best use of a cruise ship I've heard in ages.

It really is. If one has to be on a cruise ship, might as well let it be a folkfestival.

Sometimes they invite the other exchange students, but they just don't get it.

I just love this. "Let's have a party! Come on over! We're gonna watch people queue for two hours! It's gonna be great!"

Inviting foreigners to independence day parties is also kind of a thing people do, I've noticed. I suppose it's fun for the same reason it's fun to try to get non-Finns to appreciate salmiakki. :D