A third ship for Viking Ocean Cruises debuts in Italy
CIVITAVECCHIA, Italy — Fast-growing Viking Ocean Cruises is now, officially, operating with three ships.
The California-based cruise operator's new Viking Sky on Saturday set sail with paying passengers for the first time. The 930-passenger vessel departed from Civitavecchia, Italy, near Rome, on an seven-night inaugural voyage to Barcelona.
Viking took delivery of Sky last month from the Fincantieri shipyard in Ancona, Italy, where it had been under construction for more than a year.
Sky is a sister to Viking's first two vessels, Viking Star and Viking Sea. The two ships debuted in 2015 and 2016, respectively.
Like the earlier vessels, Sky is relatively small at 47,800 tons. That's less than a third the size of the latest megaships from the likes of Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Line.
Designed to offer an intimate and elegant experience, Sky boasts a stylish Scandinavian design, and its cabins are large by cruise ship standards. Even the smallest rooms offer 270 square feet of space. Every cabin comes with a balcony, as is the case with its sister vessels (scroll through the carousel above for our first look at Sky).
New cruise ships for 2017: Viking Sky and Viking Sun
Since debuting in 2015, Viking has focused on itineraries that feature more time in ports than is common at many other lines. The company also is setting itself apart from many cruise operators with a "no nickel-and-diming" philosophy. In a relatively rare twist, Viking offers a shore excursion in every port that is included in the price. Also included in the price is beer and wine with lunch and dinner and even WiFi access — something that can cost up to 75 cents a minute at other lines.
Sky's inaugural voyage includes several stops in Italy and Spain as well as a day visit to Tunis, Tunisia. Sky then will operate a diverse range of sailings in Europe before being christened on June 22 in Tromsø, Norway — a nod to the Norwegian heritage of Viking's founding family. At the end of summer it'll cross the Atlantic to the Caribbean.
Hate nickel-and-diming? This new cruise ship is for you
Sky is just one of two ships that Viking is launching in 2017 as it continues a rapid expansion. Another sister ship, Viking Sun, arrives in November. Two more Viking ships are coming in 2018 and 2019, respectively.
