Finnlines is getting actually soon the 2 new big RoPax-Ferries Finnsirius and Finncanopus from China.
They will replace the in 2007 built ferries Finnswan and Europalink on the ca. 9 hours day and night route Kapellskär-AalandIslands-Naantali. These new big ferries offers much more truck-capacity (up to ca. 300 trucks / trailer) and also ca. double Pax-capacity, from ca. 550 now to 1100 in future.
On the officially Finnlines-websites are now pictures and texts to see from all areas, spaces, cabins etc. onboard - so here now my first critical review about these new ferries.
https://finnlines.visualizer360.com/en/finnsirius#87116,87135,359.93,0
For to see the main cabin-categories you must try to book a cabin f.ex. in november - then you will see the pictures also from all standard- and economy-cabins. In the visualizer here are only the few most expensivst cabins to see.
Furthermore already now you can compare all new prices for autumn 2023 in the booking-site of Finnlines - with the result that this ferry-route gets a complete new concept with much more expensive prices if you want to do or eat or drink anything onboard. I have compared departures in november between the "old" Finnswan and the "new" Finnsirius then both in service until the 2nd new-building arrives.
TODAY onboard Finnswan and Europalink:
- all buffet-meals & soft drink (water, cola, juice etc.) FREE INCLUDED in the ticket-price !
- sauna, jacuzzi-hot whirlpool + gym FREE INCLUDED in the ticket-price
FUTURE onboard Finnsirius and Finncanopus:
- nothing is included anymore and people onboard will be divided in 2 groups:
A) truck-drivers, they will have also in future everything for free (own free sauna - and "Cargo Buffet" restaurant for free) and
B) all other passengers who must pay for everything onboard extra separately
And all the prices are - as awaited from me when i have seen the first renderings long time ago from the new ferries with a top-model-lady and a professor-type man - super expensive:
- Sauna, jacuzzi-hot whirlpool and gym costs now € 30,- ! This is ca. 7,- more than on the competing new Viking Glory cruise-ferry (270 krones = € 23,30) !
- Breakfast-Premium-special served in Micke`s restaurant costs € 24,- if you book it in advance (onboard more expensive)
- Lunch-buffet in Cargo-Buffet-restaurant costs 32,- if you book it in advance (onboard more expensive) (Viking Glory today only 25,- // 291 SEK included unlimited all drinks, also wine from cranes !)
- Mickes a-la-carte-restaurant Lunch or Dinner € 55,- for 3-course-menü and 65,- for 4-course-menü
- additional wine-package to the menüs 36,- and 45,- ! ((unlimited wine from cranes is included in the buffet at Viking Line))
- Furthermore there is a "Fishermans Bistro" - with unknown prices, a self-service (push tray) family restaurant-cafe-grill 24 hours open
So in fact the buffet-prices are ca. double-price from restaurants "on land" and the menü-prices ca. 3-, 4- times so much as on land in Sweden and Finland !
Also everything else onboard is more expensive than f.ex. onboard from Viking Line ferries.
There are 3 saunas for non lorry drivers normal people if they pay the 30,- for them.
I guess separated man / women (as usually in Sweden) and 1 mixed (?).
Other areas onboard:
- Terrace sundeck "Under the stars", is looking nice with lounge-style furniture, partly indoor-glassed in winter-garden-style
- Arcade with bar, is looking nice with big diagonal windows, carpet, comfortable furniture
- Main bar "Barrel Bay Bar" with very comfortable furniture and live-music on stage and dance-floor, side room "Cabinet" with a TV-screen, this side-room can be reserved by groups, so maybe not open for normal passengers
- Big Duty Free shop, 400 square-meters with show-windows to the Arcade
- Spa-area with 3 saunas, 3 jacuzzi and a foth-bath indoor, 1 jacuzzi outdoor, own bar and gym, own relax-terrace with sunbeds
- Stellar Lounge (only to use for unknown extra-fee) nearby the conference-rooms with bar and comfortable furniture
- kids-playground
Generally positive:
- I like the design of the public rooms and areas, bright with big windows mostly - but also cozy with comfortable furniture and a lot of wood-design, carpets, nice lamps etc. . It looks NOT cheap and as simple plastic as on many other new ferries.
