Editing Freewinds (section)

===1968&ndash;1981: Wallenius Lines ownership===
Following delivery the ''Bohème'' sailed to [[Stockholm]], the location of [[Wallenius Lines]]' headquarters, for a presentation to invited guests. On departing Stockholm for Miami she carried her first paying passengers on board. Her maiden voyage was cut short however, as she hit an underwater cliff outside [[Dalarö]] in the [[Stockholm Archipelago]]. The cliff breached the ship's hull and fuel tanks. Lifeboats were used to evacuate all passengers from the listing ship, and three days later she was refloated and towed to the Finnboda shipyard in [[Nacka]] for week-long repairs. After the repairs she again left for Miami, this time without passengers.<ref name=FoFen /><ref name=FoFsv />

On 7 December 1968, the ''Bohème'' left on her first cruise from Miami to [[Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands|Saint Thomas]]. During her first year in service, the ship experienced notable air conditioning problems due to its shipyard's inexperience with ships destined for the warm Caribbean climate. As a result, she returned to Europe in 1980, sailing to the [[Blohm + Voss]] shipyard in [[Hamburg]], West Germany where the air conditioning system was rebuilt, and an additional [[screw compressor]] as well as two freshwater generators were installed. Following the rebuild, the ''Bohème'' re-entered service with a Miami–[[San Felipe de Puerto Plata|Puerto Plata]]–[[Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands|Saint Thomas]]–[[San Juan, Puerto Rico|San Juan]]–[[Cap-Haïtien]]–Miami itinerary. She followed the same itinerary all year long, becoming the first ship to offer year-round seven-night cruises from Miami. She was also the first cruise ship to call at Puerto Plata and the first to offer regular sailings to Cap Haitien.<ref name=FoFen />