MS Galaxy
Encyclopedia
MS Galaxy is a cruiseferry
built in 2006 by Aker Finnyards, Rauma, Finland
and was at the time the largest ship delivered to ferry operator Tallink
. Between 2006–2008 she held the distinction of being the largest ship ever to be registered in Estonia
; a title now held by her replacement sister-ship .
As of 2008, Galaxy operates on the Stockholm–Turku route under Tallink's Silja Line
brand , opposite . The route connects Stockholm
, Sweden
to Turku
in Finland
via Åland and the vessel spends approximately twenty-two hours per day at sea.
, in 2002 on the cruise service between Tallinn and Helsinki was a success. One year after her entry into this service, Tallink's fiercest competitor Viking Line
, announced that they would withdraw their flagship MS Cinderella from the same route, replacing her with the more freight-oriented MS Rosella.
This led Tallink to order a bigger ship to replace the Romantika on 2004-10-28. The Romatika in turn was needed to join her newly delivered sister ship, the MS Victoria I
, on the Tallinn–Stockholm
route.
. The Rauma shipyard had previously built the Romantika and the Victoria I. On 2005-12-01, the new ship was launched and christened as MS Galaxy.
Designed as a carefully enlarged replica of the Romantika, the Galaxy is longer and has additional cabins and public areas. Leaving behind the external livery scheme introduced on the Romantika and her sister, the Galaxy sports a white hull with a cloud decorated blue superstructure, along with a number of different animals painted on her sides. The design of the livery was made by the Estonian artist Navitrolla.
/Långnäs
–Turku
route during 2008. She was replaced by her sister ship MS Baltic Princess
.
for three days.
Cruiseferry
A cruiseferry is a ship that combines the features of a cruise ship with 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...
built in 2006 by Aker Finnyards, Rauma, Finland
Rauma, Finland
Rauma is a town and municipality of ca. inhabitants on the west coast of Finland, north of Turku, and south of Pori. Granted town privileges on May 17, 1442 , Rauma is known of its high quality lace , and of the old wooden architecture of its centre , which is a Unesco world heritage...
and was at the time the largest ship delivered to ferry operator Tallink
Tallink
Tallink is an Estonian shipping company currently operating Baltic Sea cruiseferries and ropax ships from Estonia to Finland, Estonia to Sweden, Latvia to Sweden and Finland to Germany. They also own Silja Line and a part of SeaRail...
. Between 2006–2008 she held the distinction of being the largest ship ever to be registered in Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
; a title now held by her replacement sister-ship .
As of 2008, Galaxy operates on the Stockholm–Turku route under Tallink's Silja Line
Silja Line
Silja Line is a Finnish cruiseferry brand operated by the Estonian ferry company AS Tallink Grupp, for car and passenger traffic between Finland and Sweden. The former company Silja Oy – today Tallink Silja Oy – is a subsidiary of Tallink Grupp, handling marketing and sales for Tallink and Silja...
brand , opposite . The route connects Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
to Turku
Turku
Turku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland...
in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
via Åland and the vessel spends approximately twenty-two hours per day at sea.
History
The introduction of Tallink's first newbuilding, the cruiseferry MS RomantikaMS Romantika
MS Romantika is a cruiseferry operated by the Estonian ferry company Tallink on a route connecting Stockholm, Sweden to Riga, Latvia. She was built in 2002 by Aker Finnyards, Rauma and she was the first ever newbuilding to be delivered to Tallink...
, in 2002 on the cruise service between Tallinn and Helsinki was a success. One year after her entry into this service, Tallink's fiercest competitor Viking Line
Viking Line
Viking Line 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...
, announced that they would withdraw their flagship MS Cinderella from the same route, replacing her with the more freight-oriented MS Rosella.
This led Tallink to order a bigger ship to replace the Romantika on 2004-10-28. The Romatika in turn was needed to join her newly delivered sister ship, the MS Victoria I
MS Victoria I
MS Victoria I is a cruiseferry operated by the Estonian ferry company Tallink on a route connecting Stockholm, Sweden to Tallinn, Estonia via Mariehamn, Finland. She was built in 2004 by Aker Finnyards, Rauma. Although the ship's official name is Victoria I, she is often referred to as Victoria,...
, on the Tallinn–Stockholm
Stockholm
Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...
route.
Design & construction
Building of the new ship commenced in early 2005 and her keel was laid on 21 April. The shipyard was Aker Finnyards, RaumaRauma, Finland
Rauma is a town and municipality of ca. inhabitants on the west coast of Finland, north of Turku, and south of Pori. Granted town privileges on May 17, 1442 , Rauma is known of its high quality lace , and of the old wooden architecture of its centre , which is a Unesco world heritage...
. The Rauma shipyard had previously built the Romantika and the Victoria I. On 2005-12-01, the new ship was launched and christened as MS Galaxy.
