Viking Cruises has just welcomed two more custom-built river cruise ships to its growing fleet on Egypt's Nile River, bringing the total to six. The two new ships were the centerpiece of a big celebration at Luxor last week.
The ships, Viking Hathor and Viking Sobek, both named for Egyptian gods, each have room for 82 passengers in 41 staterooms. They are about half the size of Viking's European river ships, but share many of the same features and amenities including indoor and outdoor lounges, library and even a small pool.
Viking's Nile cruises have grown to over 20,000 travelers a year and the company expects the volume to grow; it has another four ships on order. The two ships celebrated last week had their 'godfathers' on hand: Mohamed El Banna, founder of a travel company and colleague of Viking founder Torstein Hagen, and Edward Herbert, son of the Earl of Carnarvon, whose great-great-grandfather funded the discovery of King Tut's Tomb and whose father is the owner of the mansion we know as Downton Abbey.
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