 In 1948, "Rederi Ab Vasa-Umeå" was founded to start passenger traffic across Kvarken, the narrowest part of the Gulf of Bothnia.On 28 May, the company's first ship MS "Turisten" made its first journey from Vaasa in Finland to Umeå in Sweden.People living on both sides of Kvarken are predominantly Swedish-speaking, as were the company founders, hence the company originally only had a name in Swedish and ships were named in Swedish.