Here is our trusty stead for this journey, the MS Baltic Queen. Built in 2009 it is what they call a “Cruiseferry”. A cruiseferry is a ship that functions both as a ferry for transporting people and vehicles but also a cruise ship where passengers may stay onboard at ports enjoying the amenities of the ship. This is going to be interesting, away we go!As we board the ship we enter near the main staircase. The ferry has 10 floors with the two at the bottom for cars… and a sauna. This area smelt funny, and that didn’t go away for the entire journey. We navigate the maze of rooms to find ours. We will be traveling from Stockholm Sweden to Tallinn Estonia. The journey is 16 hours and goes through the night.
I make quick work getting comfortable in our room. More on the delicious beverage I am consuming in a short bit. This is an “A” class cabin which is a bit of an upgrade with “E” class being the most affordable (99 Euro in 2023).
In the other direction is a small bathroom that has a combination toilet, sink and shower in one. There is also a small TV which didn’t have any English channels except the Eurovision singing contest, which almost everybody on the ship was tuned into. We leave the port right on time. So long Stockholm!Technically… Stockholm is located on Lake Malaren. We will snake our way through the rivers and channels toward the Baltic Sea. The shores are dotted with houses in Sweden. I assume they all have saunas and IKEA furniture but wasn’t invited into any to confirm. Enough looking out the window, lets take a look around this “cruiseferry”.Might as well start with the star attraction on the vessel, the liquor store. It remains closed when the ship is in port but as soon as it hits international waters the doors open up. There was a significant line up of people waiting for that to happen. They loaded up carts filled to the max with tax free booze. I’m told that many passengers will take this ferry strictly to load up as much booze as a Skoda can hold because the savings are significant. There are signs warning that you cannot consume the booze on the ship but everybody seemed to ignore that. They even provide a bottle opener in your room just in case you decide to flaunt the rules as well. I certainly didn’t!I only bought this beer for the photo and didn’t consume it on board using the bottle opener provided by the ferry, as that would be against the rules!If tax free booze isn’t your thing, why not pick up some designer clothing or other goods?Being a cruiseferry, there are numerous dinning options to pick from. We, being the high class travelers that we are, went for the more affordable options.
Example of one of the meals we ordered from a cafeteria style restaurant.Still pretty good.
There is also nightly entertainment with a show each hour. We were treated to a remake of David Guetta’s song “I’m Good” sang by a group of Baltic singers. Highly recommended! I still have that song stuck in my head: I’m good yeah, I’m feeling alright…. The auditorium was big enough to be 2 stories high and full for each show. Here we have the “Passengers Band” covering ABBA, amazing!Near the back of the ship was an outdoor bar which was a great place to enjoy a legally purchased beer. Other amenities on the ship included: – Sauna – “Ibiza Disco” – Sea Pub – Piano Bar – Casino – Children’s Playground – Conference center Being at a very northern latitude the sun didn’t set until 10pm and comes right back up around 3am. When I woke up just after 3am and saw how bright and sunny it was outside, I was filled with panic and questions. Is it actually 3:00 in the afternoon (it was that bright outside)? Did we miss the disembarkation port? Who drank my photoshoot beers?The midnight sun means conditions are just right for the traditional summit selfie! With a special guest this time. After going back to sleep for a short while, we pull into port in Tallinn Estonia. More on that to come…
1 Comment
Teditor · August 16, 2023 at 9:05 pm
Nice!