Cruise tourism was the fastest growing segment of global tourism prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. Annual cruise ship visits to Akaroa Harbour, Aotearoa-New Zealand, more than quadrupled (~80/yr) following earthquake damage to nearby Lyttelton Port in 2011. Akaroa Harbour is a core habitat for endangered and endemic Hector’s dolphins, and a shift in their summer distribution away from the cruise anchorages was observed between 2011 and 2019. Implementation of COVID-19 restrictions in 2020 prevented cruise ship visits, but the industry returned in a limited capacity in 2022 (~10/yr). Experiencing various levels of cruise ship visitation, Akaroa Harbour is an ideal case-study for investigating their effects. We conducted 36 standardised dolphin surveys during COVID-19 restrictions from 2020-22, and 67 from 2023-24 after they had been lifted, resulting in 153 and 229 sightings respectively. Kernel density estimation was used to estimate distribution during each time period and make comparisons to previous results from surveys between 2011 and 2019. Distributions in 2020-22 and 2023-24 were both similar to during high cruise ship tourism. We conclude that the shift in distribution persisted after the disturbance was removed, indicating that the mechanisms driving the shift extend in time beyond the presence of cruise ships themselves.