Tallink Victoria I - Aalsten

Cruise ships are exciting, aren 't they? You never know what kind of romantic shenanigans and slapstick adventures you run into on the high seas, especially if they involve Charo and Gopher. Oh, wait a minute, I 'm having an acid trip and flashing back to The Love Boat circa 1977. No, the Victoria was big but no Pacific Princess, and I didn 't see the Landers sisters anywhere near the swimming pool. Just a lot of hirsute Estonians in the communal hot tub. This was the overnight cruise Jamie W. and I took from Talinn, the capital of Estonia (yes, Estonia to Stockholm. We already had a similar experience on the Silja Line Serenade from Stockholm to Helsinki, so we knew the routine pretty well by this point in our Scandinavian maritime vacation. The cabin was A class again and this time a bit roomier, a nice surprise since we got tired of falling into the toilet after taking a shower (photo: [hidden link] . There was no central promenade which took up a lot of space on several floors of the previous boat. No, the restaurants and shops were mostly on two of the decks, and you still had to make a reservation in advance to get dinner at a reasonable hour. We shared a rather middling dinner in the central dining room starting with the €13 Mussels Mariniere (photo: [hidden link] and the €11 Caesar Salad with Free Range Chicken (photo: [hidden link] . Not bad but our main entrees consisted of the chewy €19 BBQ Pork Ribs with French Fries (photo: [hidden link] and the rubbery €21 Flank Steak with Potato Purée (photo: [hidden link] . None of these dishes appeared to reflect the chef 's finest hour. However, our mutually bloated feeling meant we weren 't about to embarrass ourselves in the disco where drunken Europeans of all stripes had already taken over with brio early in the trip (photo: [hidden link] . The morning brought new hope with the complimentary Breakfast Buffet offering quite a selection of Nordic specialties like smoked salmon and a lot of sausages (photo: [hidden link] . However, the best part of the trip was coming upon the Stockholm Archipelago where the picturesque sight of all the islands meant we were nearing our final destination (photo: [hidden link] . This was a far cry from the dense fog we were escaping when we left Stockholm for Helsinki and couldn 't tell where we were headed. Oh look, I think I see Doc and Isaac with the Landers sisters. FOOD 3 stars...wouldn 't really come for the food if that 's what draws you to a cruise AMBIANCE 3 stars...dated but functional SERVICE 3 stars...barely present...where 's Julie McCoy when you need her? TOTAL 3 stars...really the only way to get from Talinn to Stockholm

My husband and I took the ship Victoria 1 Tallink Ferry Company from Stockholm, Sweden to Tallin, Estonia. It was a delightful surprise, indeed. Taking the trip was like a mini Carnival Cruise Vacation. The ship has a large open ' Sun Deck ' on the top 9th level with chairs and tables complete with entertainment singer with guitar and drinks available for purchase. We spent a long time here enjoying the beautiful Archipelago Islands. Cabins are very similiar to Carnival Line. One difference is the size of the window. Unlike the small round window typically provided on Carnival, the Victoria has a huge window that is perfect to see all the islands and birds see photo . There is a lot to do on the ship! The shopping was unbelievable. They have a gigantic store area complete with shopping carts! There is even a casino and disco. I have included a photo of the children 's play area. The buffet food selection is so big, we decided to pass and we ate at the grill restaurant very nice! . There are TV 's in the cabin and all announcements were made in Swedish and English. We didn 't hear a sound all night, and slept well. The ship is clean and the crew were all professional. Highly recommend this trip bargain for $100! That lasts 15 hours start time was 1700 arrival 1000 next morning

It's a cheaper way to travel from Stockholm to Helsinki or vice versa. The ticket purchase was easy to do online. The boat had entertainment such as casino, duty free, shopping, clubs and bars. There is a swimming pool area if you are inclined to relax. The cabins are small but doable for a night.

We took Tallink Victoria to Tallinn and I could not be more pleased. For those of you from the US, I would say that the ship is on par or slightly nicer than being on Carnival Cruises. We boarded from the modern cruise terminal and found our rooms on deck 9. He and I booked a Premium A room with a double bed and a window. My other friends booked a B room and they were placed directly across from us. It was so convenient. Their room could sleep up to 4 in bunks. Both rooms had their own full bathroom with very good water pressure for showers. We took a stroll around the ship and there was so much to do. We got our exercise by playing the Xbox Just Dance game at the club space. We also shopped for duty free items and noticed that everyone else was stocking up on alcohol. We ate a very nice dinner at the Grill House. We watched a show at Starlight Cabaret. There was also a sauna you could use and a free escape room game to play. I 'm sure there were other parts of the ship that I did not even see. But we were tired and fell asleep pretty early. When we woke up the next morning, we were in Tallinn. I 'm not sure what what other reviewers were expecting but considering what we paid included one night 's accommodations and was cheaper than a flight to Tallinn, I would strongly recommend Tallink.

We took the overnight ferry from Stockholm to Tallinn, and it was a lot of fun, like being on a mini cruise. The ferry terminal itself was easy to get to, and to navigate through (honestly, security was pretty lax, based on what we're used to here in America, but there were no problems, so they seem to know what they're doing , and we booked a private cabin complete with queen bed and outside view, which I do recommend paying a bit more for. As we got on the ferry a bit early, we relaxed on the upper deck with some cocktails and snacks prior to leaving, which was fun. (It was a nice day, so tables on the deck did fill up quickly, but the view leaving Stockholm was gorgeous and worth braving the crowd for . We also booked the buffet, which was perfectly decent, and I would recommend it, especially if you want to try some different dishes, like a variety of herring. (Not kidding, some of the herring options were excellent. If you don't want the buffet, though, there are other dining options, or the duty free shop if you just want snacks and drinks. After dinner we wandered around the ship for awhile, bought some wine and gummy bears in duty free, and then went to one of the lounges to see a musical act and have a few drinks. Our cabin was pretty small (as can be expected , and in some need of updating, but as we were only there for one night, it was just fine and certainly not the worst place we've ever stayed! The view was great, though the sea did get pretty choppy late at night, so we didn't have the most restful sleep. Also, there is supposed to be a quiet time/curfew imposed after a certain hour, 11pm, I think but apparently the party cabin full of dudebros across the hallway didn't get the memo, as they literally drank and partied until dawn or so. Oh well, again, it was one night, and a fun experience. Departing the ferry was a bit of a cluster, as everyone literally crowds into a hallway with all of their luggage and it felt like a crowded cattle drive, but the ferry landed promptly and when the unloading door opened the mass exodus was fairly orderly. I honestly would take the ferry again, and suggest it for anyone looking to travel from Stockholm to Tallinn or Helsinki it's a different experience, and ends up being more cost effective than a quick flight, especially as the ticket is for transport and a hotel all in one.