Viking OCEAN announced it would continue restarting limited operations with sailings around Bermuda and Iceland beginning in June.
As a result of strong demand in the UK, Viking has added 2 additional sailings of England’s Scenic Shores itinerary in June.
All of Viking Cruises' new Welcome Back journeys will be available exclusively for vaccinated passengers, in accordance with local entry rules in a lot of the destinations that will welcome the line's ships, and as a complement to the new health and safety protocol enhancements of Viking, which were designed to protect travelers and crew members even while the COVID vaccine rollout is still moving forward.
For the Bermuda Escape itinerary, the Viking Orion ship is to be homeported in Hamilton Bermuda for 8-day roundtrip cruises. Viking Sky will homeport in Reykjavik Iceland with the new Iceland’s Natural Beauty itinerary for 8-day roundtrip itineraries. The small size of Viking ocean ships will allow convenient access to small and large cruise ports in Bermuda and Iceland.
Both itineraries will be available for a limited time during the summer months.
Viking Cruises has been working closely with officials in the United Kingdom, Bermuda, and Iceland and these destinations had been chosen specifically due to their popularity among Viking's passengers, as well as their commitment to welcoming the line's ships, reviving the travel industry in their countries.
Viking is actively working on developing Welcome Back cruises in a variety of other destinations, including Greece, Malta, and Turkey, with the goal of announcing further sailings as soon as government approvals are given.
The news follows the recent announcement of the company that it would initially restart with domestic sailings in England for UK residents onboard Viking Venus beginning in May. The initial cruises sold out within a week.