Rare eroller Posted December 21, 2011 #1 Share Posted December 21, 2011 Viking River Cruises, one of the largest and most successful riverboat operators in Europe announced today an order for two new cruise ships. To be marketed under "Viking Ocean Cruises", the two new ships would be built at STX France. The ships are listed at a length of 755 feet with a capacity of 888 passengers. Full details can be found here: http://www.cruiseindustrynews.com/cruise-news/6554-viking-ocean-cruises-orders-two-cruise-ships-from-stx-france.html I find it interesting that Viking River has decided to enter the traditional cruise market. I'm guessing by the size of the ships and the number of passengers that the primary competitors will be Oceania and Azamara. These new ships are longer than the R-Class ships, but also carry more passengers. I'm speculating the space ratio will be very similar to the R-Class ships and they will likely attract a similar demographic. They also appear to be destination oriented which again is similar to Oceania and Azamara. Ernie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cruzmaven Posted December 21, 2011 #2 Share Posted December 21, 2011 Competition is a good thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare LHT28 Posted December 21, 2011 #3 Share Posted December 21, 2011 Time will tell ;) Lots of complaints on how they handle the low river problems on the river cruise forum so if they do the same with the ocean cruises they will not be competition ;) You can let us know how they stack up Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orchestrapal Posted December 21, 2011 #4 Share Posted December 21, 2011 Take a look at the thread on this board titled Entertainment???. It should give you answers to some of your concerns. Oceania ships are food oriented and quiet. May not be what you are looking for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare eroller Posted December 21, 2011 Author #5 Share Posted December 21, 2011 Turns out that Torstein Hagen who launched Viking River Cruises was also the CEO and President of Royal Viking Line. Interesting connection huh? Might we see some aspects of Royal Viking Line resurrected in the form of Viking Ocean Cruises? I guess time will tell. It is reported on another board that these new ships will have a gross tonnage of 41,000. That would give them a space ratio of 46.2, better than the R-Class ships and certainly in the ultra-premium category especially if the food and service follow suit. Ernie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacheco18 Posted December 22, 2011 #6 Share Posted December 22, 2011 Other than its China cruises, Viking is way down the food chain in terms of its rankings as a river cruise line. Tauck, AMA, Avalon and Uniworld consistently are rated better than Viking. Given Viking's track reputation in their "specialty" area I would be surprised if they could compete with Oceania. But I do agree that competition is good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eddmel Posted December 22, 2011 #7 Share Posted December 22, 2011 It is not a surprise as travel companies are looking to expand the markets they serve. Tauck is a good example with their river cruises and their combo land/sea tours (on established cruise lines). Time will tell if the new strategy is profitable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rare eroller Posted December 22, 2011 Author #8 Share Posted December 22, 2011 Other than its China cruises, Viking is way down the food chain in terms of its rankings as a river cruise line. Tauck, AMA, Avalon and Uniworld consistently are rated better than Viking. Given Viking's track reputation in their "specialty" area I would be surprised if they could compete with Oceania. Not sure I would agree that Viking is way down on the food chain as far as European river cruises go. These river boats are actually more similar than different. Of course there are some operational differences as some companies are merely tour operators leasing the ships, and others such as Viking actually own, build, and operate all their own ships. Anyway it wouldn't be Viking River Cruises competing with Oceania, it would be Viking Ocean Cruises and it remains to be seen exactly how they position themselves. Based on the size of the ship, the crew compliment, and the space ratio it would suggest the ultra-premium market. Certainly Viking has the resources, finances, and expertise to operate this new brand in pretty much whatever segment they desire. Ernie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jancruz Posted December 22, 2011 #9 Share Posted December 22, 2011 From what I have been reading he will try to copy his own Royal Viking and it will be a separate cruise line.. Jancruz1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paulchili Posted December 22, 2011 #10 Share Posted December 22, 2011 Though I have not sailed with Royal Viking, I believe it was an excellent cruise line. If the new one is a copy - it should be nice. However, I wish they would offer more than the Med. Enough is enough (of the Med, that is) - as far as I am concerned anyway. There is a lot more to this world than the Med. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
