Viking Cruises Is Adding 10 More River Cruise Ships in Europe

Viking Cruises is adding 10 new longships to its fleet as it continues to grow to meet the demand for European river cruising.

Viking said this week that the new ships will be added to the fleet starting in 2025. Five ships will be added that year and then another five in 2026. Eight of the 10 ships will sail Viking’s more popular itineraries on the Rhine, Main, and Danube, while the other two will join Viking’s Seine fleet.

All of the ships will follow the signature Viking longship design, sailing 190 or fewer guests, with a range of stateroom choices and the indoor/outdoor Aquavit Terrace.

Currently, Viking sails 80 river ships, a fleet that it says is responsible for a 50% market share for North American travelers.

“Ever since we started Viking 26 years ago, our mission has been to help our guests explore the world in comfort. We focus on the destination, and we build elegant, innovative ships,” said Torstein Hagen, Chairman of Viking. “We look forward to welcoming these new Longships to our European fleet and introducing The Viking Way of exploration to even more guests in the coming years.”

The new European ships are in addition to Viking’s recently-announced expansion in Southeast Asia—Viking just last month announced the addition of the new Viking Tonle, designed exclusively for the Mekong River. That  80-passenger vessel will join its identical sister ship, the Viking Saigon, which debuted in 2022, and will sail between Kampong Cham, Cambodia, and My Tho, Vietnam.

The cruise company, which was ranked highly for its ocean ships recently by U.S. News, is also expanding on the Nile, welcoming its fourth Nile River ship to the fleet earlier this summer.