Viking Holdings Ltd (Viking) engages in passenger shipping and other forms of passenger transport and as a tour entrepreneur for passengers and related activities in tourism.
As of December 31, 2024, the company had grown into one of the world’s leading travel companies, with a fleet of 96 small, state-of-the-art ships, which are viewed as floating hotels.
The company had launched Viking Ocean in 2015, which has since become its fastest-growing segment. Looking beyond its primary source market...
Viking Holdings Ltd (Viking) engages in passenger shipping and other forms of passenger transport and as a tour entrepreneur for passengers and related activities in tourism.
As of December 31, 2024, the company had grown into one of the world’s leading travel companies, with a fleet of 96 small, state-of-the-art ships, which are viewed as floating hotels.
The company had launched Viking Ocean in 2015, which has since become its fastest-growing segment. Looking beyond its primary source markets, the company launched Asia Outbound with river cruises for the Mandarin-speaking market in 2016. In 2022, the company’s 25th year in business, it further expanded its platform with Viking Expedition and Viking Mississippi.
Multiple Products, One Viking
Viking River
Viking River has been at the forefront of growth and innovation in the river cruise industry, driving it to be one of the fastest-growing segments of the cruise market. Viking River also attracts the greatest share of its new-to-brand passengers among its core products, with 60% of its North American river guests being new to the brand for the 2024 season.
The company’s river vessels dock in the hearts of cities and towns near historical and cultural attractions, providing its guests more time ashore to enjoy the local culture. The company controls or has access to some of the most coveted docking locations for its vessels, including premier docking locations in Paris, France, 800 meters from the Eiffel Tower, and in Luxor, Egypt, at the Karnak Temple.
River vessels must navigate under bridges and through locks, which create unique design challenges. In 2012, the company introduced its Longships, a radically new vessel for the European river cruising market with three full decks, patented asymmetric corridors, and a square bow, providing more usable space for its guests within the standard footprint. The company’s Longships offer an unparalleled choice of all-outside staterooms and al fresco dining. The company’s Longships can comfortably accommodate 190 guests, approximately 20% more than typical European river vessels, which can accommodate up to 164 guests, improving the profitability of its vessels. The company’s guest-to-crew ratio is also generally more advantageous than its competitors, which improves the profitability of its vessels. Outside Europe, the company’s river vessels are the most modern on the Nile and Mekong rivers, generating strong yields while accommodating fewer than 100 guests.
Viking Ocean
Based on the company’s understanding of its core demographic, it identified a significant opportunity to reinvent ocean cruising with a smaller-format, destination-focused, luxury product that leveraged its experience from Viking River. Prior to the company’s entry, the ocean cruise market was primarily composed of offerings that attempted to appeal to all demographics, with a focus on entertainment delivered on the ship, as opposed to at the destination. Luxury cruise offerings also existed at significantly higher price points, but without a focus on the destination and cultural enrichment.
The majority of the company’s Viking Ocean itineraries focus on destinations in Northern Europe and the Mediterranean, which differentiate it from large cruise lines that primarily focus on the Caribbean. The company’s small ships have a capacity of fewer than 1,000 passengers and can dock in ports where larger ships cannot. The company’s lower guest counts also create a more intimate and comfortable experience in the cities it visits. From central berths in cities like Bergen, Norway, London, England, and Monte Carlo, Monaco, enriching cultural discovery starts just a short walk away from the ship, and its guests are able to spend, on average, more than 10 hours in port per day.
The company has one of the youngest fleets in the cruise industry, and its state-of-the-art, efficient design results in no wasted space or extra weight onboard while also maximizing the comfort of its guests. Each of its ocean ships is carefully designed to minimize extra weight and optimize fuel consumption. The company’s ocean ships are built at the right size and scale for wherever they are in the world, with a focus on optimal guest comfort and operational efficiency. Without diminishing its high level of service, the layout of its ocean ships allows it to operate with fewer crew. By designing the company’s ocean ships with a focus on its core demographic and their interests, it utilizes the space typically needed for casinos and children’s entertainment to accommodate staterooms with all private verandas, as well as a broader range of onboard amenities to improve the onboard experience, including an array of fine dining restaurants, a Nordic-inspired spa, a panoramic Explorer’s Lounge, and a thoughtfully curated library.