- Self-service restaurant is open 24 hours.
- Big bar lounge with live-music (if the picture with the drums on the small stage is not a fake... - in all texts is no word about music)
- Sundeck-concept is also looking much better than on other ferries
Most negative:
The prices onboard (food, spa etc.) are too high and not possible to pay for the big majority of all normal people in Sweden and Finland.
And the cabins ! Maybe the smallest Economy- and standard-cabins built on a ferry in this century - only 8 square-meters !
All cheapest standard-categories has no chair, no curtains, no rollo, no TV (standard f.ex. on Viking Glory), no carpet, no mirror = but costs 75,20 at night-departures (only the cabin, not the ferry-ticket). For + 16,- more you get 4 bunk-beds instead of 2 and a fake-window with fake-rollo. Cheapest category (2-bed outside) with window is + 24,- more, 4-bed + 40,-. All these categories are only 8 square-meters small !
And the cheapest category with a chair, hairdryer, TV and mirror is "Comfort inside" for + 56,- more on 13 square-meters has a double-bed and and bunk-bed/sofa. Cheapest category looking a little bit similar than a cheap hotel-room is "Comfort outside" for + 136,- more !
So in fact € 211,20 for the cheapest smallest "hotel-room-style-cabin" alone (+ the ferry-ticket-price).
This is also the first category with a small a carpet in the room and a comfort-chair.
Furthermore there are also a few 6-beds groups- and family-cabins and luxury front cabins and suites (only these front-cabins has curtains) for up to 616,- more.
So cabin-summary:
Generally the most cabins are much too small and much too poor, super spartan. Only positive: Wood-design instead of white-grey plastic. Wondering how this shall works - the Viking Line standard-cabins are not much bigger, but has a much better standard - for much cheaper prices. We had the cheapest inside cabin on Viking Glory, but with mirror, hairdryer, chair, wardrobe, finnish and swedish TV channels etc. - and with window there are normal curtains f.ex. .
Which customers will book all these poor very small economy and standard-cabins daily ? Why shall customers choose for Finnlines when Viking offers the better cabins, better port (Stockholm-city instead of Kapellskär) and generally lower prices also ? And why a finnish truck-driver shall choose Finnlines when he can watch in a Viking Line cabin all the night sports in finnish or swedish TV f.ex. ?
So these mostly poor small spartanic cabins are not on the same level as the mostly very comfortable public rooms and areas onboard.
For to be fair the generally different ticket-prices now with the Finnlines newbuildings:
Daytrip in autumn with the "old ferries" including all buffets sauna & jacuzzi costs 1 pax + car 76,80 one-way.
Daytrip in autumn with the "new ferries" without anything costs 1 pax + car 44,80 one-way.
So this means: Cheap customers can travel cheaper if they bring their own food and drinks (sandwiches, fruits etc.) onboard.
But if you only want 1 x buffet or 1 x sauna (what all Finnish people want daily) - it would be better to book the old ferries so long this is possible... .
So i guess there will be in future 2 complete different groups of people onboard beside the truck-drivers:
A) People who choose to buy nothing extra onboard and eat and drink their own things and maybe only buy cheap alcohol in the shop.
B) People who choose to buy expensive extras onboard, they will use the restaurants, bars, buy expensive lux-cabins etc..
So in summary an interesting complete new route concept for the Kapellskär-route with nice comfortable ferries but with poor small cabins and very expensive prices onboard. They want get so much as possible "cheap picnic duty free alcohol-buyers" and furthermore the big money shall come from customers spending some hundred Euro for bigger lux cabins and good food, wine etc. . And furthermore with biggest truck-decks they can offer lowest freight-rates for all freight-customers because there is "unlimited" space onboard.
