LOS ANGELES, March 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Viking Ocean
Cruises® (www.vikingoceancruises.com) today announced it took
delivery of Viking Star, marking the company's official
arrival into the ocean cruise industry. The delivery ceremony took
place on March 28 when the ship was
presented at Fincantieri's Marghera shipyard outside of
Venice, Italy. On April 11, Viking Star will set sail from
Istanbul and will make her way
through the Mediterranean and into the Atlantic on her way to be
officially christened on May 17 in
Bergen, Norway.
"This has been a remarkable journey, and I am grateful to
everyone at Viking and Fincantieri who has worked tirelessly to
turn our vision into reality," said Torstein Hagen, chairman of Viking Cruises.
"With Viking Star's maiden voyage and christening now within
sight, we are ready to bring our destination-focused experiences to
ocean cruising."
Classified by Cruise Critic as a "small ship," the all-veranda
Viking Star has a gross tonnage of 47,800 tons, boasts 465
cabins and will accommodate 930 passengers. It is engineered
at a scale that allows direct access into most ports, so guests
have an easy and efficient embarkation and debarkation.
Light-filled with modern Scandinavian decor, the ship was designed
by experienced nautical architects and engineers, including the
same interior design team responsible for the award-winning fleet
of Viking Longships®. Viking Star is one of three ocean
cruise ships on order; the remaining two ships, Viking Sea
and Viking Sky, are currently under construction.
Viking Ocean Cruises guests will enjoy curated itineraries
that are designed to best showcase the destinations that they
visit, with a complimentary excursion in each port and an onboard
cultural enrichment program that includes academic lecturers, local
speakers and interactive demonstrations.
For more information, images and b-roll, contact
vikingpr@edelman.com. For additional details, contact Viking
Cruises toll-free at 1-855-8-VIKING (1-855-884-5464).
About Viking Cruises
Viking Cruises offers
destination-centric river and ocean cruising designed for
experienced travelers with an interest in geography, culture and
history. Featuring onboard cultural enrichment and included shore
excursions, Viking's journeys are competitively priced for genuine
value. Debuting its maiden season of ocean cruising in 2015, the
sophisticated state-of-the-art Viking Star will
host 930 guests on itineraries in Scandinavia and the Baltic; the
Western and Eastern Mediterranean; and the British Isles. Two
additional ocean ships, Viking
Sea and Viking Sky, are also on order. As the
world's leading river cruise line, since its 1997 inception the
company has grown to a fleet of 60 river vessels (in 2015) offering
scenic cruising along the rivers of Europe, Russia, Egypt, China,
and Southeast Asia. Viking has
been honored multiple times in Travel + Leisure's
"World's Best" Awards and Conde Nast Traveler's "Gold
List" as well as recognized by the editors of Cruise Critic as
"Best River Cruise Line," with the entire Viking Longships® fleet
being named "Best New River Ships" in the website's Editors' Picks
Awards. The travel trade has ranked Viking as the "Best River
Cruise Line" by Travel
Weekly, Recommend and Travel
Agent magazines, "Best Cruise Line for Luxury River
Cruises" at the Luxury Travel Advisor Awards of
Excellence and as "Best Overall Cruise Line for River Cruising,"
"Best New River Cruise Ship" and for the sixth consecutive year,
"Best River Cruise Line for Travel Agent Support" in the
2014 TravelAge West's WAVE Awards. For additional
information, contact Viking Cruises at 1 855 8-VIKING (1 855 884
5464) or visit www.vikingcruises.com. To join the Viking
Cruises community online, visit www.facebook.com/vikingcruises,
www.facebook.com/vikingoceancruises and
www.facebook.com/vikingrivercruises.
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SOURCE Viking Cruises