Viking: Reinventing Ocean Cruising
We launched Viking Ocean Cruises to reinvent the category. And it didnt take long for us to rise to the top. If you prefer an elegant, serene ship ambiance, more time in each port and an inclusive experience complete with exquisite dining and thoughtfully curated shore excursions, the worlds best ocean cruise line was created for you.
Viking is proud to showcase our newest national television commercial, Time, featuring Viking Chairman Torstein Hagen.
Join Viking Chairman Torstein Hagen as he shares his insights on travel and the benefits of engaging with new cultures.
Go beyond the expected and experience The Viking Way. Engage in Local Life, learn about the Working World and enjoy Privileged Access to people and places otherwise difficult to visit.
Listen To The Traveler
The National Symphony Orchestra of London records Vikings beautiful new music score at Londons legendary Abbey Road Studios. Written by Debbie Wiseman, Classic FM Composer in Residence, The Traveler was created to celebrate the companys 20th Anniversary, its spirited theme reflecting the exploration and discovery found on Viking voyages.
Enjoy a one-of-a-kind interactive culinary journey at The Kitchen Table, where you will learn to prepare regional cuisine with our world-class chefs, plate and present your dishes, and enjoy a private meal.
Step inside the hallowed halls of Londons Abbey Road Studios, where the Beatles recorded nearly all their hits. Join Karine as she shares the process of transforming an original composition into a powerful piece of recorded music.
Join Karine and meet Debbie Wiseman, Londons Classic FM Composer in Residence. Learn how Debbies voyages with Viking inspired this beautiful piece of music, written to celebrate our 20th Anniversary.
Passenger Shipping Pause 2020
Due to the Coronavirus crisis, Viking Cruises suspended passenger shipping operations fleetwide by canceling all voyages with pre-scheduled departures in the period March 12, 2020, through July 2021. Fleetwide operations were planned to resume on October 1, 2020. However, due to ongoing travel restrictions in Europe and the USA, as well as Canada’s and Australia’s ban on cruise shipping, Viking canceled the entire 2020 program in mid-August.
- VIKING OCEAN restarted operations on May 22, 2021, with Viking Venus .
- VIKING RIVER restarted in July 2021 , VIKING’s Egypt boat – in August.
- In March-April 2021, Viking OCEAN announced plans to restart operations with Viking Venus , Viking Orion and Viking Sky . All these voyages were open for booking to UK residents only. In May were added July-October departures for the ships Viking Sea and Viking Venus.
All affected bookings received a 125% refund in FCC with rebooking or 100% monetary refund. Fully refunded were also all prepurchased through Viking packages and services. The FCC is valid for 24 months , for any Viking cruise itinerary and fully transferable.
All bookings made by April 30, 2020, received Risk-Free Guarantee that allows penalty-free cruise cancellation up to 24 hours prior departure.
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Itinerary Of Viking Cruises
Here you can compare all Viking cruise ships and their itineraries, destinations, and departure dates. CruiseMapper provides you with free-of-charge schedules with listed cheapest ticket prices per person per itinerary.
In 2013, the company launched its new brand “Viking Ocean Cruises”. Viking OCEAN’s product was introduced in May 2015 with the launch of its first vessel MV Viking Star.
In 2019 the parent company created the brand “Viking Expeditions”, with a newbuild fleet of two small-sized expedition vessels – Viking Octantis and Viking Polaris , plus 2 more same-designed units.
In 2023, celebrating the company’s 25th anniversary, Viking EXPEDITIONS offers “Longitudinal World Cruise I”. The 65-day itinerary visits 29 ports departs from Buenos Aires Argentina, visits the Antarctic Peninsula, continues northward around Cape Horn, along South America’s coast , passes through Panama Canal, then up to Mexico, Florida USA, NYC New York, Canada and via St Lawrence River to Ontario and via Detroit MI, ending in Milwaukee WI. Fares started from USD 45000 per person with double occupancy. On September 12, 2023, departs “Longitudinal World Cruise II” . The longer/71-day itinerary visits 33 ports .
Prepare For Cultural Immersion Opportunities
This is one of my favorite features that Viking offers. Viking Cruises are known as The Thinking Persons Cruise, and you can see why with all the cultural resources they offer. Begin by going to the itinerary for your cruise on the website. In my case, it is Viking Homelands, and I went to the section on Resources. The first section to check out is filmography, and you can choose by either country or itinerary. There is an extensive list of movies, documentaries, and television shows either filmed in or about your cruise destinations. What a great resource to begin learning about the different countries you will visit and what you might like to see! So many places I have put on my list to tour are based on movies, books, or artwork that I love. Another option is Viking TV, which has a variety of programming. There is a section that is destination-specific and worth checking out.