Viking Expedition
The company created Viking Expedition to usher in a new era of exploration for its guests. It leveraged its experience in destination-focused travel and innovative ship design to reimagine the expedition voyage, delivering a unique product that offers its core demographic the opportunity to visit some of the most remote regions of the world, such as the Arctic and Antarctica, as well as destinations closer to home for its large North American customer base, including the Great Lakes and Canada. The company offers daily briefings, world-class lectures, fieldwork, and onboard laboratories, which are supported by exclusive partnerships with prestigious scientific institutions, such as Cambridge University, and more than 30 experts who accompany each journey. For the 2024 season, the company’s Antarctic expedition market share was 13%.
With capacity for 378 guests per ship, the company’s two expedition ships are optimally designed for exploration from a size and weight perspective—small and slender enough to navigate remote areas and pass through canals, but large enough to provide speed, superior handling, and stability in rougher waters. Several design features maximize guest comfort, including a unique combination of state-of-the-art fin stabilizers to allow the ships to glide over the waves for the calmest possible journey. Per the International Association of Classification Societies standards, its expedition ships are Polar Class 6, and each ship has a gross register tonnage of 30,150. The company’s expedition ships feature plentiful public areas for learning and enrichment, along with the Hangar, an industry-first in-ship marina, a full-size Science Lab facility, and the Aula, an auditorium for daily lectures, films, and presentations, which can be converted to offer a panoramic view with floor-to-ceiling windows. Each expedition ship also includes an offshore exploration fleet, special operations boats, and submarines that allow its guests to get as close as possible to remote locations. All staterooms on the company’s expedition ships feature floor-to-ceiling windows for greater enjoyment of the surroundings.
Viking Mississippi
Designed to truly modernize and transform exploration of the Mississippi River, Viking Mississippi offers an exciting and educational journey, which enables its guests to absorb American history and culture from a unique perspective. The Mississippi River is one of the most historic and storied waterways on the continent, and this product provides another opportunity to share the Viking experience with its guests, including North American guests that may be hesitant or unable to take long-haul flights. For the 2024 season, the company’s Mississippi river market share was 34%.
The new and innovative Viking Mississippi was inspired by the company’s award-winning river and ocean ships and features clean Scandinavian design, which is familiar to its guests, but reimagined for Mississippi River voyages. The Viking Mississippi includes capacity for 386 guests and features some of the largest staterooms across the cruise industry, where each guest has a sweeping view of the river and landscape beyond.
Asia Outbound
In 2016, the company brought its brand of curiosity-driven travel to the Chinese source market by launching a river cruise experience in Europe with 100% Mandarin-speaking crew, and food, entertainment, and excursions completely dedicated to Chinese guests. This product provides a culturally immersive experience with all the high-quality services and amenities needed to travel in comfort, which differentiates it from other Chinese outbound products. In 2019, the company had five Longships dedicated to Asia Outbound, and 20,000 guests traveled with it, almost exclusively from mainland China. The company resumed operations for Asia Outbound in 2023 with two Longships and operated four Longships in 2024.
In 2020, the company announced the China JV Investment, a joint venture with a subsidiary of China Merchants Group, to offer a premium coastal cruise experience in China to Mandarin-speaking guests on board the Viking Yi Dun. The China JV Investment further increases its brand recognition among Chinese guests. In 2024, the company entered into an accommodation purchase agreement with CMV pursuant to which it has the exclusive right to the accommodation and services on board the Viking Yi Dun for sales to Mandarin-speaking populations in China and guests in other Asian countries, including Japan.
Viking Strategies for Growth
The company has generated rapid growth driven by strong demand for its products, a highly differentiated guest experience, and the proven ability to expand its travel platform with new destinations and experiences, resulting in industry-leading capacity growth. The company’s strategies are to expand its fleet to address unmet demand from its core demographic; increase guests from outside of North America; continue to expand Asia Outbound; and launch products for new source markets, as well as strategically expand its product portfolio.
Seasonality
The demand for the company’s cruises is seasonal, with the greatest demand for cruises generally occurring during the Northern Hemisphere’s summer months. This seasonality in demand has resulted in fluctuations in the company’s revenue and results of operations. The seasonality of its results is increased due to most river vessels being taken out of service generally from November to March.
Operations
Fleet
As of December 31, 2024, the company had a fleet of 96 ships, including: 83 river vessels, including 58 Longships, 10 smaller classes based on the Longship design, 13 other river vessels, and two river vessel charters, the Viking Saigon and the Viking Mississippi; 11 ocean ships, including the Viking Yi Dun; and two expedition ships.