Designed as a carefully enlarged replica of the Romantika, the Galaxy is longer and has additional cabins and public areas. Leaving behind the external livery scheme introduced on the Romantika and her sister, the Galaxy sports a white hull with a cloud decorated blue superstructure, along with a number of different animals painted on her sides. The design of the livery was made by the Estonian artist Navitrolla.
Helsinki–Tallinn service
After performing her trials, the Galaxy entered service on the Tallinn–Helsinki route on 2 May 2006. The ship performed one round trip daily between the two capitals but spent most of her time moored in port—on her original route Galaxy was at sea for less than seven hours per day. In April 2007, less than a year after her introduction, Tallink announced that the Galaxy was to be transferred to the Stockholm–MariehamnMariehamn
Mariehamn is the capital of Åland, an autonomous territory under Finnish sovereignty. Mariehamn is the seat of the Government and Parliament of Åland, and 40% of the population of Åland live in the city...
/Långnäs
Långnäs
Långnäs is a port in Lumparland on the eastern mainland of Åland. Road ferries to Kumlinge and Galtby via Kökar start here. In the early 1960s, Silja Line built a ferry terminal in Långnäs, designed by architect Bengt Lundsten. The terminal was in use 1965-1975 and was then closed and removed in...
–Turku
Turku
Turku is a city situated on the southwest coast of Finland at the mouth of the Aura River. It is located in the region of Finland Proper. It is believed that Turku came into existence during the end of the 13th century which makes it the oldest city in Finland...
route during 2008. She was replaced by her sister ship MS Baltic Princess
MS Baltic Princess
MS Baltic Princess is a cruiseferry owned by the Estonia-based ferry operator Tallink. She was built by Aker Finnyards Helsinki New Shipyard in Helsinki, Finland in 2008...
.
Stockholm–Turku service
Following the Baltic Princess replacing Galaxy on the Tallinn–Helsinki route, Galaxy replaced MS Silja Festival on the Stockholm–Turku route on 23 July 2008. Coinciding with the route change, Galaxy was re-registered to Sweden. The ships external livery, as well as her name, was left unchanged, despite an earlier statement made by Tallink that she would be re-painted in Silja livery. A "Silja Line" hull text did replace the "Tallink Cruise" text on her sides, but her Tallink funnel logo was left unaltered. Before beginning service, Galaxy was docked at NaantaliNaantali
Naantali is a city in south-western Finland, known as one of the most important tourist centres of the country. The municipality has a population of , and is located in the region of Finland Proper, west of Turku....
for three days.
Decks
- Engine roomEngine roomOn a ship, the engine room, or ER, commonly refers to the machinery spaces of a vessel. To increase the safety and damage survivability of a vessel, the machinery necessary for operations may be segregated into various spaces, the engine room is one of these spaces, and is generally the largest...
- SaunaSaunaA sauna is a small room or house designed as a place to experience dry or wet heat sessions, or an establishment with one or more of these and auxiliary facilities....
, swimming poolSwimming poolA swimming pool, swimming bath, wading pool, or simply a pool, is a container filled with water intended for swimming or water-based recreation. There are many standard sizes; the largest is the Olympic-size swimming pool... - Car deck
- Car platform, can be lowered hydraulically to divide the car deck in two giving space for two layers of passenger cars
- Conference rooms, A- and B-class cabins
- Moonlight dance barBar (establishment)A bar is a business establishment that serves alcoholic drinks — beer, wine, liquor, and cocktails — for consumption on the premises.Bars provide stools or chairs that are placed at tables or counters for their patrons. Some bars have entertainment on a stage, such as a live band, comedians, go-go...
, cafeteriaCafeteriaA cafeteria is a type of food service location in which there is little or no waiting staff table service, whether a restaurant or within an institution such as a large office building or school; a school dining location is also referred to as a dining hall or canteen...
, information desk, shops, Starlight Palace show lounge (lower level) - BuffetBuffetA buffet is a system of serving meals in which food is placed in a public area where the diners generally serve themselves. Buffets are offered at various places including hotels and many social events...
Galaxy, Grill House, Russian à la Carte Aleksander and Happy Lobster restaurantRestaurantA restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...
s, cigar club, piano bar, whisky bar, Joe's place, games arcade, Starlight Palace show lounge (upper level) - SuitesSuite (hotel)A suite in a hotel or other public accommodation, denotes a class of luxury accommodations, the key feature of which is multiple rooms. Many properties have one or more "honeymoon suites", and sometimes the best accommodation is called the "presidential suite".Suites offer multiple rooms, with more...
, de luxe-, A- and B-class cabins - Suites, de luxe-, A- and B-class cabins
- BridgeBridge (ship)The bridge of a ship is the room or platform from which the ship can be commanded. When a ship is underway the bridge is manned by an OOW aided usually by an AB acting as lookout...
, discoDiscoDisco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
Zenith, crew accommodations, sundeck