All Sydney eastern suburbs beaches will be closed on Sunday, after the NSW police minister said beachgoers would be moved on if they didn't observe new public gathering and social distancing rules.

David Elliott spoke out after photos of throngs of beachgoers flocking to Bondi amid the COVID-19 pandemic drew swift condemnation.

"What we saw this morning here in Bondi Beach was the most irresponsible behaviour of individuals that we've seen so far," Mr Elliott told reporters on Saturday.

"We cannot have an active area of community activity where more than 500 people are gathered."

It came as NSW on Saturday recorded 83 new COVID-19 cases within 24 hours, with the state total reaching 436 while national cases exceeded 1000.

NSW Health's Dr Vicky Sheppeard said cases were rising each day, but the majority were still overseas returnees.

"The other large group of people that are being notified, making up those numbers, are close contacts of confirmed cases," Dr Sheppeard told reporters on Saturday.

"These people are already in quarantine, so there are relatively few people being notified that aren't part of those existing transmission chains."

Mr Elliott on Saturday said it was with a "significant level of disappointment" that the government had to move people from Bondi Beach.

In line with national regulations introduced to control the spread of the deadly virus, he said lifesavers will be able to close beaches and ask people to move on if a crowd exceeds 500.

Following Mr Elliott's comments, Waverley Council closed Bondi, Bronte and Tamarama beaches until further notice so it could plan ways to comply with the new restrictions.

"We have only just found out about this announcement, and need time to work through how it translates to the practical day to day," Waverley Mayor Paula Masselos said in a statement.

Randwick Council later followed suit, announcing it would close Maroubra, Coogee and Clovelly beaches on Sunday in response to the new restrictions.

Health Minister Brad Hazzard urged young people to take the COVID-19 threat seriously, saying "the problem is just over the horizon, on the basis of the numbers that we're now seeing".

"It's a serious matter. Save yourself and save your family," Mr Hazzard told reporters.

Meanwhile, the NSW government identified another four cruise ships affected by COVID-19, in addition to the Ruby Princess, which disembarked on Thursday.

As of Friday, three passengers and one crew member on the Ruby Princess had been confirmed to have coronavirus.

Of the four other ships, two infected passengers travelled on separate journeys of the Voyager of the Seas. Another two holidayed on the Ovation of the Seas and the Celebrity Solstice.

NSW Health in a statement said its risk assessments for cruise ships were "far in excess" of those in other jurisdictions.

All travellers from international cruises are required to self-quarantine for 14 days after they disembark, NSW Health said.

Meanwhile, the state government has signed a public health order to restrict movement to Lord Howe Island, so non-residents can't enter unless they're health and other essential service workers. Residents returning the island will be made to self quarantine for 14 days.

Australian Associated Press