Viking, the privately owned river and ocean cruise operator, said it had decided to extend a suspension of all its cruises to 30 June from the previously announced 30 April.

“We are using this period of non-operation as a time for additional training and initiatives to ensure we have the safest and healthiest fleet in the industry. As a private company we do not have to worry about quarterly profit expectations – and that flexibility allows us the ability to do what is best for our guests and our employees,” chairman Torstein Hagen said in a letter to guests of the company.

Viking was the first company to suspend operations in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak when it unveiled its decision to do so on 11 March.