MS Baltic Queen in Tallinn on 11 July 2021 | |
History | |
---|---|
Estonia | |
Name | Baltic Queen [1] |
Owner | Tallink [2] |
Operator | Tallink |
Port of registry | Tallinn, Estonia [2] |
Route | Tallinn–Mariehamn–Stockholm |
Ordered | 11 April 2007 [2] |
Builder | STX Europe, Rauma, Finland [3] |
Cost | € 180 million [3] |
Yard number | 1365 [2] |
Laid down | 22 April 2008 [4] |
Launched | 5 December 2008 [1] |
Acquired | 16 April 2009 [5] |
In service | 24 April 2009 [5] |
Identification |
|
Status | In service |
General characteristics [6] | |
Class and type | Galaxy class cruiseferry |
Tonnage | 48,915 GT |
Length | 212.10 m (695 ft 10 in) [2] |
Beam | 29.00 m (95 ft) |
Decks | 12 |
Ice class | 1 A Super |
Installed power | |
Speed | 24.5 kn (45 km/h; 28 mph) |
Capacity |
|
MS Baltic Queen is a cruiseferry owned by the Estonia-based ferry operator Tallink. [5] The ship was built by the STX Europe shipyard in Rauma, Finland. [2]
Initially known under the project name Cruise 5, Baltic Queen was ordered from (what was then) Aker Yards shipyard in Rauma, Finland in April 2007. She is a sister ship to MS Galaxy and MS Baltic Princess and Tallink's fifth newbuilt cruiseferry. [3] The ship's planned route was a mystery to the general public for a long time, until on 11 November 2008 Tallink revealed that she would be placed on the Tallinn–Stockholm service on completion. [7] The ship was launched from drydock and officially named Baltic Queen on 5 December 2008. By this time the shipyard had been renamed STX Europe. [1] Tallink took delivery of the ship on 16 April 2009. [5]
Baltic Queen entered service on the Tallinn–Mariehamn–Stockholm route on 24 April 2009, replacing Tallink's first newbuilt ship MS Romantika, which was moved to the Riga–Stockholm service. [5] Baltic Queen's Tallink Silja fleetmate MS Silja Europa encountered problems with her steering on 22 November 2009, [8] and she had to be taken out of service for repairs. As a result, the Baltic Queen was moved to the Turku–Mariehamn–Stockholm service as a temporary replacement from 26 November until 11 December 2009. [9] From 7 August 2014 the ship started sailing from Tallinn to Helsinki, because MS Silja Europa was chartered to an Australian company due to its high fuel costs. MS Baltic Queen was then replaced with MS Romantika on the Tallinn-Mariehamn-Stockholm line. [10] At the end of 2018 once again it is on the Tallinn–Mariehamn–Stockholm route.
Silja Line is a Swedish-Finnish cruiseferry brand operated by the Estonian ferry company AS Tallink Grupp, for car, cargo and passenger traffic between Finland and Sweden.
Viking Line Abp is a Finnish shipping company that operates a fleet of ferries and cruiseferries between Finland, the Åland Islands, Sweden and Estonia. Viking Line shares are quoted on the Helsinki Stock Exchange. Viking Line is operated from Åland.
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MS Silja Serenade is a cruiseferry owned by the Estonian shipping company Tallink Grupp, operating under their Silja Line brand on a route connecting Helsinki to Stockholm via Mariehamn. She was built in 1990 by Masa-Yards at Turku New Shipyard, Finland. From 26 June 2020, to 13 September 2020, the ship's route was Helsinki–Riga, which got replaced by the cruiseferry MS Baltic Queen.
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Tallink is an Estonian shipping company operating Baltic Sea cruiseferries and ropax ships from Estonia to Finland, Estonia to Sweden and Finland to Sweden. It is the largest passenger and cargo shipping company in the Baltic Sea region. It owns Silja Line and a part of SeaRail. Tallink Hotels runs four hotels in Tallinn. It is also the co-owner of a taxi company Tallink Takso.
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Media related to IMO 9443255 at Wikimedia Commons