-19, including at least one death.

On Wednesday, the ship, back from Hawaii, was held at sea off San Francisco for checking virus infections, and on Friday, U.S. authorities said that 21 crew members and passengers aboard the vessel on a previous voyage had tested positive for the novel coronavirus.

Media reports cited the ship's owner Carnival Corp as saying that its information about the Grand Princess's destination came from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Passengers were also reported to be informed of the decision on their disembarkment by the captain, as well as of part of the follow-up quarantine and hospitalization arrangements for crew members and U.S. passengers in different conditions.

The passengers' disembarkment is expected to take several days, according to the reports.