Helsinki  - A cruise ferry with almost 1,700 people onboard was to be towed to the Finnish port city of Turku on Monday due to problems with its rudder system, the ferry operator said.

The rudder system failure was detected Sunday when the ferry Silja Europa was en route from Stockholm to Turku.

Ferry operator Tallink Silja and the Finnish maritime rescue coordination centre (MRCC) Turku said there was no danger to the 1,373 passengers and 286 crew members.

The ferry is currently in the archipelago of the Aland Islands, located in the Baltic Sea between Finland and Sweden.

The ferry operator said the engines were working and the ship was manoeuvrable.

The ferry's scheduled departures Monday and Tuesday were cancelled and tickets were refunded, Tallink Silja said. (dpa)