What's New in 2024 & 2025 for Viking Australia & New Zealand

January 3 2024

Seasons greetings, fellow travel media,

As we look towards the upcoming year, it's a good time to reflect on our activity and accomplishments from 2023. We'd also like to share what's new for 2024 and beyond, leading into the 2025 season.

Viking has a full agenda of new ships launching, new itineraries and additional sailings on popular classic and iconic itineraries that are loved by our guests all over.

Viking would like to extend an invitation to all travel media, including influencers and content creators, to contact us to share travel and editorial plans for 2024 and 2025 as we are keen to network with new media and publications in Australia and New Zealand relating to culinary, art, culture, history, architecture and nature.

When contacting us, please send us a media kit, or CV, outlining your audience demographic, story pitch and any case studies with performance-related metrics included (if an influencer).

For previous press releases and images relating to any of this news or to receive Viking press releases, please get in touch with Kirsty Hill, Sr. PR and Communications Manager for Viking Australia and New Zealand.

We look forward to connecting with you in 2024.

River Voyages 

New Itineraries:  

• Viking launched a special 12-day voyage to commemorate the 80th anniversary of Operation Overlord and the historic battles of Normandy with the new Paris & D-Day 80th Anniversary voyage from London to Paris with departure dates running from March through November 2024.
• Due to strong demand, Viking will also offer the London, Paris & D-Day itinerary starting in 2025. 
• With increased interest in extended voyages, Viking added a new 15-day river voyage, Lyon, Provence & the Rhineland, that combines a sailing on the Rhine River with one in Southern France beginning March 2024.
• Viking launched two new Christmas itineraries in 2023, Christmas on the Rhine & Moselle and Christmas on the Main & Moselle, celebrating storied Christmas traditions along the banks of Europe's most iconic rivers. The itineraries showcase some of Europe's biggest and best Christmas markets amongst vibrant cobblestone cities, medieval castles, and quaint fairytale villages.

New Ships: 

• Viking recently announced an expansion of its river fleet in Southeast Asia with the new Viking Tonle. Designed for the Mekong River, the 80-guest vessel will join its identical sister ship, the Viking Saigon (debuted in 2022) and will sail between Kampong Cham, Cambodia and Mỹ Tho, Vietnam as part of Viking's popular 15-day Magnificent Mekong The ship is under construction and is currently scheduled to debut in October 2025. More details are available in the press release here.
• With strong demand on the Nile River, Viking will add two additional sister ships, the Viking Hathor and the Viking Sobek, which will be delivered in 2024 and 2025, respectively. By 2025, Viking will have six ships on the Nile, offering the largest and most elegant fleet, by far. 
• Viking will welcome an additional 10 Viking Longships® to its river fleet in the coming years to meet strong demand for European river voyages. Eight of the new vessels will sail Viking's popular itineraries on the Rhine, Main and Danube rivers, while two additional Viking Longships will join the fleet on the Seine River. Five of the new vessels will be delivered in 2025, with the remaining five to be delivered in 2026.
• In 2025, Viking will welcome a new Viking Longship on the Seine River. This identical sister ship will join our current fleet of four Viking Longships  sailing the river, docking in our exclusive location in the heart of Paris, near the Eiffel Tower, offering an exceptional experience for travelers and coincide with the Paris Summer Olympics in 2024.

Ocean Voyages 

New Itineraries: 

• Beginning in 2024, Viking will introduce the Iconic Iceland, Greenland & Canada This 15-day voyage will immerse guests in striking natural beauty and volcanic landscapes, while delving into the rich history of Viking exploration, allowing for leisurely strolls through the charming streets in ports of call. 
• The Malta, Morocco & the Mediterranean itinerary will make its inaugural voyage in late 2024. The roundtrip journey from Barcelona spans seven countries in 16 days, featuring visits to UNESCO-designated sites, North African cities, the Alhambra palace and other scenic wonders.
• Viking is set to unveil the Viking World Voyage I in 2025. The colossal 180-day adventure traverses the globe, encompassing 37 countries on an unforgettable voyage across six continents.
• Setting sail in 2025, Viking will embark on a new adventure with the Grand Australia Circumnavigation The 32-day sailing takes guests on a voyage around Australia, offering the chance to uncover a harmonious blend of iconic natural wonders, lesser-known cultural gems, and captivating histories in cities such as Perth, Adelaide, and Melbourne. The itinerary includes exploration of Indonesian treasures Komodo and Bali. 

New Ships: 

• In late 2024, Viking will welcome a new sister ship to the Ocean fleet, the Viking Vela.Scheduled to debut in December 2024, the Viking Vela will spend her inaugural season sailing voyages in the Mediterranean and in Northern Europe. Classified as a small ship, the Viking Vela has a gross tonnage of 54,300 tons, with 499 staterooms that can host 998 guests. 

