Viking Cruises Orders Six Ocean Ships

Viking Cruises ordered six ocean ships from Fincantieri in a deal that expands Viking’s partnership with Fincantieri, raising the company’s total ocean ship order and options to 16 – the highest-ever for a shipyard from a single owner. The six ships are expected to be delivered in 2024, 2025, 2026 and 2027.

The announcement comes just prior to the naming of Viking’s fourth ocean ship, Viking Sun, on March 8 in Shanghai. The ship is currently sailing Viking’s sold-out 141-day world cruise from Miami to London, and its stop in Shanghai will mark the first time one of Viking’s ocean ships has called in China. Viking Sun will also be the first-ever cruise ship to be named in Shanghai. The vessel will spend nearly the next five months on the World Cruise, which spans five continents, 35 countries and 64 ports.

Viking’s all-veranda ocean ships have a gross tonnage of 47,800 tons, have 465 staterooms and host 930 guests. Viking's ocean fleet also includes Viking Star, Viking Sea and Viking Sky. Viking will welcome two more sister ships in the next two years, including Viking Orion in June 2018. With the arrival of Viking Jupiter in 2019, Viking will be the largest small ship ocean cruise line. 10 additional ships are now on order for delivery starting in 2021, which will bring Viking’s ocean fleet to 16 ships by 2027.

“When we launched our first ocean ship in 2015, we set out to reinvent ocean cruising. We focus on the destination, and we do not cram our ships with gimmicks and waterslides. Our understated, elegant, award-winning ships are designed to simply enable our guests to better explore their destination,” said Torstein Hagen, Chairman of Viking. 

Designed for discerning travelers with interests in science, history, culture and cuisine, Hagen says Viking offers guests “the thinking person’s cruise” as an alternative to mainstream cruises.