Last month Kristina Cruises (KC), Finland's only dedicated cruise company, announced the cancellation of all its winter cruises aboard its only ship 'Kristian Katarina' until March 20 as it sought to restructure its significant debts. KC operates cruise schedules to the Mediterranean, the Canary Islands, the North Atlantic and in its home waters of the Baltic in the European summer.
Attempting to put some gloss on an otherwise gloomy scenario, KC said its river cruises (for which it acts as Finland's primary agent) and cruises scheduled after March 2014 would be unaffected.
The news came as little surprise. Reports in the Finnish press have been speculating that the Kotka-based family company was in trouble – squeezed by both high bunker rates and aviation fuel prices (the company flies most passengers to and from turnaround ports). The company also cited the fall in ticket prices and Finland's current weak economic climate as significant factors.
Recently, reports also surfaced that 2012's figures saw a red bottom line to the tune of €3.1 million (US$4.2 million) on revenue of €28.1 million (US$38.4 million). This was the second straight year of loss-making, following on previous year's €2.6 million (US$3.5 million) loss. This precarious position was lightened slightly after receiving a €2.7 million boost from the Kymenlaakso regional council last year as the company was seen as an important employer in the region with a roster of over 200. However the loan was insufficient, and all 200 employees now face redundancies.
KC was founded by the Partanen family in 1985. Until 2010, the company operated two vessels – the 'Kristina Brahe' and the 'Kristina Regina'. The former vessel was a small 1943 Chicano-built ex-WWII lend-lease Royal Navy warship, the HMS 'Kilchrenan'. The vessel had a colourful logbook in its former life before arriving in Finland to make cruises around the southern part of the country. The vessel's route included passage through the Saimaa Canal and calling on stops in Leningrad (now St Petersburg) and the former Finnish city of Vyborg.
The 'Kristina Regina' also has had a vivid background before coming to Finland. Swedish-built in 1960 as the SS 'Bore', the vessel was the last steamship built in Scandinavia, sailing between Finland and Stockholm. After periods as a hotel ship in Scotland and Algeria, the 'Kristina Regina' returned to Scandinavia as a ferry for two failed ventures. The vessel was then bought by KC to be a pure cruise ship with appealing wood fittings and a local touch for the predominantly Finnish-speaking market.
After the 'Kristina Regina' did not meet SOLAS requirements in 2011, mostly because of its excess of polished timber, both vessels were sold almost simultaneously to fund the purchase of another vessel. The 'Kristina Regina' was bought by enthusiasts and was reverted to its original name and livery. It is now a combination hotel/hostel with restaurant and bar tied on the bank of the river Aura in its former home port of Turku. Meanwhile the 'Kristina Brahe' still sails to Finland's great lakes area in the east through the Saimaa Canal, but is now owned by Saimaa Travel.
The replacement vessel, the 'Kristina Katarina', is the 1982 Polish-built ex-Soviet car ferry 'Iris' whose last ports of call were in the eastern Mediteranean for Israel's Mano Cruise company. After a costly refurbishment, the new 'Kristina Katarina' had her maiden voyage in August 2010 with a higher capacity of 400 (compared to the 'Regina's 245).
With global cruise companies aggressively moving into KC's home market, the 'Kristina Katarina' sits forlornly in Gran Canaria. Finnish travellers remain unperturbed by English as the on-board lingua franca, with popular television programs supplying free daily lessons.
John Pagni
