In a big show of confidence cruising is back, Viking this week launched eight new river cruisers in Europe in simultaneous ceremonies linked by video for four ships in Amsterdam and four in Paris, bringing Viking’s river cruiser total to 80.
The four new Seine ships are all based on Viking’s ‘Longship’ model but are 33-feet shorter than those that play the Rhine, Main, Danube and Elbe. The shorter length accommodates 22 fewer passengers, but allows the ships to use a new anchorage a short walk from the Eiffel towers; the longer ships used previously had to anchor about 10 miles away.
The four ships launched in Amsterdam are all identical to the rest of Viking’s Rhine and Danube fleet, carrying up to 190 passengers. Viking has continued to expand rapidly, although with a pause for the pandemic. The fleet has grown in ten years from 29 to 80 longships.
The company has also added ships in other areas, including more in its Viking Ocean cruises, the first two ‘expedition’ ships and new custom-built ships for the Nile and Mekong Rivers, as well as Viking Mississippi, flagship of its first move into American waters.
