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45-589: Romantika was built in 2002 by Aker Finnyards , Rauma and she was the first ever newbuilding to be delivered to Tallink. Between 2002 and 2006 the Romantika was used on the Helsinki –Tallinn route, until she was replaced by the new MS Galaxy . After this she was transferred to the Tallinn– Stockholm route, sailing parallel with her sister MS Victoria I . After the delivery of MS  Baltic Queen

90-581: A cautiously positive answer Ratia contacted minister Vapaavuori who called the head of the family company Bernard Meyer. A Finnish delegation including Vapaavuori flew to Germany in November 2013 for a secret mission to sell a yard which the state did not own and neither had mandate to sell. Everything was done in secrecy because neither the Finnish government, nor Meyer Werft wanted that the Koreans knew about

135-489: A length of 361.011 m (1,184.42 ft) and a tonnage of 228,081  GT . The gross tonnage (GT) of Oasis of the Seas at launch was 225,282, but it was expanded to 226,838 GT when additional cabins were added to Deck 14 in 2019. Her displacement —the actual mass of the vessel—is estimated at 100,000 metric tons (110,000 short tons), slightly less than that of an American Nimitz -class aircraft carrier . To keep

180-569: A nominal price, which, however, included liabilities of about €20 million. MS Oasis of the Seas Oasis of the Seas is a cruise ship operated by Royal Caribbean International . She is the first of her class , the Oasis class, whose ships were the largest passenger ships in the world, until surpassed in 2023 by the Icon class . Her hull was laid down in November 2007 and she

225-443: A total of 6,660 people. Inflatable life rafts provide for additional passengers and crew. The ship features a zip-line , an ice-skating rink, a surf simulator, an aquatic amphitheater, a moving bar, a casino, a miniature golf course, multiple night clubs, several bars and lounges, a karaoke club, comedy club, five swimming pools, three waterslides, volleyball and basketball courts, youth zones, and nurseries for children. Oasis of

270-476: Is 50 millimetres (2.0 in) longer, although this may have been caused by ambient temperature differences at the times the measurements were made. In May 2016, her second sister ship Harmony of the Seas became the new record holder with a length of 362.12 metres (1,188.1 ft), and in March 2018, Symphony of the Seas , the fourth member of the Oasis class, became the new world's largest cruise ship with

315-775: The Romantika was transferred to the Stockholm–; Riga route in May 2009. Simultaneously with this she was changed from Estonian to Latvian registry. When the MS ; Silja Europa was chartered out from Tallink service in August 2014, the Romantika returned to the Tallinn–Mariehamn–;Stockholm route. In December 2016, with the return of Silja Europa, Tallink reorganized the routes of their ferries and Romantika

360-528: The Turku shipyard was sold to Meyer Werft and the state-owned Finnish Industry Investment, and renamed Meyer Turku Oy . STX Finland Oy was a descendant of different shipyard companies. Wärtsilä operated the shipyards of Helsinki and Turku since the 1930s. Wärtsilä Marine went bankrupt in 1989 after merging with Valmet shipyards. Masa-Yards was established by Martin Saarikangas with financing from

405-450: The "new" Aker Finnyards Oy. The name of the company was changed to Aker Yards Oy on 7 June 2006, and to STX Finland Cruise Oy on 23 November 2008. Since September 2009 the company has been named STX Finland Oy. STX Finland and its predecessors built many luxurious cruise ships , including the very first modern purpose-built cruise ship, the Song of Norway . More recent cruise ships built by

450-631: The Seas in July 2024. As of November 2024, Oasis of the Seas conducts cruises in the Caribbean from her home port of Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Oasis of the Seas surpassed the Freedom -class cruise ships (also owned by Royal Caribbean) to become the largest cruise ship in the world at that time. She was herself surpassed by her sister ship Allure of the Seas , which

495-526: The Seas also features the largest dry-slide at sea, the Ultimate Abyss. Many of the ship's interiors were extensively decorated by muralist Clarissa Parish . The vessel was ordered in February 2006 and designed under the name "Project Genesis". Her keel was laid down on 12 November 2007 by STX Europe Turku Shipyard , Finland . The company announced that full funding for Oasis of the Seas

