A cruiseferry is a ship that combines the features of a cruise ship and a Ro-Pax ferry. Many passengers travel with the ships for the cruise experience, staying only a few hours at the destination port or not leaving the ship at all, while others use the ships as means of transportation.
ANEK Lines is one of the largest passenger shipping companies in Greece. It was founded in 1967 by numerous shareholders who were inhabitants of Crete. It operates passenger ferries, mainly on the Piraeus–Crete and Adriatic Sea routes.
NEL LINES was established in 1972, as a company of popular base with shareholders the residents of Lesvos island and primary aim the purchase of a liner vessel for the Mitilini-Chios-Piraeus route. Since then, the company has expanded, serving most of the Aegean sea destinations.
Attica Holdings S.A. is an operator of international ferry services in Europe. Attica Group's operations include its subsidiaries Superfast Ferries, which began in 1995 with the launch of its first ships, Superfast I & Superfast II, and Blue Star Ferries which operates ferries in the Aegean Sea to the Greek islands. In June 2018 Attica Group increased its share in Hellenic Seaways to 98.83%. Hellenic Seaways is 100% controlled by the Attica Group following the acquisition of minority interest of 1.17% in July 2019. In December 2023 it absorbed 100% of ANEK Lines, rendering the operator number two in the number of passengers commuted in Europe.
Hellenic Seaways is a Greece-based ferry company founded in 1984. Hellenic Seaways is a subsidiary of Attica Group along with Blue Star Ferries and Superfast Ferries.
MS Ancona was a car-passenger ferry owned by Blue Line International and operated on it service linking Ancona in Italy to Split, Croatia. She was built in 1966 by Lindholmens varv in Gothenburg, Sweden, for Rederi AB Svea as MS Svea. As Svea, she was used on the joint Sweden–United Kingdom service operated by Ellerman's Wilson Line, Swedish Lloyd and Rederi AB Svea. In 1969 Svea was sold to Swedish Lloyd and renamed MS Hispania. In 1972, she was renamed MS Saga. In 1978, she was sold to Minoan Lines following the closure of Swedish Lloyd's passenger services and renamed MS Knossos. In 1998, she passed to Diler Lines, becoming their MS Captain Zaman II. In 2003, she was sold to Blue Line and was renamed Ancona. She was sold for scrap in October 2010 and breaking up was commenced on 15 December 2010.
Blue Star Maritime S.A., operating under the brand name Blue Star Ferries, is a Greece-based company founded in 1993 which provides ferry services between the Greek mainland and the Aegean Islands.
MS Cruise Ausonia is a fast Ro-Pax jumbo ferry owned by the Grimaldi Lines and sails on the Livorno-Palermo route. She was built in 2002 for Superfast Ferries as MS Superfast XII by a shipyard in Lübeck, Germany, and is the last vessel of 12. She is a sister ship of Superfast XI.
MS Kydon Palace is a Greek Ro-Pax high speed ferry, built in 2001 at the Sestri Ponente shipyards by Fincantieri as Festos Palace for Minoan Lines' overnight services between Piraeus and Crete. Initially she ran to Heraklion. In 2020 she was transferred to the Piraeus–Chania route and renamed Kydon Palace She is a sister ship of Knossos Palace. She can reach speeds up to 30 knots. The ship's facilities include restaurants, bars and cabins.
MS Europa Palace is a fast ropax ferry owned by Grimaldi Lines and operated by Minoan Grimaldi Lines. The ship previously named Cruise Olbia and did the Civitavecchia-Olbia route. Built in 2001 as Superfast VI by Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft (HDW) in Kiel, Germany for Attica Group's subsidiary Superfast Ferries, she was sold to the Genting Group in 2013, Renamed Bimini Superfast for the Bimini-Miami route. In 2016 she was sold to her current owners.
The MV Al Salmy 4 was a former train ferry, converted to RO-RO/Passenger ferry.
The HSC Olympic Champion Jet , built as Highspeed 5, later Highspeed 7, for Hellenic Seaways, is an 85m high speed catamaran owned by Minoan Lines. In January 2024 she was chartered to Seajets. It has been renamed Olympic Champion Jet.
Seajets is a Greek/Cypriot ferry company operating passenger and freight ferry services in the Aegean Sea. Seajets is one of Greece’s leading ferry companies. Seajets owns 30 high-speed passenger ships, 6 ferries and 4 cruise ships connecting 50 Aegean islands and Crete.
The HSF Cruise Bonaria is a Ro-Pax high speed ferry, built in 2000 at the Sestri Ponente shipyards by Fincantieri and owned by Grimaldi Lines previously owned by Minoan Lines as Knossos Palace. It can accommodate up to 2,500 passengers and 700 cars, and has 758 beds plus 742 airseats for passengers. The vessel is powered by four 4x Wärtsilä 16V46C diesel engines with a combined power of 67,517 kW, which give her a top 'speed of 31,6 knots. In November 2020 Minoan Lines announced that Knossos Palace exchanged with her former ship Cruise Bonaria previously named Olympia Palace. The first sold to Grimaldi Lines and renamed it Cruise Bonaria and the other one renamed Knossos Palace. The former Knossos Palace was under the Minoan Lines 20 years. For 20 years did the Piraeus-Heraklion route. The ship left Greece forever on 24 November and arrived in Napoli, Italy after two days. In there will change signals and name.
MS Cruise Barcelona is a cruiseferry owned and operated by Grimaldi Lines. It was built at Fincantieri in Castellammare di Stabia, Italy.
MS Cruise Europa is a cruiseferry owned by Grimaldi Group. It was built at Fincantieri in Castellammare di Stabia, Italy.
MS Cruise Sardegna is a cruiseferry owned and operated by Grimaldi Group. Previously was operated by Minoan Lines under the name Cruise Olympia. It was built at Fincantieri in Castellammare di Stabia, Italy.
The MS El. Venizelos is a Greek ferry, and 2nd oldest ship in the ANEK Lines fleet. It is a motor Ro-Ro/Passenger ferryboat, built in 1984 at Stocznia im. Komuny Paryskiej, Gdynia, Poland as Stena Polonica and completed in 1992 in Perama, Piraeus, Greece as El Venizelos. It is one of 4 sister ships, Stena Vision and Stena Spirit, both owned by Stena Lines, and the unfinished Lelakis' Regent Sky. It can hold a total of 2300 passenger and 850 cars and has 1606 beds for passengers. It has four Zgoda-Sulzer 16ZV 40/48 diesel engines, with combined power of 34,130 kW and can reach a speed of 22 knots.It also has WiFi Internet, two restaurants. two bars, an amusement arcade, a casino, a church, a duty-free shop, a playground, a hospital, escalators, elevators, air-conditioning and a swimming pool and its cabins can be either "lux", 2-bed, 4-bed, or for the disabled. It is named after Eleftherios Venizelos, a Greek politician who served as Prime Minister of Greece and has Cretan origins. On 30 March El Venizelos laid-up since three days in Piraeus Anchorage had cases with the COVID-19. On 2 April at nine pm El Venizelos moored at the Piraeus Port. From 25 April 2020 to 13 April 2023 she was laid up at Perama.
MS Zeus Palace is an Italian ferry, which is operated by Grimaldi Lines.
The AF Mia is a RO/PAX ferry operated and owned by Adria Ferries. The ship was built as Ikarus in Fosen Mek Verksteder A/S, Norway for Minoan Lines in 1997, and later renamed Ikarus Palace. She has a sister ship Jean Nicoli now with Corsica Linea.