no fuss travel Posted December 22, 2011 #11 Share Posted December 22, 2011 Viking will have to prove their ships before I will get on another one. I was on the inaugural cruise of the Legend and it was a legend of a trip. The engine blew just after we left Lorelei Rock and we were floating backwards. If they had not got the anchor out as fast as they did, the ship would have been stuck. The Viking China trip was excellent, but we were not nearly as impressed with the Viking Europe river cruise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimandStan Posted December 22, 2011 #12 Share Posted December 22, 2011 From what I have been reading he will try to copy his own Royal Viking and it will be a separate cruise line..Jancruz1 I've been reading those same articles, Jan, but it does not make a great deal of sense to me, because it was Hagen who said, when the old Royal Viking gave up the ghost, that because the economics no longer allowed them to run Run Royal Viking as an absolutely first class operation, then he was not interested in running a cruise line at all. Do you suppose that he thinks that the economic climate is better now; or that the standard of what passes for first class has dropped? On the other hand, I suppose that if anyone wants to cash in on the Royal Viking cachet, they had better do it before ALL of thye alumni meetings are chaired by St. Peter. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jancruz Posted December 22, 2011 #13 Share Posted December 22, 2011 I've been reading those same articles, Jan, but it does not make a great deal of sense to me, because it was Hagen who said, when the old Royal Viking gave up the ghost, that because the economics no longer allowed them to run Run Royal Viking as an absolutely first class operation, then he was not interested in running a cruise line at all. Do you suppose that he thinks that the economic climate is better now; or that the standard of what passes for first class has dropped? On the other hand, I suppose that if anyone wants to cash in on the Royal Viking cachet, they had better do it before ALL of thye alumni meetings are chaired by St. Peter. ;) Maybe he thinks by 2015 we will be in a boom..I certainly hope so..only time will tell Jim, I just try to get through today...LOL.. I payed it forward today, I went to Walmart and paid for several hundreds of dollars of layaways for people ( I didnt know) who are having trouble in secret..I feel great about it.. Happy holidays guys..hope we sail together again soon!! Jancruz1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
orchestrapal Posted December 22, 2011 #14 Share Posted December 22, 2011 Take a look at the thread on this board titled Entertainment???. It should give you answers to some of your concerns. Oceania ships are food oriented and quiet. May not be what you are looking for. Sorry folks, this somehow got posted to the wrong thread.:( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacheco18 Posted December 22, 2011 #15 Share Posted December 22, 2011 Not sure I would agree that Viking is way down on the food chain as far as European river cruises go. These river boats are actually more similar than different. Ernie I am not referring to the boats themselves. I agree that with the exception of some of the newest river cruise boats that have added a host of bells and whistles, most of the boats are quite similar. I am referring to the Viking "experience" as opposed to the experience on the other lines I mentioned. Other than for China, where Viking reigns, Viking is not among the highest rated river cruise lines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wripro Posted December 22, 2011 #16 Share Posted December 22, 2011 Until we know exactly what kind of cruise line Viking will offer we won't know if they will be competition to Oceania and Azamara or the luxury lines like Seabourn, Crystal and Silversea. It's a long time between now and 2014 so who knows what the line will be like. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wendy The Wanderer Posted December 22, 2011 #17 Share Posted December 22, 2011 ... I went to Walmart and paid for several hundreds of dollars of layaways for people ( I didnt know) who are having trouble in secret..I feel great about it..Happy holidays guys..hope we sail together again soon!! Jancruz1 What a nice thing to do! Is there a program for doing that, or a sign in the store or something? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jancruz Posted December 22, 2011 #18 Share Posted December 22, 2011 What a nice thing to do! Is there a program for doing that, or a sign in the store or something? I saw that people were doing it on a TV news show..yesterday was the last day so I plan to do it next year and get other people to pay it forward.. I will let you know when Wendy.. Jancruz1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CintiPam Posted December 22, 2011 #19 Share Posted December 22, 2011 What a nice thing to do! Is there a program for doing that, or a sign in the store or something? There have been several articles in the local paper here in Cincinnati in the past week regarding anonymous gifts for paying down K-Mart layaway items for people. And those articles have generated many more such gifts, so the publicity really has payed this generosity forward. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
travelinjudy Posted December 23, 2011 #20 Share Posted December 23, 2011 I payed it forward today, I went to Walmart and paid for several hundreds of dollars of layaways for people ( I didnt know) who are having trouble in secret..I feel great about it.. Happy holidays guys..hope we sail together again soon!! Jancruz1 That's what Christmas should be about, IMHO. That's an example of the true spirit of giving. I applaud you for your generosity and hope your spirit of giving spreads exponentially. Happy Holidays to you and yours, Jan!:D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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