Viking has taken delivery of the company’s newest ocean ship, the Viking Vela. The delivery ceremony took place at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Ancona, Italy.
Classified as a small ship, as are all Viking ocean ships, the Viking Vela has 499 staterooms that can host 998 guests. The Viking Vela joins the company’s growing fleet of ocean ships and will spend her inaugural season sailing itineraries in the Mediterranean and in Northern Europe.
Rather than trying to top itself with each new ship, Viking’s winning formula takes a different approach, with each ship emerging very similar to the previous. Loyal followers like it that way, and the line has won many awards for its ships and service.
Viking Chairman Torstein Hagen celebrates the 25th anniversary of the company he started with four Russian river ships in 1997. Photo courtesy of Viking (Photo Credit: Viking)
“We are proud to welcome the newest sister ship to our award-winning ocean fleet,” said Torstein Hagen, Chairman and CEO of Viking. “Together with Fincantieri we have built the world’s most elegant small ocean ships. With the arrival of our newest vessel, we look forward to introducing even more curious travellers to the Viking way of exploration.”
Viking is working on a project for a partial hybrid propulsion system for future ocean ships based on liquid hydrogen and fuel cells, which could allow the company to operate at zero-emission in the Norwegian Fjords and other sensitive environments. While the Viking Vela has a traditional propulsion platform, she is considered hydrogen-ready and can be retrofitted in the future.
Viking’s ocean ships have lots of nooks and crannies where guests can “squirrel away with a good book.” (Photo Credit: Bruce Parkinson)
The delivery of the Viking Vela follows a string of recent accolades for the company. Viking was rated #1 for Oceans, #1 for Rivers and #1 for Expeditions by Condé Nast Traveler in the 2024 Readers’ Choice Awards for the second consecutive year. This achievement marked the first time a travel company won these three categories in back-to-back years.
Viking was also named Best Luxury Line, Best Line for Couples and Best Line in the Mediterranean in U.S. News & World Report’s 2025 Best Cruise Lines ranking for the fourth consecutive year. Additionally, Viking received seven awards at the 2023 Cruise Critic Editors’ Picks Awards — more than any other line — across the luxury, river and expedition categories.