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540-556: The Seas was almost struck by Carnival Legend while in port in Cozumel, Mexico. Carnival Legend was on the receiving end of a collision with Carnival Glory earlier that day. Oasis of the Seas was scheduled to cruise the Mediterranean out of Barcelona in summer 2019 before undergoing a major drydock at the end of the season. After spending nearly three months in dry dock receiving upgrades and new amenities, Oasis of

585-678: The United States. While exiting the Baltic Sea , the vessel passed underneath the Great Belt Fixed Link in Denmark on 31 October 2009 at 23:18  UTC . The bridge has a clearance of 65 m (213 ft) above the water; Oasis normally has an air draft of 72 m (236 ft). The passage under the bridge was possible due to retraction of the telescoping funnels , and an additional 30 cm (12 in)

630-467: The company included the two Oasis -class vessels, Oasis of the Seas (2009) and Allure of the Seas (2010) which held the record for largest cruise ships in the world until 2015 when Harmony of the Seas was launched at STX Europe Chantiers de l'Atlantique shipyard in France. At end of 2012 STX negotiated with RCCL about an order of a large cruise ship. In order to secure the financial basis of

675-443: The first float-out of the vessel the tugboats that were pulling the ship from its dock failed to control the ship, resulting in the port side of the ship hitting the dock. This resulted in some cosmetic damage and minor damage to the hull, which was repaired and did not affect the final delivery date of the vessel. The ship was completed and turned over to Royal Caribbean on 28 October 2009. Two days later, she departed Finland for

720-605: The following months. The Finnish government started pushing the Korean owner; this step was under code name Project Santa Cruz . Vapaavuori travelled to Korea in May 2014 telling that the government has found "an unnamed industrial partner" which is interested in Turku shipyard. The STX representatives possibly thought that it was a local consortium. The founder of STX Kang Duk-soo was removed from office due to charge of fraud and this probably affected on STX to become more willing to sell

765-574: The global cruise ship building capacity. Moreover, STX sold the Perno shipyard area for €23.5 million and the state gave innovation support to STX. Financing of the TUI vessels was secured with these actions. The Finnish government and STX made a restructuring plan together with a consulting company in June 2013. According to the report, there would not be sufficient orders for both Turku and Rauma yards, with

810-477: The government did not want to have a financially unstable business partner. Instead, the government took another strategy – trying to find a new owner for Turku shipyard in secret from the Koreans and buying Helsinki-based naval engineering company Aker Arctic . The man behind the plot was Minister of Economic Affairs, Jan Vapaavuori . Despite the high pressure, in December 2012 the government refused to provide

855-469: The increasingly weakening situation forced STX to sell more of its property. Finally, STX sold Aker Arctic to Finnish Industry Investment on 17 December 2013. The final step was finding a new operator for the Turku shipyard. The secret operation was under name Project Town Hall on classified papers. The Finnish government sought for a credible buyer for the yard and the German Meyer Werft

900-441: The lights, elevators, electronics, galleys, water treatment plant, and all of the other systems used on the operation of the vessel, as well as propulsion. Propulsion is provided by three 20,000-kilowatt (26,800 hp) Azipods , ABB's brand of electric azimuth thrusters . These pods, suspended under the stern, contain electric motors driving 20-foot (6 m) propellers. Because they are rotatable, no rudders are needed to steer

945-407: The loan, with the formal excuse that EU does not allow giving subsidies to unprofitable companies. Turku shipyard lost the order which went to French Saint-Nazaire located Chantiers de l'Atlantique where the government was more generous. The decision of the Finnish government was received with consternation and vast criticism from every direction; however, the main opposition group Centre Party

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990-506: The main dining room into three separate restaurants. On 1 April 2019, Oasis of the Seas was undergoing work at a dry dock in the Bahamas when two cranes collapsed onto the ship. Eight people suffered non-life-threatening injuries, and extensive damage to the ship required it to relocate to Cádiz for repairs. The ship returned to service on 5 May, but three sailings were cancelled during its downtime. On 20 December 2019, Oasis of

1035-409: The main engines at full power is 1,377 US gallons (5,210 L; 1,147 imp gal) of fuel oil per engine per hour for the 16-cylinder engines and 1,033 US gallons (3,910 L; 860 imp gal) per engine per hour for the 12-cylinder engines. The total output of these prime movers , some 97,020 kilowatts (130,110 hp), is converted to electricity, used in hotel power for operation of

