Viking River Cruises Announces Six More Viking Longships New Builds for 2013

LOS ANGELES, March 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Viking River Cruises (www.vikingrivercruises.com), the world's leading river cruise line, announced today that it has commissioned six more Viking Longships for delivery in 2013. The six vessels will be joining Viking Freya, Viking Idun, Viking Njord, Viking Odin, which will be christened on March 21, 2012, and Viking Embla and Viking Aegir, which will be delivered later in 2012.

"The new orders reflect the great interest in Viking River Cruises and its revolutionary Longships," said Viking's Chairman Torstein Hagen.

Viking Longships integrate patent-pending* design and cutting-edge technology with comfortable amenities that reflect guest preferences and current travel trends, such as:

• Two Explorer Suites, which will be the largest river cruise suites in Europe at 445 square feet, each featuring a separate living room, bedroom and private wraparound veranda, offering 270-degree views.
• Seven two-room Veranda Suites with a full-size veranda in the living room and a French balcony in the bedroom.
• Thirty-nine Veranda Staterooms with full-size verandas.
• Twenty-two French Balcony Staterooms.
• A revolutionary new all-weather indoor/outdoor Aquavit Terrace, which reinvents the onboard lounge experience by bringing the panoramic outdoor river scenery indoors with retractable floor-to-ceiling glass doors allowing guests to enjoy the scenery and dine al fresco.
• New premium in-cabin amenities that include heated bathroom floors and mirrors, Sony HD TV's and premium bath products.
• Sustainability upgrades, such as solar panels, an onboard organic herb garden and energy-efficient hybrid engines that reduce vibrations for a remarkably smooth ride.

The Viking Longship series has been designed by celebrated maritime architects Yran & Storbraaten and Los Angeles based Rottet Studios. They are all being built at the Neptun Yard in Germany, part of the Meyer Neptun group.

"At Viking, we are proud of our Norse heritage. The ancient Vikings were the ultimate explorers, and that tradition lives at Viking River Cruises today. For that reason, we have honored our new Viking Longships -- and our beautifully refurbished Russian fleet -- with names of celebrated Viking gods and heroes," said Hagen.

With the six additional vessels, Viking will have invested over $400 million in its fleet development program over three years.

Media Assets 

For more information about the new Viking Longships or about the upcoming christening, visit www.vikingrivercruises.com, or for hi-res images, contact: [email protected]. For additional details, contact Viking River Cruises toll-free at 1-877-66VIKING (1-877-668-4546).

*Corridor configuration registered designs patent pending numbers 1832106-0001 to 1832106-0011.

About Viking River Cruises

Viking River Cruises, the world's leading river cruise company, offers scenic cruising along the rivers of Europe, Russia, China, Southeast Asia and Egypt. The company has been honored multiple times as the top river cruise line on Conde Nast Traveler's "Gold List" and Travel + Leisure's "World's Best" Awards as well as recognized as the World's Leading River Cruise Operator at the World Travel Awards and by the editors of Cruise Critic as "Best River Cruise Line" in the website's 4th Annual Editors' Picks Awards. Travel agents have also recognized Viking River Cruises as "Best River Cruise Line" by Travel Weekly, "Best River Cruise Line" by 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" and "Best River Cruise Line for Travel Agent Support" by TravelAge West. Since its 1997 inception, the company has grown to a fleet of 31 vessels (in 2013), and provides unique, deluxe vacations to experienced travelers with an interest in geography, culture and history. The year 2013 will also mark the complete bow-to-stern refurbishment of the company's entire Russian fleet, with all four vessels featuring Veranda Staterooms and Suites. For additional information, contact Viking River Cruises at 1-877-668-4546 (1-877-66VIKING) toll-free or visit the company online at http://www.vikingrivercruises.com. To join the Viking River Cruises community online, visit http://www.facebook.com/vikingrivercruises.

SOURCE Viking River Cruises