Viking has announced the naming of its nine newest river ships—including the company’s 100th ship—during a simultaneous ceremony in Basel, Switzerland. The ceremony also marked a major milestone—Viking now has more than 100 ships across its river, ocean and expedition fleet.
Nine New River Ships
Of the nine new river ships, Viking Annar, Viking Dagur, Viking Eldir and Viking Honir will sail Viking’s most popular itineraries along the Rhine, Main and Danube Rivers. Viking Nerthus, Viking Gyda and Viking Tonle sail the Seine, Douro and Mekong Rivers, respectively. The two other new ships—Viking Thoth and Viking Amun—sail the Nile River.
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 Viking Nerthus
- Sara Conley, senior vice president of brand, creative and communications, Viking – Godmother of Viking Dagur
- Chitra Goswami, senior vice president of finance, Viking – Godmother of Viking Gyda
- Yumi Kim, senior vice president of finance, Europe, Viking – Godmother of Viking Eldir
- Michelle Patterson, senior vice president, corporate controller, Viking – Godmother of Viking Annar
- Laura Perlman, senior vice president of marketing planning, international & product, Viking – Godmother of Viking Tonle
- Michele Saegesser, vice president, trade development and training, Viking – Godmother of Viking Honir
- Youssef Fouad Amin, CEO & chairman, Sherry Nile Cruises – Godfather of Viking Thoth
- Sherif El Banna, CEO, Cosmos Egypt – Godfather of 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. Viking Nerthus was in Paris, France; Viking Dagur, Viking Eldir and Viking Annar were in Rostock, Germany; Viking Gyda was in Porto, Portugal; Viking Tonle was in Mỹ Tho, Vietnam; and Viking Thoth and 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 Viking Jupiter; Norwegian violinist Tor Jaran Apold; the Viennese Residence Orchestra; and a Basel girls’ choir.
“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.”
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