Viking christened two more new river cruise ships today in Luxor, Egypt as they expand their fleet with more custom built ships for the Nile River.
Viking Sobek and Viking Hathor were christened this evening on the banks of the Nile by Mohamed El Banna, founder of Cosmos Egypt, and the Hon. Edward Herbert, the great-great-grandson of the 5th Earl of Carnarvon whose colleague discovered the tomb of King Tutankhamun.
Alistair Miller served as the Master of Ceremonies and Norwegian soprano Sissel performed at the christening dinner at the Karnak Temple.
The new ships will sail the cruise line’s 12 day Pharaohs & Pyramids itinerary. Each trip starts off with two full days in Cairo and then guests board a charter flight to Luxor for an eight-day cruise on the Nile.
During the cruise, guests can visit the tomb of Nefertari in the Valley of the Queens and the tomb of Tutankhamen in the Valley of the Kings.
Excursions to the Temple of Khnum in Esna, the Dendera Temple complex in Qena, the temples at Abu Simbel and the High Dam in Aswan, and a visit to a colorful Nubian village are also offered.
When the cruise is over, they will fly back to Cairo for more one last day.
The ships are wider and shorter than Viking’s Longships and have floor-to-ceiling windows all around them for incredible views as you view the sights along the Nile.
However, Viking’s past guests will be enjoy the Scandinavian design along with familiar favorites like the Aquavit Terrace.
There is also a small pool in the aft of the ships by the Aquavit Terrace.
Each ship is identical and has 41 cabins that carry 82 guests. They are sister ships to Viking Osiris and Viking Aton. Viking has four more ships in this class on order with two more debuting each year in 2025 and 2026.
This will give Viking a total of 10 river ships sailing on the Nile River.
