M/S Silja Symphony passing through the Kustaanmiekka strait outside Helsinki, Finland on its route to Stockholm, Sweden via Mariehamn.

The Baltic Sea is crossed by several cruiseferry lines. Some important shipping companies are Viking Line, Silja Line, Tallink and Stena Line. Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1024x768, 584 KB) M/S Silja Symphony on Kustaanmiekka strait. ... Image File history File linksMetadata Download high-resolution version (1024x768, 584 KB) M/S Silja Symphony on Kustaanmiekka strait. ... M/S Silja Symphony at Kustaanmiekka strait. ... Suomenlinna or Viapori (Finnish), or Sveaborg (Swedish), is an inhabited sea fortress built on six islands, today within Helsinki, the capital of Finland. ... Founded 1550 Country Finland Province Southern Finland Region Uusimaa Sub-region Helsinki Area[1] - Of which land - Rank 185. ... Nickname: Location of Stockholm in northern Europe Coordinates: Country Sweden Municipality Stockholm Municipality County Stockholm Province Södermanland and Uppland Charter 13th Century Population (April 2007)  - City 782,885  - Density 4,160/km² (10,774. ... Founded 1861 Province Ã…land Region Ã…land Sub-region Mariehamn Area - Of which land - Rank 11. ... Pride of Bilbao, a cruise ferry operated by P&O Ferries. ... Viking Line MS Gabriella Viking Line is a Finnish shipping company that operates a fleet of large combined cruiseferry ships between Finland, the Ã…land Islands, Sweden and Estonia. ... Silja Line ships in Helsinki in 2004 Silja Line (Silja Oyj Apb) is a Finnish shipping company owned as of 2006 by the Estonian ferry operator Tallink. ... Tallinks logo Tallink is an Estonian shipping company currently operating cruiseferries and ropax ships from Estonia to Finland, Estonia to Sweden, Latvia to Sweden and Finland to Germany, as well as high-speed crafts between Helsinki and Tallinn. ... Stena Line is one of the worlds largest ferry operators, with ferry services around the UK and Scandinavia. ...

Northern Baltic Sea

The route between Sweden (Stockholm and Kapellskär), Åland (Mariehamn, Långnäs) and Finland (Turku, Helsinki) is a popular entertainment cruise. Nickname: Location of Stockholm in northern Europe Coordinates: Country Sweden Municipality Stockholm Municipality County Stockholm Province Södermanland and Uppland Charter 13th Century Population (April 2007)  - City 782,885  - Density 4,160/km² (10,774. ... Kapellskär is a port near Stockholm, in Sweden. ... Founded 1861 Province Ã…land Region Ã…land Sub-region Mariehamn Area - Of which land - Rank 11. ... LÃ¥ngnäs is a port in Lumparland on the eastern mainland of Ã…land. ... Turku (IPA:  , Swedish:  ), founded in the 13th century, is the oldest and fifth largest city in Finland, with a population of 174,868 (as of 2005). ... Founded 1550 Country Finland Province Southern Finland Region Uusimaa Sub-region Helsinki Area[1] - Of which land - Rank 185. ...

Baltic routes are mostly trafficed by new ships purpose-built for the routes. Older cruiseferries from the Baltic serve as ferries on other seas, or in some cases, as cruise ships Pacific Sky sails under Sydney Harbour Bridge A cruise ship or a cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ships amenities are considered an essential part of the experience. ...

Generally GTS Finnjet of 1977 is considered to have been the first cruiseferry, she was the first ferry to offer cruise-ship quality services and accommodations, and the first generation of cruiseferries operating from Finland to Sweden were highly influenced by Finnjet's interior and exterior designs. After the fall of the Soviet Union the route connecting Helsinki to Tallinn became highly lucrative, which led to Estonia-based company Tallink to grow and rival the two long-established companies, and eventually Tallink purchased Silja Line in 2006. Finnjet approaching Helsinki in spring 2004 GTS M/S Finnjet is a cruiseferry, built in 1977 by Wärtsilä Helsinki, Finland. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... County Harju County Mayor Jüri Ratas Area 159. ... Tallinks logo Tallink is an Estonian shipping company currently operating cruiseferries and ropax ships from Estonia to Finland, Estonia to Sweden, Latvia to Sweden and Finland to Germany, as well as high-speed crafts between Helsinki and Tallinn. ... For the Manfred Mann album, see 2006 (album). ...