1080-426: The mandate to make decisions in the company, and the creditors, Korean Development Bank as the biggest one, had its word in the financial decisions of the heavily indebted company. The Finnish government got crucially important support from RCCL, main owner of TUI Cruises. RCCL made concessions to secure the financial basis. Speculatively, RCCL wanted to save the yard because it did not want to lose an important part of

1125-416: The new project. This led to opening of the financial basis of the TUI orders. The future of Finnish shipbuilding looked bad; a yard without order backlog would be worthless. Therefore, the ongoing projects had to be urgently secured. While the Finnish subsidiary was in crisis, the Korean owner remained passive. Negotiations with STX were challenging because it was difficult to find the right persons who have got

1170-504: The plan because otherwise the price of the yard would have gone up. During meeting in Papenburg it came out that Meyer Werft was seriously interested in buying Turku shipyard and investing on it. During the visit the delegation noticed that the company puts a lot of effort on productivity and commits on their business; for the delegation, there was no doubt that Meyer Werft would be an ideal operator for Turku yard. STX remained silent for

1215-433: The plans of the government: the shipbuilding facilities were saved for a new start. Later, a new shipbuilding company Rauma Marine Constructions was established on the western coast. The Helsinki shipyard was operated by Arctech which was jointly owned by STX Finland and Russian USC . The Finnish politicians urged Russian owners to buy the Korean half of Arctech. USC became a sole owner in December 2014. The next step

1260-540: The project, STX sent a request for loan of 50 million euros to the Finnish government and a copy of the request to media. The Finnish government, then led by Katainen Cabinet , was put into a difficult situation. Employment at Turku yard was a sensitive topic for both ruling parties the National Coalition and the Social Democrats . While the sum was relatively small, financial status of STX

1305-487: The recommendation that the Rauma yard should be closed down. At first STX was reluctant to close the Rauma yard, however the management was finally convinced about the need to cut down capacity; STX Europe was in cash crisis and was forced to liquidate some of its property. In September 2013 STX announced the closure of the Rauma yard and the sale of the area to the town of Rauma. While this led to an outcry, it fit perfectly with

1350-457: The ship stable without increasing the draft excessively, the designers created a wide hull; 9.3 metres (31 ft) of the ship sits beneath the water, a small percentage of the ship's overall height. Wide, shallow ships such as this tend to be "snappy", meaning that they can snap back upright after a wave has passed, which can be uncomfortable. This effect, however, is mitigated by the vessel's large size. The cruise ship's officers were pleased with

1395-575: The ship's stability and performance during the transatlantic crossing, when the vessel, in order to allow finishing work to go on, slowed and changed course in the face of winds "almost up to hurricane force" and seas in excess of 12 metres (39 ft). The ship's power comes from six medium-speed, marine-diesel generating sets: three 16-cylinder Wärtsilä 16V46D common rail engines producing 18,860 kilowatts (25,290 hp) each and three similar 12-cylinder Wärtsilä 12V46D engines producing 13,860 kilowatts (18,590 hp) each. The fuel consumption of

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1440-416: The ship. Docking is assisted by four 5,500-kilowatt (7,380 hp) transverse bow thrusters . Additional power comes from solar panels fitted by BAM Energy Group , which provide energy for lighting in the promenade and central park areas. The installation cost US$ 750,000 and covers 1,950 square metres (21,000 sq ft) on deck 19. The ship carries 18 lifeboats that hold 370 people each, for

1485-475: The shipping companies to finish the ships under construction, eventually taking over the operations of Wärtsilä's former shipyards. In the mid-90s Kvaerner purchased Masa-Yards and Kvaerner Masa-Yards was born. In 1991 the shipbuilding businesses of Hollming Oy of Rauma and Rauma-Repola of Rauma were merged to form Finnyards . This company was purchased by Kvaerner and became Aker Finnyards. In January 2005 Kvaerner Masa-Yards and Aker Finnyards merged to form

1530-547: The shipyard. Meyer Werft representatives visited at Turku shipyard in the same month and their calculations showed that the yard could be operated profitably. The company made a non-committing quotation for the yard, but buying was subject to having new orders in addition to the ones under construction. The government and Meyer Werft contacted RCCL and TUI Cruises, and after long negotiations, Turku shipyard received orders for two cruise ships from TUI Cruises. Meyer Werft and Finnish state bought Turku shipyard from STX in August 2014 for

