Victoria I arrives at Saaremaa harbor with nearly a thousand guests from Finland

TALLINN - The Saaremaa Opera Days have generated exceptional interest among Finns this year, and on Wednesday, Tallink's cruise ship Victoria I docked at Saaremaa harbor, bringing nearly a thousand passengers from Finland to the island.

This makes them the festival's largest group of foreign visitors and solidifies the Saaremaa Opera Days' position as one of the most significant regional cultural events.

"The interest from our northern neighbors in the Saaremaa Opera Days has been steadily growing in recent years, which is why we, in cooperation with the Finnish company Ikaalisten Matkatoimisto (IMT), have offered enthusiasts the opportunity to visit the festival on an opera cruise," said Eha Pank, head of Eesti Kontsert. She added that a seamless and comfortable journey has been created for Finnish opera lovers, including convenient transportation, excursions, and a magnificent opera performance.

Pank noted that the continuously growing interest from visitors demonstrates the festival's high artistic level and that Saaremaa remains a favorite destination for cultural tourists.

The headliner for the 2026 Saaremaa Opera Days is the Goldoni Opera Theatre from Livorno, Italy, which will present P. Mascagni's "Cavalleria rusticana" and G. Puccini's "Gianni Schicchi," G. Verdi's "La Traviata," G. Donizetti's "L'elisir d'amore," an Italian film music gala, and an opera gala to the Saaremaa audience. In addition to the popular performance of "La Traviata" on Thursday at 8 p.m., the audience can attend an extra performance on Wednesday at 2 p.m. in the Kuressaare Castle courtyard.

Over the years, the Saaremaa Opera Days have evolved into one of Estonia's most anticipated cultural events, attracting both international guests and visiting theaters to the island. Theaters from the United States, Latvia, Turkey, Georgia, Ukraine, Italy, Poland, Germany, China, Hungary, Moldova, Spain, and South Korea have performed in Saaremaa throughout the years. The festival has also collaborated with the Estonian National Opera and the Vanemuine Theater.

The opera cruise is organized in collaboration with Eesti Kontsert and the Finnish company IMT. In addition to the cruise, Finnish opera enthusiasts are brought to the island by long-standing partner tour operators and the Finnair Helsinki-Kuressaare flight route, which is operating this summer.