The legendary ship «Marina», which sailed for the last time in 2005, as the oldest passenger ship in the world with a licence to sail, should, by the beginning of the next tourism season, become a three-star ship-hotel with around 60 beds, a restaurant, a café, entertainment facilities and a mini wellness centre.

«Marina» has been docked for the past five years in the Lošinj harbour, where after seventy years of sailing it became a hospitality facility. But recently, the ship was moved to the harbour in Rijeka, where it will soon once again serve as a hospitality facility and in the next year it should start serving as a «floating hotel».

This ship was built in 1936 in Denmark, for a Swedish shipmaker. Its first name, «Kron Princessan Ingrid» was given to it by its godmother, the Swedish princess at the time, who later became the queen. For years the ship sailed the Friedrickshafen – Goeteborg route, until it was replaced by newer, larger and more modern ships. Originally, «Marina» was 64 metres long but after 14 years at sea it was lengthened by another 8 meters. It had a capacity to hold more than 300 passengers and could reach a speed of 14 knotts.

When it was bought by Lošinj in 1969, the ship was already called «Marina» and sailed for the first time into the Lošinj harbour in Novemeber of the same year. First it sailed to Rijeka from Mali Lošinj, Cres and Rabac and then for a short time kept a route for Italian Rimini. In 1971, a line was launched that has becaome somewhat of a trademark for this ship connecting Lošinj with Istria and Dalmatia.

The Tourist Board of Primorje-Gorje County
www.kvarner.hr