1575-457: The way to her intended home port of Port Everglades in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The ship arrived there on 13 November 2009, where tropical plants were installed prior to some introductory trips and her maiden voyage on 5 December 2009. Oasis of the Seas had a minor refit in winter 2011. She underwent a second drydock refit in October 2014. During drydock the ship was modified by dividing

1620-624: Was a Finnish shipbuilding company operating three shipyards in Finland, in Turku , Helsinki and Rauma , employing some 2,500 people. It was part of STX Europe , a group of international shipbuilding companies owned by the South Korean STX Corporation . Half of Helsinki yard was sold to Russian USC in 2010. In September 2013, STX Finland announced that the Rauma shipyard would be closed in June 2014. In August 2014,

1665-481: Was announced on 1 November 2021, and was due to last three years with two one-year extensions. Holland Norway Lines ceased operations on 30 August 2023 due to financial difficulties, and as of that date Romantika was docked in Emden . The charter agreement for Romantika was terminated on 1 September 2023, before the charter agreement's normal expiry date. Aker Finnyards STX Finland Oy , formerly Aker Yards Oy ,

1710-464: Was completed and delivered to Royal Caribbean in October 2009. At the time of construction, Oasis of the Seas set a new capacity record of carrying over 6,000 passengers. The first of her class, she was joined by sister ships Allure of the Seas in December 2010, Harmony of the Seas in May 2016, Symphony of the Seas in April 2018, and Wonder of the Seas in March 2022, as well as Utopia of

1755-583: Was gained by the squat effect whereby vessels traveling at speed in a shallow channel will be drawn deeper into the water. Approaching the bridge at 23 knots (43 km/h; 26 mph), the ship passed under it with less than 60 centimetres (2 ft) of clearance. Proceeding through the English Channel , Oasis of the Seas stopped briefly in the Solent so that 300 shipyard workers who were on board doing finishing work could disembark, then left on

1800-471: Was moderate at judging the decision-making politicians, as the party leaders were aware of the poor condition of STX. STX Turku yard had two cruise ships under construction for the German TUI Cruises . The shipowner as well as other financiers of the projects had observed the financial situation of the shipbuilder and became distrustful on STX after the Finnish government's refusal of financing

1845-474: Was poor and according to an analysis the actually needed sum would be larger. It looked obvious that STX tried to press the Finnish government to first give a smaller sum which it would later use as a leverage for subsequent demands. The government was in a politically difficult situation, as the public, opposition parties and also own party members wanted to lend the money in order to secure the valuable order. The other option would have been becoming joint owner but

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1890-491: Was secured on 15 April 2009. The name Oasis of the Seas resulted from a competition held in May 2008. The ship was formally named on 30 November 2009 during a charity sailing for Make-A-Wish Foundation . At this ceremony the ship was sponsored by seven "godmothers", each representing one of the seven neighborhoods on board. Her godmothers are Gloria Estefan , Michelle Kwan , Dara Torres , Keshia Knight Pulliam , Shawn Johnson , Jane Seymour and Daisy Fuentes . During

1935-472: Was selected a strong candidate. The family company had significant cruise ship operators as customers but the yard is located in Papenburg , far inland next to a river that sets limits to the maximum size of the ships. Discussion with Meyer Werft was opened by STX Finland board member Lauri Ratia who travelled to Papenburg under assignment of the Finnish government and in secret from his employer. After hearing

1980-492: Was to save Aker Arctic , a Helsinki-based naval engineering company specialised on icebreakers and arctic offshore projects. Again, the STX management as well as representatives of Korean Development Bank, were not willing to discuss. The Finnish government had to organise meeting by help of diplomacy, telling that it is not appropriate to reject a meeting with a minister. The company management did not want to make decisions but later

2025-624: Was transferred to the Stockholm - Riga route from December 12. From July to September 2021 Romantika was chartered to Morocco's Tanger-Med Port Authority for services between Morocco and Sète in France. On 13 October 2021, she arrived in Glasgow to provide accommodation for people attending the COP26 summit . In April 2022, Romantika entered service with Holland Norway Lines on a Kristiansand - Eemshaven routing on charter. This charter

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