Viking actually has a Resident Historian Program. It is part of the onboard cultural enrichment program included with your cruise. The historian hosts lectures on the history and culture of the ports you will visit. The Chief Historian has curated an extensive list of books to enjoy prior to your cruise. I was blown away by the selection for the Viking Homelands itinerary which included everything from a Nordic cookbook and The Complete Hans Christian Andersen Fairy Tales to War and Peace. There really is something for everyone.
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Benefits Of Booking Flights With My Viking Air
Since Viking handles thousands and thousands of flights, they have exclusive rates that appeal to many travelers. This is perhaps the most apparent benefit of booking through My Viking Air.
Secondly, you can choose to upgrade your seats to Business Class or Premium Economy at their special rates.
Thirdly, complimentary transfers between your hotel and/or airport could be available through My Viking Air. This depends on when you arrive for your cruise and when you leave to go home after your cruise.
For example, if you land at the airport the same day as embarkation and you leave for the airport the day your cruise ends, Viking will provide transfers to and from the airport. This simplifies travel logistics to and from your Viking cruise ship and the airport.
Can you Book Transfers through Viking if you Book Air through Another Provider?
Yes. Viking Air includes transfers as do all of their extension packages. If you decide to book air separately, you can purchase airport transfers through Viking up to 30 days before your cruise departure.
Viking Ocean Cruises Silver Spirits Package:
The cost for the Viking Silver drinks package is $19.95 USD per night per guest.
The total cost varies according to the length of the ocean cruise.
- For a 7-night cruise, the cost is $139.65 USD p.p.
- For a 14-night cruise, the cost is $279.30 USD p.p.
Beverage gratuities are included in the package.
See the 2020 rates for the Viking Ocean Silver Spirits package .
Note: Both guests in the stateroom must buy the package.
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Viking World Cruise 2021
In mid-July 2020, Viking Ocean announced the company’s “Viking World Cruise 2021-2022” planned for MS Viking Star. The 136-day itinerary visits 56 ports in 27 countries, with 11 port city overnights and 3x new for Viking cruise ports .
The voyage starts from Port Everglades on December 24, 2021, and ends in London City England. Signature destinations include Central America, Panama Canal transit, USA West Coast, Hawaii, Transpacific crossing to New Zealand and Australia, Asia, Middle East, Suez Canal transit to Europe and the UK.
Shorter itinerary segments are also available for booking, including the 119-day “Viking World Horizons 2022” that visits 49 ports in 22 countries.
Both packages are priced from USD 50000 per person . Bookings made by September 30, 2020, receive USD 2000 pp in “shore excursion credit” plus USD 1000 pp in OBC .
Things To Do After You Book Excursions
Other things you can do in My Viking Journey before you sail include:
- Choose your bed configuration: If you’re a couple, you likely want the beds pushed together. If you’re friends or siblings sailing together, you will likely want two twin beds with space between them.
- Pre-pay gratuities: We always opt to do this so we don’t have to worry about it on the cruise. If you prefer to pay gratuities onboard instead, you can.
- Enter your passport information .
- Select any upgrades to alcohol packages if you like, like the Silver Spirits Beverage Package.
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Viking Mississippi River Cruises
The company plans to add cruise ships on Mississippi River . However, the process is slowed due to issues regarding the so-called “Jones Act” . It imposes restrictions on where USA-based ships can navigate and how to be staffed.
Company’s plan to enter the US river cruising market was officially announced in 2015. In October 2018 was announced as a potential start-up the year 2021. By 2027, Viking plans to increase river’s annual passenger shipping capacity to over 100,000 by deploying six Viking riverboats. The 7-day cruise itineraries will include roundtrips from New Orleans, as well as one-ways between New Orleans and Memphis TN, and between St Louis MO and Minneapolis-Saint Paul MN.
Viking’s USA-based riverboats will be newbuilds , each with 5 decks, passenger capacity 386, all-balcony staterooms , an aft-located infinity pool, bow ramp . All the 6 ships will be built and owned by ECO Shipyards and operated under charter by Viking Cruises USA.
The first boat starts operations in August 2022. Bookings opened in 2020 – on March 31 and on April 15 . Currently, Viking River Cruises USA offers 4 itineraries, themed as:
- “Heart of the Delta” – prices started from GBP 3390 pp
- “America’s Heartland” – from GBP 4790 pp
- “Southern Celebration” – from GBP 3390 pp
- “America’s Great River” – from GBP 8690 pp
Viking’s main competitors on the US market are American Cruise Lines and American Queen Voyages .
