Viking Ocean Cruise’s Viking Star made her maiden call at the London International Cruise Terminal at Tilbury on 28th April (above). Just a few days later, on 5th May, the brand new 47,842gt Viking Sea arrived at Greenwich on the River Thames for her naming ceremony after passing through the Thames Barrier, the ship received a warm welcome by 28 able seamen, who manned the yardarms of the Cutty Sark, the iconic 19th Century British clipper ship, and saluted Viking Sea as she arrived.

During the christening ceremony, guests were treated to a concert from Norwegian soprano Sissel and The Olav’s Choir whilst Karine Hagen, Viking’s senior vice president and daughter of Torstein Hagen, served as ceremonial godmother and offered a blessing of good fortune and safe sailing for the ship. Several elements of the christening ceremony paid homage to the company’s Norwegian heritage. instead of champagne for the traditional bottle-breaking, the Viking Sea was christened with a bottle of Gammel Opland Aquavit, which hails from the same town in Norway where Torstein’s mother and Karine’s grandmother were born. The ceremony was the culmination of a maiden voyage that began on 3rd April when the ship set sail in the Mediterranean.