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VIKING CRUISES: First Details Of All New Expedition Ships

Viking Cruises has dished the first details on its two new expedition ships, Viking Octantis and Viking Polaris, which will take to the open waters from 2022.

Viking Cruises has dished the first details on its two new expedition ships, Viking Octantis and Viking Polaris, which will take to the open waters from 2022.

Viking has also unveiled where these new ships will travel: on 13-day expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic regions.

The first sailing to Antarctica is scheduled for January 12, 2022, and the first sailing to the Arctic is scheduled for August 16, 2022.

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The Arctic trips will sail roundtrip from Tromso, Norway and the Antarctic expeditions will depart from Buenos Aires to Ushuaia.

Viking Octantis and Viking Polaris will carry 378 guests and will be smaller than Viking’s existing ocean fleet. The two new ships are being built by VARD who specialise in building expedition ships.

The new expedition ships are expected to have a crew of 260 for a passenger-to-crew ratio of 1.66.

The 30,000-gross tonne vessels will have Polar Class 6 ice rating, giving them the strength needed to make their way through icy conditions.

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The expedition ships will have many of the features already well-loved on Viking’s ocean ships including a spa with hydrotherapy pool, Explorer’s Lounge, Aquavit Terrace, the Living Room, The World Cafe, and the Restaurant.

Viking told Karryon that while they “can confirm that Viking is in the process of launching new Expedition Cruises. For now, we are rolling out Viking Expeditions to our loyal past guests – and their travel agents – for an exclusive preview of these new voyages”.

“We are not providing any additional information at this point, but we will unveil all details about our new Expeditions product when it is publicly announced in January 2020,” the spokesperson for Viking Cruises said.