M/S Mariella

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M/S Mariella

Shipbuilder:	Wärtsilä Shipyard, Turku, Finland
Launched:	28 September 1984
Delivered:	17 May 1985
Current route:	Stockholm — Mariehamn — Helsinki
General Characteristics
Tonnage:	37,860 Gross Register
Length:	177 m
Beam:	28.4 m
Draft:	6.51 m
Propulsion:	4 × Wärtsilä-Pielstick diesels 23,000 kW
Speed:	22 knots
Passengers:	2500
Car capacity:	430

M/S Mariella is a car and passenger cruiseferry delivered in 1985 to SF Line and operated as a part of Viking Line. She was built by the Wärtsilä Shipyard in Turku, Finland. Her sister ship is the Olympia (now Pride of Bilbao).

When she was delivered in 1985 Mariella was the first ship on Viking Line's Helsinki - Stockholm service which was not owned by Rederi Ab Sally. She has remained on the same route ever since, except for a few brief times when she has been moved temporarily on to other Viking Line routes. Only one ferry exceeds her record for the longest continual service on one route: GTS Finnjet which served between Helsinki and Travemünde for 22 years. At the time of her delivery, Mariella was the largest ferry in the world in terms of gross tonnage, number of passengers and passenger berths.

In 1989, ahead of the delivery of the new M/S Cinderella, SF Line considered moving Mariella on to a proposed express Helsinki - Norrköping service aimed at passengers travelling with their cars. The plan never materialised. Mariella was the first ship to arrive at the scene of perished M/S Estonia in 1994. Working as a helicopter platform, this made rescue efforts more efficient. Following the bankruptcy of Rederi Ab Slite in 1993, SF Line was left as the sole operator of the Viking Line name. It therefore made sense in 1995 that SF Line changed their name to Viking Line and the Viking Line marketing company ceased to exist.

During the 1996 summer season a short cruise from Helsinki to Tallinn was added to Mariella's schedule in place of the nine hours she normally spent in Helsinki. These "picnic cruises" proved to be unpopular and they were discontinued the following summer. When the EU ended tax free purchasing on routes between member states in July 1999, Viking Line added a stop at Mariehamn, Åland to the Helsinki - Stockholm route. As Åland is not a part of the EU tax union, Viking Line could continue tax-free sales on its ships.

In September 2000 Mariella was refitted at Naantali with rear sponsons and a new rescue boat. Her interior was also brought up to date, the disco moved from deck eight to deck seven, and for some time after the refit she sported the text "Updated 06/10 2000" on her hull. Another large refit was carried out in September 2006, again at Naantali, which included rebuilding of the tax free shop and parfumerie, as well as addition of two new restaurants.

[edit] Decks

The ship has eleven decks, labelled from bottom to top:

Engine room
Anchor deck - C and economy-class cabins, Sauna and hot tubs
Car deck - Trucks and buses.
1. Car platform deck - can be lowered hydraulically to divide the car deck in two giving space for two layers of passenger cars
Bell deck - B and A-class cabins, boarding
Sextant deck - B and A-class cabins
Info & Shopping deck - B and A-class and luxury cabins, suites, "Air seats", Tax-Free shop, Cafeteria, Game room, Information desk, boarding
Restaurant deck - Buffet restaurant serving Swedish smörgåsbord, Night club, Casino, Disco, Pub, Food Garden À la carte restaurant, Ella's BBQ restaurant, Tapas & Wine restaurant
Conference deck - Auditorium, conference rooms, Sundeck, A-class cabins
Compass deck - Crew accommodations
Captain's deck - Bridge, Sundeck