By
Alice Chambers |
Viking officially took delivery of Viking Octantis on 22 December 2021, which has embarked on its maiden voyage from Fincantieri’s Vard shipyard in Søviknes, Norway, towards South America. Here, the vessel will welcome its first guests and sail to Antarctica.
Viking Octantis was designed by Richard Riviere, founding principal of Rottet Studio, and London-based interior design company SMC Design.
“Our guests have asked us to build on our award-winning river and ocean voyages to take them further, and that is just what we have done,” said Torstein Hagen, chairman of Viking. “Leveraging our long history of destination-focused travel, enrichment and innovative ship design, we are now perfecting expedition voyages and offering curious travellers the opportunity to visit some of the world's most pristine destinations in the most responsible way possible.”
The new vessel holds 378 guests and is the first of two Viking ships that will journey to the Arctic and Antarctica. The second identical sister ship, Viking Polaris, will join the fleet in August 2022. The cruise line will offer itineraries to Antarctica, North America’s Great Lakes and the Artic.
“With the arrival of Viking Octantis, Viking is now exploring all seven continents, and we look forward to welcoming her first guests onboard in the coming weeks,” said Hagen.
The naming ceremony for Viking Octantis will be held in April 2022 in New York City with Norwegian explorer and educator Liv Arnesen present as godmother.