Within hours of her arrival in Esbjerg on 29 September following the final sailing from Harwich to close a DFDS route with a history stretching back 134 years, ro-pax vessel Sirena Seaways sailed for Frederikstad, Norway to collect military equipment for transportation to the Danish ports of Aalborg and then Kalundborg. There was also to be a spell of engine works before a move to the Baltic to boost DFDS capacity between Estonia and Sweden. After serving Harwich since 2002, the 22,382gt Sirena Seaways’ first Baltic sailing from Paldiski to Kapellskar was scheduled for 6 October.
The current deck and engine room staff stayed with the ship, while Estonian catering staff were brought in as Sirena Seaways replaced Patria Seaways (1991/18,332gt), which has been on the route since 2011. Her previous service included spells as Stena Traveller on the North Sea, English Channel and Irish Sea before and after time with TT-Line as TT-Traveller.