Mariehamn Aland (Finland)

Mariehamn is a port city and the capital of Aland Islands - an autonomous Finnish territory that groups ~6500 islands, with land area approx 1580 km2 (610 mi2) and population around 30,000. Mariehamn City has population around 12,000. The city seats Aland's Government and Parliament, and ~40% of Aland's total population, most of which is Swedish-speaking (88%).

Port Mariehamn (locode FIMHQ) is Aland's principal seaport serving both cargo carriers and passenger ships. Cruise vessels and ferries dock in the Western Harbour. Aland's other ferry port is Langnas Harbour.

The town was established in 1861 and named after the Russian empress Maria Alexandrovna (1824-80/born as "Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhine", the wife of Russia's emperor Aleksandr II Nikolayevich/1818-81).

Sodragatan is one of the oldest streets, with many wooden houses from the 19th-century. Mariehamn is on a peninsula and features two important harbor ports - one on the eastern coast and one on the western. Both harbor waterways are ice-free almost the whole year-round and have no tides.

• Western Harbour is a major international port serving daily traffic to mainland Finland, Sweden and Estonia. The main reason why Baltic Sea ferries stop at Port Mariehamn is that Aland Islands are not part of the EU's customs zone. This means that duty-free merchandise can be sold onboard these ships. Aland and Mariehamn have a highly reputable heritage in shipping. Anchored in Western Harbour is the museum ship Pommern (Flying P-Liner class iron-hulled sailing ship built in Glasgow Scotland and launched in 1903 as "Mneme").
• Eastern Harbour has one of Scandinavia's largest yacht marinas. The Dutch steamship Jan Nieveen (aka FP von Knorring) can also be found there.

Mariehamn Airport is located in the neighboring Jomala, approx 3 km (2 mi) northwest of downtown.

As cruise port, Mariehamns Hamn is visited mainly by smaller-sized luxury ships and superyachts. In 2019, the port had scheduled 24 ship calls (40% increase over 2018).

Mariehamn Aland cruise terminal