Each of the company’s Longships, each of its ocean ships, and each of its expedition ships are nearly identical to each other.
Distribution
Travel agencies generate a substantial amount of bookings for the company’s cruises, and it is committed to maintaining and strengthening this distribution channel. The company has preferred relationships with large travel agent consortia, and it employs sales managers in key markets to maximize awareness of its products within the travel agent community. The company has created a portal on its website that is dedicated to providing support for the local travel agency community, which offers travel agents access to its sales and marketing tools and resources. In addition, guests can book directly with Viking. Sales are managed through its reservation call centers in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. The company’s call centers have over 1,000 agents spread across the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, South Africa, and the Philippines—and together they provide excellent and efficient service for its guests. In 2024, the company also answered over 90% of all calls within 10 seconds. The company does not sell any of its products through wholesalers.
Competition
The company’s principal competitors within the river cruise industry include companies, such as AMA Waterways, Inc., Avalon Waterways, Grand Circle Cruise Line, Tauck, and Uniworld River Cruises, Inc. The company’s principal competitors within the ocean cruise industry include premium and luxury ocean cruise operators, such as Azamara Cruises, Celebrity Cruises, Crystal Cruises, Explora Journeys, Four Seasons Yachts, Holland America Line, Oceania Cruises, Princess Cruises, Regent Seven Seas Cruises, Seabourn Cruise Line, and Silversea Cruise Holding Ltd. The company’s Viking Expedition product faces competition from companies, such as Hurtigruten Expeditions, Lindblad Expeditions, Pearl Seas Cruises, Ponant, Quark Expeditions, Silversea Cruise Holding Ltd., and Victory Cruise Lines. The Viking Mississippi product competes with American Cruise Lines.
Regulation
The company’s ocean and expedition cruise ships are subject to various international regulations, including the International Safety Management (ISM) Code, International Convention for Safety of Life at Sea, the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping (STCW) for Seafarers, the International Convention on Civil Liability for Bunker Oil Pollution Damage 2001, the Athens Convention relating to the Carriage of Passengers and their Luggage by Sea 2002, the Nairobi Convention on the Removal of Wrecks 2007, the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (‘MARPOL’), the Maritime Labour Convention of 2006, and other applicable conventions.
In addition, as the company markets and sells cruises that embark guests at U.S. ports, the U.S. Federal Maritime Commission (the ‘FMC’) requires evidence of financial responsibility in the form of a Performance Certificate for those offering transportation on guest ships operating out of U.S. ports to indemnify guests in the event of non-performance of the transportation. The company is also required to obtain from the FMC a Casualty Certificate evidencing financial responsibility established by insurance, surety bond, self-insurance, guaranty, or escrow account based on the number of guest accommodations in order to cover liability incurred for death or injury to guests or other persons on voyages on board its ships.
The company’s ocean and expedition operations follow the relevant regulations of any authority where it is operating, including the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for operations in U.S. waters. For operations in Europe, the company is subject to various laws and regulations instituted by the European Union, including regulations to implement or enhance environmental standards established by MARPOL.
The Viking Mississippi and any future ships operating in the U.S. coastwise markets must comply with the applicable provisions of the PVSA, which is similar to the Jones Act governing cargo vessels and restricts domestic marine transportation of passengers in the United States to vessels built and documented in the United States, manned by U.S. citizens, and owned and operated by U.S. citizens. The Mississippi Ship Owner has represented to the company that it complies with the U.S. ownership requirements of the PVSA and has obtained written confirmation from MARAD that the company’s time charter structure meets MARAD’s requirements to be classified as a permissible time charter.
In addition, the company’s expansion into the Mississippi River market is subject to the FMC Performance Certificate requirement.
The company is registered as a seller of travel under the California Business and Professions Code, and it participates in the California Travel Consumer Restitution Fund, which provides refunds to guests who are unable to collect from their respective seller of travel, by making annual assessments into the fund. The company also participates in the United States Tour Operators Association (‘USTOA’) One Million Travelers Assistance Program, which requires it to post $1 million of security in the form of a bond or letter of credit and exempts it from seller of travel trust account requirements under the California Business and Professions Code.
History
Viking Holdings Ltd was founded in1997. The company was incorporated in 2010.
