Viking celebrates historic milestone naming nine newest river ships

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines

Published: 22 October 2025 22 October 2025

Viking yesterday named its nine newest river ships – including the company’s 100th ship – during a simultaneous ceremony in Basel, Switzerland. Of the nine new river ships, the Viking Annar, the Viking Dagur, the Viking Eldir and the Viking Honir will sail Viking’s most popular itineraries along the Rhine, Main and Danube rivers. The Viking Nerthus, the Viking Gyda and the Viking Tonle sail the Seine, Douro and Mekong rivers, respectively. The two other new ships named yesterday – the Viking Thoth and the Viking Amun – sail the Nile River. The ceremony also marked a major milestone – Viking now has more than 100 ships across its river, ocean and expedition fleet, more than any other cruise line. This achievement reflects the company’s history of industry-leading innovations.

“Today we are proud to name our newest river ships and to honor the nine distinguished members of our extended Viking family serving as their godparents,” said Torstein Hagen, Chairman and CEO of Viking. “We have always been quite a bit different from others in the travel industry – we like to be contrarian. Over the last 28 years, we have grown from four ships to more than 100 – a fleet size that no other line has achieved – and we have done so because of our innovative approach. First, we modernized river voyages; then we reinvented ocean voyages and perfected the expedition experience. We look forward to continuing our leadership in experiential travel in the years to come.”

Viking naming ceremony

For thousands of years, it has been an ancient maritime tradition for each new ship to have a ceremonial godmother. Viking has adapted this custom and, for its ships in Egypt, extended it to include godfathers. Viking’s tradition is to appoint individuals who have made an impact—either in the world, or in the life of Viking. For its nine newest river ships, the company invited colleagues and partners in the extended Viking family to serve as godparents, including:

– Allison Becker, Senior Vice President, General Counsel, Viking – Godmother of the Viking Nerthus
– Sara Conley, Senior Vice President of Brand, Creative and Communications, Viking – Godmother of the Viking Dagur
– Chitra Goswami, Senior Vice President of Finance, Viking – Godmother of the Viking Gyda
– Yumi Kim, Senior Vice President of Finance, Europe, Viking – Godmother of the Viking Eldir
– Michelle Patterson, Senior Vice President, Corporate Controller, Viking – Godmother of the Viking Annar
– Laura Perlman, Senior Vice President of Marketing Planning, International & Product, Viking – Godmother of the Viking Tonle
– Michele Saegesser, Vice President, Trade Development and Training, Viking – Godmother of the Viking Honir
– Youssef Fouad Amin, Chief Executive Officer & Chairman, Sherry Nile Cruises – Godfather of the Viking Thoth
– Sherif El Banna, Chief Executive Officer, Cosmos Egypt – Godfather of the Viking Amun

The naming ceremony took place in Basel on board the Viking Honir and was connected virtually to the eight other new ships, which were located across five other countries around the world. The Viking Nerthus was in Paris, France; the Viking Dagur, the Viking Eldir and the Viking Annar were in Rostock, Germany; the Viking Gyda was in Porto, Portugal; the Viking Tonle was in Mỹ Tho, Vietnam; and the Viking Thoth and the Viking Amun were in Luxor, Egypt.

Guests at the naming event enjoyed performances by Sissel Kyrkjebø, one of the world’s leading crossover sopranos and godmother of the Viking Jupiter; Norwegian violinist Tor Jaran Apold; the Viennese Residence Orchestra; and a Basel girls’ choir.

PortMiami welcomes 10 new cruise ships for the 2025-2026 cruise season

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Top Headlines Top Headlines

Published: 15 October 2025 15 October 2025

PortMiami has announced the arrival of 10 new cruise ships, including five new build vessels, to the Cruise Capital of the World for the 2025-2026 cruise season.

Starting in October 2025, a new roster of ships will set sail from PortMiami, including Cunard’s Queen Elizabeth and Virgin Voyages’ Brilliant Lady. In November, Holland America’s Zuiderdam, Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Xcel and Oceania Cruises’ Allura will make their debut. In December, the port welcomes MSC Cruises’ Grandiosa. The season continues in 2026 with Windstar Cruises’ Star Seeker in January, Holland America’s Eurodam in February, Norwegian Cruise Line’s Norwegian Luna in March, and to close out the season, Silversea Cruises’ Silver Nova in May.

“The arrival of these new ships reinforces Miami’s role as the global hub for cruising, and reflects our strong commitment to growing tourism, supporting jobs, and strengthening our local economy,” said Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava. “PortMiami remains committed to providing world-class service to millions of passengers annually, while advancing resilient growth and innovation to ensure our cruise partners and their guests benefit from a premier homeport for the global cruise industry.”

PortMiami has celebrated a number of milestones in the 2024-2025 cruise season including its busiest cruise passenger day in history on April 20, 2025, with 72,401 guests; and welcoming a record-breaking 10 cruise ships on February 8, 2025.

“We are excited to welcome these new ships and their passengers to Miami,” said Hydi Webb, PortMiami Director and CEO. “Each new arrival underscores the strong partnerships we’ve built with our cruise lines and reaffirms Miami’s role as the world’s premier cruise destination. We look forward to providing our guests with a seamless travel experience and a warm South Florida welcome. The 2025-2026 cruise season looks to be another exciting year.”