The size of Baltic cruiseferries is limited by various narrow passages in the Stockholm, Ålandian and Turku archipelagos, meaning ships not much in excess of 200 meters cannot traffic on these routes. The single narrowest point is Kustaanmiekka strait outside Helsinki, although ships making port at the city's west harbour do not have to pass through the strait. Viking and Silja Line have wished to keep their terminals in the South Harbour however as it is located right next to the city center. The largest ships to maintain scheduled service through the Kustaanmiekka strait are M/S Finnstar and her sisters with a length of 219 meters. The largest ship to have ever navigated though the narrows past Suomenlinna sea fortress was M/S Oriana (260 meters), but that was only possible due to extremely good weather conditions. Motto: none Anthem: Ã…länningens sÃ¥ng Capital Mariehamn Official languages Swedish Government Autonomous province  - Governor Peter Lindbäck1  - Premier Roger Nordlund Autonomy    - Declared 1920   - Recognized 19212  Accession to EU January 1, 19953 Area  - Total 13,517 km² (n/a) 5,267 sq mi   - Water (%) 89 Population  - 2005 estimate 26... The Mergui Archipelago An archipelago is a landform which consists of a chain or cluster of islands. ... Suomenlinna or Viapori (Finnish), or Sveaborg (Swedish), is an inhabited sea fortress built on six islands, today within Helsinki, the capital of Finland. ... Utsikt över Sveaborg (View over Sveaborg), painting by Augustin Ehrensvärd Suomenlinna (Finnish), or Sveaborg (Swedish), is an inhabited sea fortress built on six islands, today within Helsinki, the capital of Finland. ... Oriana at Station Pier, Melbourne The MV Oriana is a cruise ship owned and operated by P&O Cruises. ...

Tax-free sales

The expansion of the European Union has limited the growth of the industry as duty-free sales on intra-EU routes are no longer possible. However, as the Åland Islands are outside the EU customs zone, duty free sales are still possible on routes making a stop at Mariehamn or other harbours on the islands. Another popular destination is Estonia with its lower taxes on alcohol. National motto: ? Official language Swedish Capital Mariehamn Governor Peter Lindbäck Premier Roger Nordlund Total Area  - Land  - Water 6,784 km² 1,527 km² 5,258 km² Population  - Total (2002)  - Density 26,257 17. ... Map of European Union in the world  European Union  Outermost regions  Overseas countries and territories // Two parts of the Treaty of Rome deal with special relationships: Article 299 which sets out the territories to which the treaty applies, supplemented by the accession treaties; and Articles 182-188 and Annex II... Founded 1861 Province Ã…land Region Ã…land Sub-region Mariehamn Area - Of which land - Rank 11. ...

The ferries have been criticised because of the low prices of alcoholic beverages encourage passengers to become drunk and act irresponsibly. Due to the relatively cheap price of the cruises and availability of duty-free alcohol (which makes it considerably cheaper than on "land" as both Finland and Sweden have a relatively strict taxation of alcohol) many big parties involving vast amounts of alcohol drinking are held on the ships, one such party is the Finnish university students' party GOOM. Goom is a fictional extraterrestrial character from the Marvel Universe who first appeared in Tales of Suspense vol. ...

Accidents

See M/S Estonia. M/S Estonia Model of the M/S Estonia in Tallinns Maritime Museum The M/S Estonia was a car and passenger ferry built in 1979 at the German shipyard Meyer Werft in Papenburg. ...