MS ''Finnmarken'' (call sign LDBE), formerly known as MS ''Otto Sverdrup'', is a Norwegian coastal ship owned and operated by Hurtigruten ASA. It was built in 2002 at Kværner Kleven, Ulsteinvik, Norway, and cost around 750 million Norwegian Kroner (nok). It was part of the Hurtigruten coastal route travelling between
Bergen
Bergen (, ) is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestland county on the Western Norway, west coast of Norway. Bergen is the list of towns and cities in Norway, second-largest city in Norway after the capital Oslo.
By May 20 ...
and
Kirkenes
(Norwegian language, Norwegian; ), (Northern Sami language, Northern Sami; , or is a List of towns and cities in Norway, town in Sør-Varanger Municipality in Finnmark county, in the far northeastern part of Norway. The town lies on a peninsu ...
from 2002 to 2009. In 2010 it was leased as a hotel ship in Australia. The ship returned to Norway in 2012 as a part of the coastal route. Since 2024, it has sailed bi-weekly from Hamburg to the North Cape and back as part of Hurtigruten's Signature product.
Between 2021 and April 2025 it operated under the name ''Otto Sverdrup''. It was renamed to MS ''Finnmarken'' in April 2025.
MS ''Finnmarken'' is the third Hurtigruten ship with this name. Previous ships were DS ''Finmarken'' from 1912 and MS ''Finnmarken'' from 1956, which is currently part of the Hurtigruten museum in
Stokmarknes
or is a town and the administrative centre of Hadsel Municipality in Nordland county, Norway. It is located on the northern coast of the island of Hadseløya and on the small, neighboring island of Børøya. The town has a population (2023) o ...
, Norway.
Design and description
''Finnmarken'' has a
gross tonnage
Gross tonnage (GT, G.T. or gt) is a nonlinear measure of a ship's overall internal volume. Gross tonnage is different from gross register tonnage. Neither gross tonnage nor gross register tonnage should be confused with measures of mass or weig ...
(GT) of 15,690 tons, , and . Loading and unloading is done with truck through a large side port on the port side. It has a car capacity of 47, 628 beds that can accommodate up to 1,000 passengers, and a top speed of .
The ship's main engines are four-stroke
diesel engine
The diesel engine, named after the German engineer Rudolf Diesel, is an internal combustion engine in which Combustion, ignition of diesel fuel is caused by the elevated temperature of the air in the cylinder due to Mechanics, mechanical Compr ...
s made by
Wärtsilä
Wärtsilä Oyj Abp (), trading internationally as Wärtsilä Corporation, is a Finnish corporation, Finnish company which manufactures and services power sources and other equipment in the Marine propulsion, marine and energy markets. The core ...
. The engines are paired two by two. Anterior engines are 9 cylinder W9L32 with each, and the rear are 6 cylinder W6L32 with each. The stated overall performance is . The propulsion system is geared so that it can run in five different operating modes with both diesel-electric and conventional mechanical transmission. This allows one main engine to drive both propellers simultaneously. In addition, ''Finnmarken'' has two Brunvoll FU 80 LTC 2250 thrusters at the bow and a submersible Ulstein kompassthruster (azimuth pod) in the stern. Electrical power is produced by two 2500 kVA shaft generators, and a Mitsubishi S6A3-MTPA diesel emergency generator.
MS Finnmarken has a maximum capacity of 526 guests, with 224 ordinary cabins, 18 mini-suites and 14 suites. The ship has eight decks and facilities include an outdoor swimming pool, two hot tubs, fitness centre, bar, library and four conference rooms. There are three restaurants on board: Flora, Brasserie Árran and Røst.
Since 2005, both ''Finnmarken'' and have been considered for
hospital ship
A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating healthcare, medical treatment facility or hospital. Most are operated by the military forces (mostly navy, navies) of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or ...
s in the event of a war. The vessel is self-sufficient in terms of water and electricity, and waste management happens on board, which means that the ship can be at sea for long periods of time. With ten days' notice, the ship should be operational as floating field hospitals. The car deck should be made to hospitals, and will house 70 doctors and nurses. As a hospital ship, ''Finnmarken'' could accommodate 200 beds in case of war, crisis or disaster, nationally or internationally.
History
Plans for a new ship began in 1999. OVDS signed a construction contract with Kleven shipyard in
Ulsteinvik
is a town in Ulstein Municipality in Møre og Romsdal county, Norway. The town is the commercial and administrative centre of the municipality and as such, Ulsteinvik contains 74% of the municipal population. The town has a population (2024) ...
with an option for two sister ships. Kleven had also built Hurtiguten's and . The ship was launched on 15 September 2001. On 4 April 2002 the ship was christened by Transportation Minister
Torild Skogsholm
Torhild Skogsholm (born 18 October 1959, in Bodø) is a Norwegian politician (Liberal Party).Torild Skogsholm in
Orkney
Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider it outdated. Part of the Northern Isles along with Shetland, ...
, the
Hebrides
The Hebrides ( ; , ; ) are the largest archipelago in the United Kingdom, off the west coast of the Scotland, Scottish mainland. The islands fall into two main groups, based on their proximity to the mainland: the Inner Hebrides, Inner and Ou ...
,
Dublin
Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...
,
Southampton
Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...
,
Amsterdam
Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...
,
Hamburg
Hamburg (, ; ), officially the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg,. is the List of cities in Germany by population, second-largest city in Germany after Berlin and List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, 7th-lar ...
,
Copenhagen
Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...
,
Oslo
Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...
, and
Stavanger
Stavanger, officially the Stavanger Municipality, is a city and municipalities of Norway, municipality in Norway. It is the third largest city and third largest metropolitan area in Norway (through conurbation with neighboring Sandnes) and the ...
. ''Finnmarken'' began its regular route along the Norwegian coast on 20 April 2002.
During a storm on the night of 13 November 2004, ''Finnmarken'' suffered damage to an emergency exit hatch as a result of breakers. The ship began to take on water and the captain made the decision to return to Ålesund where the ship was repaired and continued on its way a day later.
The ship was leased for use as a
hotel ship
A hotelship is a passenger ship which is used for a period as a hotel. A botel or boatel is a boat that serves as a hotel or hostel. Currently there are few permanent hotel ships. The word is a portmanteau of boat and hotel. Botels may range fr ...
in connection with the development of the Greater Gorgon gas fields in Western Australia. The contract was for 18 months with the option of extending the lease for an additional 18 months, and was worth 135 million
AUD
The Australian dollar ( sign: $; code: AUD; also abbreviated A$ or sometimes AU$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; and also referred to as the dollar or Aussie dollar) is the official currency and legal tender of Au ...
. While in Australia the ship was painted all white and the car decks were converted into laundries and changing rooms. ''Finnmarken''s return to Norway replaced MS ''Nordstjernen'' (built 1956). Before the ship returned to Norway, it was sent to Singapore in order to repaint and restore the ship to Norwegian standards. ''Finnmarken'' returned to Norway 16 February 2012 and began the regular route between Bergen and Kirkenes.
In early 2020, the ship underwent a US$35 million renovation and was renamed MS ''Otto Sverdrup''. In 2021, the ship joined the expedition fleet of Hurtigruten. From 2024, it was added back into the Hurtigruten fleet for bi-weekly sailings to the North Cape as part of their Signature product. Consequently, it was renamed back to its original name ''Finnmarken'' during a regular drydock in April 2025.