Viking Rota

The 2026-built Longship Viking Rota cruises on the Rhine and Danube rivers, visiting destinations in Switzerland, Holland, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Hungary, and Slovakia. The longship departs from homeports Basel, Amsterdam, Budapest, and Passau.

This riverboat is named after Rota - in Norse mythology, a rebellious Valkyrie associated with chaos and often linked to Gunnr (another Valkyrie) and Skuld (the youngest of the Norns/goddesses of human fates). The Valkyries are warrior maidens serving Odin, also known as the "choosers of the slain". During Ragnarok (prophesied end-of-the-world events), the Valkyries chose who would die and escort the souls to Valhalla (the realm of the dead).

The boat (ENI number tba) will be Switzerland-flagged (MMSI tba) and registered in Basel.

The list of Viking's 2026-inaugurated longships includes Viking Rota, Viking Sjofn, Viking Haki, and Viking Fjolvar.

On December 5, 2023, the company announced a shipbuilding order for 10 Viking Longships – 8 to be deployed on the rivers Rhine, Main, and Danube, and 2 in France (Seine River). The newbuilds were scheduled for deliveries in 2025 (6 units: Annar, Gyda, Honir, Eldir, Dagur, Nerthus) and in 2026 (4 units: Rota, Haki, Sjofn, Fjolvar).

All Viking River Cruises Longships are fitted with solar panels (mounted aft on Sun Deck) and hybrid (diesel-electric) powerplants based on energy-efficient marine engines.

Cabins

Viking Rota has a total of 95 staterooms (9x Suite, 39x Balcony, 22x French Balconies, and 25x Porthole/with a non-opening window) in 8 cabin grades/categories and accommodates max 190 passengers.

Longship Rota has two aft-located Explorer Suites with wraparound balconies providing 270-degree scenery views. The seven Veranda Suites are each with two separate/full rooms and feature a step-out balcony (accessed from the living room) and a French Balcony (in the bedroom). The 39 Veranda Staterooms are with step-out balconies.

The Longship carries 190 passengers (max capacity, served by 53 staff/crew) who are provided complimentary with modern hotel amenities and superior travel and leisure services.

Cabin Types/Categories (number, location), high to low:

• Suites - ES-Explorer (x2, deck3-aft), AA-Veranda (x7, deck 3-portside)
• Balcony Staterooms - A (x20, deck3-starboard), B (x17, deck2-starboard)
• French Balcony Staterooms (with floor-ceiling slide opening glass-door windows) - C (x5, deck3-portside-aft), D (x15, deck2-portside)
• Riverview Porthole Window / Standard Staterooms - E (x18, deck1-midship), F (x7, deck1-midship-aft).

Shipboard facilities

The Observation Bar Lounge has floor-ceiling glass doors opening onto the Aquavit Terrace. This is a bow-facing, indoor-outdoor venue designed for relaxation and alfresco dining. The Sun Deck is served with food and beverages by Aquavit Terrace's staff and provides 360-degree unobstructed riverside views. This topship-deck features forward-sundeck with Sky Bar (outdoor seating area with 4-seat tables and deckchairs), SkyLight (glass roof cover over the Atrium), Wheelhouse (Navigation Bridge), midship-sundeck with shaded sitting (covered by a large retractable awning and encircled by a walking track), sunbathing area (with deckchairs and reclining sun loungers) and aft-sundeck with Putting Green (mini-golf), Herb Garden (organic herbal garden) and deckgames area (shuffleboard, giant outdoor chessboard).

Onboard dining options include Rota Restaurant (dining room) and Aquavit Terrace (Lido Buffet with sliding door-windows opening onto the alfresco terrace). Other facilities include 2-deck Atrium (Lobby Hall with 24-hour Reception Desk), Library (Internet Lounge), Shop (gifts, souvenirs).

Viking Cruises Longships don't have a swimming pool, Jacuzzi (outdoor whirlpool), wellness facilities (Spa/Beauty Salon, Sauna, Fitness/Gym Room) or self-service laundry facilities (laundromats).

One elevator (passenger lift) connects only decks 2 and 3. All decks are interconnected via stairs - forward (Grand Staircase in the Atrium), midship and aft.

