Kristina Regina

Kristina Regina is a handsome little vessel. Het ronnage is just 4.295 and she is 99,83 meters long, 15,25 meters wide and her draft is 5,50 meters. The ship was built in 1959, when she was launched at the 19th of march at the Oskarshamn Shipyard in Oskarshamn, Sweden under yardnumber 353. She was named Bore for the Bore Shipping Company for the ferryservice between Abo (Turku) in Finland and Mariehamn and Stockholm in Sweden. Also, she was to be used on the Stockholm to Helsingfors ferry service.        Bore was the last of a kind, being the last steamship build in Scandinavia. She has a very classic profile, with two rather large but well-proportioned funnels midships, two masts and a promenade deck. The ship was delivered to her owners in 1960 and since then she started her sailings.

In july 1970, Bore collided with the Dutch ship Edda close to Turku. There was some damage, but nothing severe. The ship sailed steadily for the company, that was absorbed into the Silja Line from 1975 onwards. The Bore Shipping Company seized to excist. In august the following year, Silja Line discontinued the sailings of the former Bore Line and the Bore was taken out of service and laid up. Just 16 years old by then, the ship was still young and on the 10th of october 1977 she was bought by the Jacobs Line, a company owned by the former owner of the Bore Shipping Company. She was renamed Borea and again commenced sailings in the Northern waters of Europe, starting a ferryservice between Skalleftea and Jacobstad. In january 1979, the ship was chartered as a housing vessel for workers at an oilrig near the Scottish coast and she returned to her sailings from september that year. Another charter followed as a housing vessel for workers at the freedom monument in Alger, Algeria.

In april 1984, the Borea was sold to Ab Helsingfors Steamship Company to be chartered to the Finnish Aura Line, but this never happened. The ship was laid up in the Finnish port and the company Aura Line was declared bankrupt the following october. One year later, in october 1985, she was sold to a Canadian firm called Aqua Culture Industries (trading as Vanderbildt Steamship Company) based in Vancouver, and it was meant to rebuilt the Borea as a luxury cruiseliner with the new name of Vanderbildt. Although it seemed possible, nothing happened and the ship stayed in Turku.

Finally, the small ship was bought by a family owned company named Rannikolinjat, based at Turku and founded in 1985. This company started her sailings with the even smaller Kristina Brahe, that was built in 1943 as a US war ship. The Borea was renamed Kristina Regina, after the 17th century Queen Kristina of Sweden and Finland. in april of that year, and rebuilt as a cruiseship, not a luxury though. She was a very classic ship and also her interiours were to be very classical with lots of wood. A big rebuilding took place and her old steamengine was replaced by a more modern dieselengine. Also, the cardeck was rebuilt and new cabins were added here. The rebuilding took more then a year and she finally sailed her first Baltic cruise in april 1989. Luckily, her profile largely was kept intact, with just some small alterations. The company was restyled as Kristina Cruises the following year and the owner of the company was also her captain. Kristina Regina can now take 290 passengers and 55 crew on board and she sails at a modest 16,5 knots. Mostly, she cruises the Baltic, but she is also seen in other parts of Europe. A large modernisation took place in 2001, but she still kept her classic interiours and exteriour. Ships like her are now very rare to see sailing with passengers and in 2010 it was announced the ship would be taken out of service. She stopped sailing and her fate now is uncertain.