They will replace the in 2007 built ferries Finnswan and Europalink on the ca. 9 hours day and night route Kapellskär-AalandIslands-Naantali. These new big ferries offers much more truck-capacity (up to ca. 300 trucks / trailer) and also ca. double Pax-capacity, from ca. 550 now to 1100 in future.
On the officially Finnlines-websites are now pictures and texts to see from all areas, spaces, cabins etc. onboard - so here now my first critical review about these new ferries.
https://finnlines.visualizer360.com/en/finnsirius#87116,87135,359.93,0
For to see the main cabin-categories you must try to book a cabin f.ex. in november - then you will see the pictures also from all standard- and economy-cabins. In the visualizer here are only the few most expensivst cabins to see.
Furthermore already now you can compare all new prices for autumn 2023 in the booking-site of Finnlines - with the result that this ferry-route gets a complete new concept with much more expensive prices if you want to do or eat or drink anything onboard. I have compared departures in november between the "old" Finnswan and the "new" Finnsirius then both in service until the 2nd new-building arrives.
TODAY onboard Finnswan and Europalink:
- all buffet-meals & soft drink (water, cola, juice etc.) FREE INCLUDED in the ticket-price !
- sauna, jacuzzi-hot whirlpool + gym FREE INCLUDED in the ticket-price
FUTURE onboard Finnsirius and Finncanopus:
- nothing is included anymore and people onboard will be divided in 2 groups:
A) truck-drivers, they will have also in future everything for free (own free sauna - and "Cargo Buffet" restaurant for free) and
B) all other passengers who must pay for everything onboard extra separately
And all the prices are - as awaited from me when i have seen the first renderings long time ago from the new ferries with a top-model-lady and a professor-type man - super expensive:
- Sauna, jacuzzi-hot whirlpool and gym costs now € 30,- ! This is ca. 7,- more than on the competing new Viking Glory cruise-ferry (270 krones = € 23,30) !
- Breakfast-Premium-special served in Micke`s restaurant costs € 24,- if you book it in advance (onboard more expensive)
- Lunch-buffet in Cargo-Buffet-restaurant costs 32,- if you book it in advance (onboard more expensive) (Viking Glory today only 25,- // 291 SEK included unlimited all drinks, also wine from cranes !)
- Mickes a-la-carte-restaurant Lunch or Dinner € 55,- for 3-course-menü and 65,- for 4-course-menü
- additional wine-package to the menüs 36,- and 45,- ! ((unlimited wine from cranes is included in the buffet at Viking Line))
- Furthermore there is a "Fishermans Bistro" - with unknown prices, a self-service (push tray) family restaurant-cafe-grill 24 hours open
So in fact the buffet-prices are ca. double-price from restaurants "on land" and the menü-prices ca. 3-, 4- times so much as on land in Sweden and Finland !
Also everything else onboard is more expensive than f.ex. onboard from Viking Line ferries.
There are 3 saunas for non lorry drivers normal people if they pay the 30,- for them.
I guess separated man / women (as usually in Sweden) and 1 mixed (?).
Other areas onboard:
- Terrace sundeck "Under the stars", is looking nice with lounge-style furniture, partly indoor-glassed in winter-garden-style
- Arcade with bar, is looking nice with big diagonal windows, carpet, comfortable furniture
- Main bar "Barrel Bay Bar" with very comfortable furniture and live-music on stage and dance-floor, side room "Cabinet" with a TV-screen, this side-room can be reserved by groups, so maybe not open for normal passengers
- Big Duty Free shop, 400 square-meters with show-windows to the Arcade
- Spa-area with 3 saunas, 3 jacuzzi and a foth-bath indoor, 1 jacuzzi outdoor, own bar and gym, own relax-terrace with sunbeds
- Stellar Lounge (only to use for unknown extra-fee) nearby the conference-rooms with bar and comfortable furniture
- kids-playground
Generally positive:
- I like the design of the public rooms and areas, bright with big windows mostly - but also cozy with comfortable furniture and a lot of wood-design, carpets, nice lamps etc. . It looks NOT cheap and as simple plastic as on many other new ferries.