Itineraries

Follows the list of Viking Rota river cruise itineraries as themes, officially announced by Viking River Cruises for the inaugural 2026 season:

• "GRAND EUROPEAN TOUR" is a 15-day Rhine and Danube cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest, and the reverse from Budapest to Amsterdam. The itinerary features Rhine-Main-Danube Canal passage (Germany), 4 countries to visit (Hungary, Austria, Germany, Holland) and 12 complimentary land tours/guided excursions. On departures from Budapest, the sailing part starts in the evening on the second day and ends in Amsterdam (with optional 2-night Amsterdam hotel package). Disembarkation in Budapest offers optional 3-night Prague hotel package (Czech Republic).
• "RHINE GETAWAY" is an 8-day Rhine cruise from Amsterdam to Basel and the reverse from Basel to Amsterdam. The itinerary visits 4 countries, with 6 complimentary land tours/guided excursions included in the fares. Disembarkation in Amsterdam offers an optional 2-night Amsterdam hotel package, and the company's "Best of Holland" (3-night hotel) and "Best of Belgium" (3-night hotel) post-cruise travel packages.
• "DANUBE WALTZ" is a 7-day Danube cruise from Budapest to Passau and the reverse from Passau to Budapest. It visits 4 countries (Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary) and 6 complimentary tours/excursions. Passau disembarkation includes a bus transfer from Passau to Munich, with optional 3-night Prague hotel package (Czechia). Passau embarkation includes bus transfer from Munich to Passau and optional 2-night Budapest hotel package.
• "TULIPS and WINDMILLS" is a 10-day Springtime themed Belgium and Holland cruise from Amsterdam (roundtrip itinerary), with 8 complimentary tours/excursions. The sailing part from Amsterdam starts on the second day. The itinerary features an Amsterdam canal cruise on a glass-domed boat and evening departure (on Day 2), cruising on lake IJsselmeer/Zuiderzee, visiting the Paleis Het Loo gardens (from Arnhem), Kinderdijk (windmills network), Antwerp (on river Scheldt in Belgium), Ghent (bus transfer to Bruges), bus travel in the Walcheren region (southwest Holland, stopping in Veere), Holland Delta Works cruise (Dutch system of numerous dams, locks, dykes, storm barriers, all protecting the Holland's Rhine-Meuse-Scheldt area from flooding; embarkation again in Bruinisse /Zeeland), Rotterdam (bus travel to Keukenhof Gardens in Lisse), Amsterdam overnight dock.
• "CHRISTMAS ON THE RHINE" is an 8-day holiday-themed voyage from Amsterdam to Basel. It features scenic cruising of Waal and Merwede (interconnected inland waterways in Holland), visiting the Christmas Markets in Dordrecht, Cologne, Koblenz, Middle Rhine scenic cruising (Lorelei Rock), Rudesheim, Mannheim, Speyer, Strasbourg, and Breisach. Prices are inclusive of 8 guided tours/excursions.
• "DANUBE CHRISTMAS DELIGHTS" is an 8-day holiday-themed voyage from Budapest to Passau (and the reverse), visiting 4 countries (Hungary, Slovakia, Austria, Germany) and inclusive of 6 guided tours/excursions. The visited port cities are Budapest (overnight stay), Bratislava, Vienna, Krems, Wachau Valley (scenic cruising), Linz, and Passau (overnight stay).

Viking Rota cruise deals are inclusive of Internet (Wi-Fi), all tours/excursions, ground/bus transfers, live evening entertainment, daily lecturers/media presentations, food and wine tastings, 24-hour coffee/tea, replenished daily bottled water.

Viking River Cruises prices are per person and based on double occupancy. These are only indicative of Viking cruise rates. They might be different when you book your Viking cruisetour deals, influenced by travel agency promotions, special offers and discounts, group travel booking or last-minute deal rates.

To/from ship transfers and airport meet-and-greet services are included in the fares only when airfares are purchased through Viking Cruises (the company's Viking Air package).

Viking Rota is one of the new generation longships of Viking Cruises. This is a patented river cruise ship design allowing bigger passenger accommodations without shrinking public areas' size and compromising vessel's general comfort.

Longship Rota represents Viking's latest design that features energy-efficient hybrid engine technology, solar panels and interior design developed by "Yran & Storbraaten" (Norway). The patented "longship" design ("Rottet Studios", USA) allows much larger accommodations with full-size (step-out) balconies. The additional cabin space is created by 1 m (3,3 ft) off-center shifting of the deck's corridor.

The vessel's powerplant consists of two main Caterpillar marine diesel engines (model CAT32-ACERT / total power output 2 MW). These are V12 (V engine with 12 cylinders and 12 pistons driving a crankshaft). The propulsion system is based on two Caterpillar marine propulsion engines (model CAT18-ACERT) with combined output 1 MW.

In 2026, together with Viking Rota, were inaugurated also the longships Viking Sjofn, Viking Haki, and Viking Fjolvar.

Note: You can see CruiseMapper's list of all river cruise ships and riverboats in the "itinerary" section of our River Cruises hub. All companies and their fleets are listed there.