Two To Four Weeks Before Your Cruise: Viking Embarkation Documents Will Arrive In The Mail
If your cruise balance is paid and your Viking Air is in good standing, you can expect to receive a packet in the mail anywhere from two to four weeks before your sailing that contains the following:
- Viking welcome letter
- 1 Leather luggage tag per guest
- 2 Personalized embarkation tags per guest
- 1 Arrival transfer sticker per guest
Note that if you book within two weeks of your cruise or your Viking account isn’t in good standing within the two weeks before your cruise, you will not receive this packet in the mail.
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Pack Your Cruise Carry On Bag Wisely
We always recommend packing a change of clothes , some basic toiletries, and important medications and documents in your carry-on luggage when you travel.
If you are taking a fly-cruise package and your luggage is lost by the airline, it could take time for your luggage to be found and may even have to be delivered to the ship at the next port of call.
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Also, it would be rare on a river ship, but if there were delays in delivering your bags to your room, you can still freshen up and explore the ship without waiting for your bags.
The My Viking Journey Experience
My Viking Journey is the website you’ll have access to once you have your cruise confirmation number. All Viking guests have access to this portal, whether it’s a river cruise or ocean cruise. You can continue with your Viking cruise vacation planning in this awesome portal!
Access to My Viking Journey is open for your cruise planning until seven days prior to embarkation.
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Pick Your Shore Excursions
I have to admit I have been obsessing over which shore excursions to pick, and I cant book until March 2021. To begin, go to your cruises itinerary page. Start at Day 1 and click Read More. There will be no shore excursions offered on the first or last day of each cruise. The page is worth visiting for an overview of the port city and some videos. Then work your way through each day and read all the offerings. Some key things to consider with each excursion is the intensity level, which can range from easy to demanding. Read the descriptions of the intensity levels to make sure it is an activity you want to participate in. Viking also assigns flags and icons which further describe the tour. See below for the complete list. I like that Viking provides excursions that cover a wide variety of fitness levels and interests.
Now make a list and pick two or three selections for each day so that you are prepared when sign-up day opens. If you are booked in a suite, you should be able to get all your choices. If you are booked in the different Veranda levels, registration for the majority of the cabins opens up either 60 or 67 days from your cruise. With your list ready you will save time by not having to decide on an excursion. As it gets closer to sign-up day, check to verify which excursions are offered as they are subject to change.
Items Of Particular Importance To Travelers
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Scandinavia And Northern Europe
Some of Vikings most interesting itineraries are around Scandinavia and the Baltic Sea, with many beginning or ending in Norway the homeland of the companys founder, Torstein Hagen.
As Hagen once put it to me, Scandinavia and the Baltic Sea are what the company considers Viking country a region where they want to dominate.
During summers, in particular, Viking devotes an unusually large number of its ships to itineraries around Scandinavia, the Baltic Sea and other Northern Europe destinations such as Iceland. Many, notably, use the relatively small but famously scenic Norwegian city of Bergen as a gateway, something no other line is doing. That allows for unusual variations on the typical Baltic Sea or Norwegian fjords cruise.
The lines most popular route in the region, Viking Homelands, is a two-week-long, one-way trip between Bergen and Stockholm, Sweden, that combines several days of exploring the fjord region of Norways west coast with more-typical Baltic cruise destinations such as St. Petersburg, Russia, and Helsinki, Finland.
Note that, in the wake of Russias invasion of Ukraine, Viking has pulled the St. Petersburg stop as well as stops in Finland and Estonia from the Viking Homelands itinerary for 2022 the trips instead will feature extra stops in Norway and Denmark.
Itineraries that will take you from Bergen to Iceland or even as far away as France, Portugal and Spain also are available.
How To Register At Myvikingjourneycom
If you have a Viking reservation number, you now have access to My Viking Journey, a website to plan and customize your trip. Create an account with your email address and reservation number the process is quick, easy, and secure. The steps to register on myvikingjourney.com are as follows:
- Visit www.myvikingjourney.com.
- After opening your website, you will have two options: Create Account and Login. In the Create Account option, click Join Now.
- The registration form is available on the website. Enter identifying information such as reservation number, title, first name, last name, and email address.
- Confirm your email address and create and confirm your password to log in to My Viking Journey.
- Please check the options I accept the booking conditions and Email me about news, special offers, and new flyers from Viking Cruises boxes on the registration page.
- After filling in all the registration data, click on the Create Account option.
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