- Self-service restaurant is open 24 hours.
- Big bar lounge with live-music (if the picture with the drums on the small stage is not a fake... - in all texts is no word about music)
- Sundeck-concept is also looking much better than on other ferries
Most negative:
The prices onboard (food, spa etc.) are too high and not possible to pay for the big majority of all normal people in Sweden and Finland.
And the cabins ! Maybe the smallest Economy- and standard-cabins built on a ferry in this century - only 8 square-meters !
All cheapest standard-categories has no chair, no curtains, no rollo, no TV (standard f.ex. on Viking Glory), no carpet, no mirror = but costs 75,20 at night-departures (only the cabin, not the ferry-ticket). For + 16,- more you get 4 bunk-beds instead of 2 and a fake-window with fake-rollo. Cheapest category (2-bed outside) with window is + 24,- more, 4-bed + 40,-. All these categories are only 8 square-meters small !
And the cheapest category with a chair, hairdryer, TV and mirror is "Comfort inside" for + 56,- more on 13 square-meters has a double-bed and and bunk-bed/sofa. Cheapest category looking a little bit similar than a cheap hotel-room is "Comfort outside" for + 136,- more !
So in fact € 211,20 for the cheapest smallest "hotel-room-style-cabin" alone (+ the ferry-ticket-price).
This is also the first category with a small a carpet in the room and a comfort-chair.
Furthermore there are also a few 6-beds groups- and family-cabins and luxury front cabins and suites (only these front-cabins has curtains) for up to 616,- more.
So cabin-summary:
Generally the most cabins are much too small and much too poor, super spartan. Only positive: Wood-design instead of white-grey plastic. Wondering how this shall works - the Viking Line standard-cabins are not much bigger, but has a much better standard - for much cheaper prices. We had the cheapest inside cabin on Viking Glory, but with mirror, hairdryer, chair, wardrobe, finnish and swedish TV channels etc. - and with window there are normal curtains f.ex. .
Which customers will book all these poor very small economy and standard-cabins daily ? Why shall customers choose for Finnlines when Viking offers the better cabins, better port (Stockholm-city instead of Kapellskär) and generally lower prices also ? And why a finnish truck-driver shall choose Finnlines when he can watch in a Viking Line cabin all the night sports in finnish or swedish TV f.ex. ?
So these mostly poor small spartanic cabins are not on the same level as the mostly very comfortable public rooms and areas onboard.
For to be fair the generally different ticket-prices now with the Finnlines newbuildings:
Daytrip in autumn with the "old ferries" including all buffets sauna & jacuzzi costs 1 pax + car 76,80 one-way.
Daytrip in autumn with the "new ferries" without anything costs 1 pax + car 44,80 one-way.
So this means: Cheap customers can travel cheaper if they bring their own food and drinks (sandwiches, fruits etc.) onboard.
But if you only want 1 x buffet or 1 x sauna (what all Finnish people want daily) - it would be better to book the old ferries so long this is possible... .
So i guess there will be in future 2 complete different groups of people onboard beside the truck-drivers:
A) People who choose to buy nothing extra onboard and eat and drink their own things and maybe only buy cheap alcohol in the shop.
B) People who choose to buy expensive extras onboard, they will use the restaurants, bars, buy expensive lux-cabins etc..
So in summary an interesting complete new route concept for the Kapellskär-route with nice comfortable ferries but with poor small cabins and very expensive prices onboard. They want get so much as possible "cheap picnic duty free alcohol-buyers" and furthermore the big money shall come from customers spending some hundred Euro for bigger lux cabins and good food, wine etc. . And furthermore with biggest truck-decks they can offer lowest freight-rates for all freight-customers because there is "unlimited" space onboard.
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