Expedition Voyages  

Antarctica and Arctic

• In November 2023, Viking celebrated the start of its third expedition season in Antarctica, as the Viking Octantis and her identical sister ship, the Viking Polaris arrived again in the region. Both ships will spend the Austral summer in Antarctica before returning to North America's Great Lakes for voyages throughout the spring, summer and early fall.
• Viking announced three new summer season expedition voyages in the Arctic set to debut in July 2025. The new itineraries range from 13 to 27 days and explore the polar north in Canada and Greenland. More specific itinerary information is available online: Into the Northwest Passage, Canada & Greenland Explorer and Canada & the Northwest Passage.
• More recently, Viking announced new itineraries in Antarctica for the 2025 season including the new 87-day From the Arctic to Antarctica itinerary, which will expand offerings to the “White Continent,” sailing from Nuuk, Greenland to Ushuaia, Argentina in September 2025. Guests can also discover the natural beauty of Antarctica and South America on the new 48-day Antarctica, Chile & the Americas itinerary from Ushuaia to Fort Lauderdale.

Longitudinal World Cruises

• In 2023, Viking launched the new intercontinental Longitudinal World Cruise collection, with expedition ships sailing between Antarctica and the Great Lakes. On these epic and voyages, guests will achieve more travel milestones in a single journey than most people accomplish in a lifetime – from the heart of North America through engineering marvels like the Welland and Panama Canals, into the Chilean fjords and finally to Antarctica.
• The arrival of Viking's expedition ships in Antarctica in November 2023 marks the completion of two inaugural Longitudinal World Cruises—the 71-day Longitudinal World Cruise II, from Duluth to Ushuaia, and the 70-day Longitudinal World Cruise III, from Milwaukee to Ushuaia. These Grand Journeys offer a variety of travel milestones in a single itinerary, sailing from the heart of North America through the engineering wonders like the Welland and Panama Canals, into the Chilean fjords and finally Antarctica.
• Following Viking's upcoming third season in the Great Lakes, the Viking Polariswill sail the new Longitudinal World Cruise IV itinerary from Milwaukee to Ushuaia in October 2024 and the Viking Octantis will embark on another sailing of the Longitudinal World Cruise II.
• The new Longitudinal World Cruise Vitinerary launches in 2025.

Viking Explorer Information Sessions (Trade & Consumer)

• In 2023, Viking's Commercial Managers presented over 120 direct-to consumer information sessions in metropolitan and regional locations, reaching over 7,500 curious travelers eager to learn more about The Viking Way® of exploration. Presenters showcased destinations, ports and immersive shore excursions to give attendees some travel inspiration.
• In 2024, these popular information sessions will be held again beginning on 27 February 2024 in Sydney at The Fullerton Hotel, concluding in Perth on 21 March 2024 at Crown Perth. Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, and the Gold Coast are also scheduled with registration information available in early 2024.
• New Zealand's information sessions are scheduled for February 2024 with further information available in early 2024.

Awards & Accolades

• Viking was named Best Luxury Line, Best Line for Couples and Best Line in the Mediterranean in S. News & World Report's 2024 Best Cruise Lines ranking. The U.S. News & World Report travel rankings are based on an analysis of expert opinions and traveler reviews, as well as recommendations and insider knowledge from the publication's in-destination writers and editors.
• In this year's Silver Travel Awards, Viking's enrichment channel, TV (https://viking.tv), was recognized for its original content, receiving the Silver Standout for Innovation—a third consecutive win for Viking.TV since its launch in 2020. Silver Travel Advisor also voted Viking #1 for Rivers and #1 for Oceans in the awards' Best Premium or Luxury Cruise Line category.
• In October 2023, Viking made history when it was voted #1 for rivers, oceans and expeditions by Condé Nast Travelerin the publication's 2023 Readers' Choice Awards. The company was also voted to the top of its categories for rivers, oceans and expeditions by Travel + Leisure in the 2023 World's Best Awards. No other travel company has simultaneously received the same honors by both publications.
• Viking was also named:
  • Best Luxury River Cruise in Forbes' 2023 Best Luxury Cruises list;
  • Best Cruise Line by Food & Winereaders in the publication's inaugural Global Tastemakers Awards;
  • Best River Cruise line by Women's Healthin its inaugural Healthy Travel Awards; and
  • Best for Relaxation—Worldwide by Men's Healthin its 2023 Travel Awards.
• Viking also dominated Cruise Critic's 2023 Cruisers' Choice Awards, receiving top honors in six categories including Best Overall Line, Best River Line, and Best Dining for its ocean and expedition voyages.