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KRISTINA CRUISES 2006
MS Kristina Brahe:
KC-01 The Czars Route to Saimaa Canal & Lakeland
Routing: Helsinki - Kotka - Lappeenranta - Savonlinna -Helsinki, 4 days
Departures:
June 7th, 14th, 21st, 28th
July 5th, 12th, 19th, 26th
August 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd
Kristina Brahe’s eastbound cruise, awarded with the Scandinavian Travel Award, enables you to experience two different insular worlds connected by the Saimaa Canal. The cruise passes several beautiful islands of the eastern Gulf of Finland. Words cannot describe this special summer feeling on the islands. The sea, the haze, the wind and the sounds must be experienced all together.
Langinkoski and the Imperial Fishing Lodge are without doubt the most widely known destinations of the summer cruises. Czar Alexander III, being fond of fishing and simple life, found here the beauty of the surrounding nature and the river rich in salmon. In many books about Russian Czars there is a photo showing Empress Dagmar, her son and the captain of the imperial yacht Tsaverna peeling potatoes on the kitchen stairs of the Langinkoski Imperial Fishing Lodge. Today Kotka offers many more sights, among them Kotka Maretarium and Sapokka Water Park.
On the way to the canal you will sail past Virolahti. The last Russian Czar Nikolai II, the son and follower of Alexander III, liked to spend his summer holidays here. Cruising along the Saimaa Canal will remind of not only the imperial summers, but also of the times of tar steams and rafting. The locks will take you to Lappeenranta, the lively capital of South Karelia with its unadulterated Karelian dialect.
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Kristina Brahe sails through the Saimaa Archipelago and the unique scenery of the Lake Saimaa, where characteristic features are seals, sour milk, fish pie and the smell of a lakeshore sauna. On your way back you will have a short stop at Puumala, which was chosen the most beautiful municipality in the Lake Saimaa District a couple of years ago. |
Cruise itinerary
- Wednesday Departure from Helsinki ,
South Harbour , next to Old Market Hall 10:30,
Kotka 17:00 - 21:00.
- Thursday Lappeenranta 9:00 - 11:45.
Arrival at Savonlinna 19:15.
- Friday Departure from Savonlinna 11:00,
Puumala 14:30 - 15:30,
Lappeenranta 19:30 - 20:15.
- Saturday Kotka 9:00 - 9:30,
Arrival in Helsinki 16:00.
Note: Because of sailing the Saimaa Canal a passport is required on this cruise!
PRICING:
Season I=Departures
June 7th, 14th, 21st
August 2nd, 9th, 16th, 23rd
Season II=Departures
June 28th
July 5th, 12th, 19th, 26th
- D-class
- double u/l - 678 CAD (season I) 713 CAD (II)
- single – 765 CAD (I) 808 CAD (II)
- C-class
- double – 825 CAD (I) 860 CAD (II)
- double u/l – 765 CAD (I) 808 CAD (II)
- single – 860 CAD (I) 904 CAD (II)
- B-class
- double – 930 CAD (I) 973 CAD (II)
- double u/l – 860 CAD (I) 904 CAD (II)
- single – 1034 CAD (I) 1086 CAD (II)
- A-class
- double – 1103 CAD (I) 1164 CAD (II)
- double u/l – 1034 CAD (I) 1086 CAD (II)
- single – 1190 CAD (I) 1251 CAD (II)
- KC-class
- double – 1190 CAD (I) 1251 CAD (II)
double = cabin with two lower berths
double u/l = cabin with upper and lower berths
single = single cabin
Discounts
- 3rd and 4th passenger in the same cabin
(u/l rate): discount 30 %.
- Children (5-15 years): d iscount 40 % in upper berth.
Cruise rates include (HEL-SAV-HEL)
- 4 days (3 nights) cruise on board of m/s Kristina Brahe in chosen cabin class, according to itinerary above
- Full board (3 x breakfast, 4 x lunch and 3 x dinner)
- Onboard program
- Shore excursions in destinations
MS KRISTINA BRAHE
The m/s Kristina Brahe was built to be a military vessel in Chicago, USA in 1943. She is known to have crossed the Atlantic Ocean once during the war under the flag of USA. The vessel was called HMS Kilchernan when she served under the Union Jack as a submarine destroyer at the western coast of Africa and the Gibraltar area.
In 1948 the ship was sold to Norway and rebuilt to become a passenger ferry. Named the m/s Sunnhordland, the vessel operated as a mail steamer between Bergen and Stavanger up to the year 1973. At that time the vessel's capacity was 600 passengers and 13 cars.
The ship was sold to Finland in 1971 and was named the m/s Kristina Brahe after Ristiina, the vessel's that time home port. The ship was turned into a cruise vessel by building more cabins and restaurant facilities. |
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The m/s Kristina Brahe's maiden voyage took place on 15th May, 1975. At first the ship cruised mainly on Lake Saimaa making two- to five-day cruises. In the following years the cruising area was expanded, first to Vyborg and to the Gulf of Finland. In 1982 the m/s Kristina Brahe made the first cruise across the Gulf of Finland from Helsinki to Tallinn and in the next year to St. Petersburg.
In 1985 Rannikkolinjat Ltd. bought the shipping company who owned the m/s Kristina Brahe and Kotka became the vessel's new home port. More cabins were built and the restaurant improved. At the same time more cruises were made abroad.
Today the m/s Kristina Brahe's major cruising area is the Saimaa Canal where the ship makes tax- and visa-free cruises from Lappeenranta to Vyborg. The season which begins on 31st April and ends at the beginning of December includes cruises also to the Gulf of Finland, mainly to the home port Kotka. The vessel is an excellent choice for a charter cruise, for example to the Saimaa area where she can sail up even to Kuopio or Joensuu.
The m/s Kristina Brahe's charm is in the atmosphere of "the good old days". In spite of several changes, the original style of the ship has been kept by choosing genuine materials. The restaurant's matter of honor is to provide perfect culinary experiences while the atmosphere in the dance-bar offers passengers unforgettable cruise memories.
The m/s Kristina Brahe was named after Ristiina, the home port of the vessel at that time. Ristiina, on the other hand, was named after Kristina Katarina Brahe, who was the wife of Peter Brahe, a regent in Finland. |
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