MS Gabriella is a cruiseferry sailing on a route connecting Helsinki, Finland and Stockholm, Sweden for Viking Line. She was built in 1992 in Brodosplit, Croatia as Frans Suell for service with Euroway. Between 1994 and 1997 she sailed as Silja Scandinavia for Silja Line. Gabriella has sister ships Amorella in Viking Line fleet, Isabelle operated by Tallink, and a third one, Crown Seaways, operated by DFDS Seaways. Concept and construction Euroway was a concept developed during the latter half of the 1980s by the Sweden-based Sea-Link Shipping. The new brand was planned to operate two state-of-the-art cruiseferries between Malmö in Sweden and Lübeck in Germany via Travemünde in Germany, with the service aimed in particular at conference groups. Sea-link decided to order the ships from Brodosplit in Croatia, which at that time still was part of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. The ships were based on the same design as the Amorella and Isabella that had been built by the same shipyard for the Finland-based SF Line for Viking Line traffic in 1988 and 1989, respectively. The Euroway sisters were designed with a somewhat different layout of public spaces and cabins, as well as an additional cabin deck. The order for the first ship, Frans Suell, was placed on 28 September 1989, with the delivery date projected in mid-1991. The ship was launched on 23 January 1991, but due to the Croatian War of Independence her construction was severely delayed, and she was not ready for her first sea trials until January 1992. Following her second sea trials in March 1992 Frans Suell sailed to Rijeka for finalization of her construction and to receive the Euroway livery. The ship was finally delivered to her owners on 4 May 1992 and left Split for Malmö. Service history 1992–1994: Frans Suell On 16 May 1992 Frans Suell was christened in Malmö by the Swedish opera singer Birgit Nilsson. The following day she set on her maiden voyage from Malmö to Travemünde and Lübeck, with only invited guests on board. On 19 May 1992 she began normal service on the Malmö–Travemünde route, with a daily departure from both ports. The service had a troubled start, as marketing had been difficult due to delays in the construction of the ship. Due to restrictions placed by the city of Malmö on traffic through the city, no trucks could be carried on board, and