The charter cruise from Helsinki marked the first time a dedicated opera-themed voyage has brought audiences directly to Saaremaa Opera Days.

After arriving aboard the MS Victoria I Wednesday morning, passengers toured Kuressaare before attending a sold-out performance of Giuseppe Verdi's "La Traviata" by the Livorno, Italy-based Goldoni Theater in the courtyard of Kuressaare Castle.

Local guide Annika Tamm said nine buses met the ship at Saaremaa Harbor to take visitors into town, where they explored Kuressaare before the afternoon performance.

Riina Aamisepp, marketing manager for Eesti Kontsert, said organizers had long discussed using the island's deepwater harbor to bring audiences directly to the festival. The dream finally started to become a reality last fall.

"Last November, one of Finland's largest travel agencies, Ikaalisten Matkatoimisto, approached us with the idea," Aamisepp recalled.

The opera cruise's cultural program began even before the ship reached Estonia, as soloists from the Estonian National Opera performed a half-hour concert on board Tuesday evening.

"We put together a lovely half-hour program, and were given a very warm reception," soprano Kadri Raalik said.

Start of a new tradition

Estonian National Opera marketing manager Rein Mikk said there was no doubt the cruise passengers were real opera fans.

"It was a great touch by organizers to bring a musicologist on board to walk the nearly thousand passengers through a deeper look into the story of 'La Traviata,'" Mikk added.

Organizers hope the voyage will become an annual tradition.

Aamisepp said Eesti Kontsert, Ikaalisten Matkatoimisto and Portugal's São Carlos National Theater — next year's featured guest company — are already planning another opera cruise for 2027, with hopes of eventually attracting visitors from Sweden as well.

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