Viking Holdings Ltd

Overview

Viking Holdings Ltd is a luxury cruise and travel company offering river, ocean and expedition voyages under the Viking brand. Its itineraries span all seven continents, with a focus primarily on Europe and the Mediterranean. The company’s founding vision emphasizes destination-focused travel and cultural enrichment.[1]+2

Founded in 1997 with four river vessels, Viking has since expanded into ocean and expedition cruising. It reported a fleet of 103 ships in its 2025 Form 20-F; total revenue for the first quarter of 2026 was $1.054 billion.[1][4] [1]+3

Products & services

Viking offers river, ocean and expedition cruises. Its river products include European Longships, designed with all-outside staterooms, al-fresco dining and capacity for 190 guests, as well as smaller vessels on routes including the Nile and Mekong. The company also operates the U.S.-flagged *Viking Mississippi* on the Mississippi River.[5]+2

Viking Ocean operates smaller-format ships carrying fewer than 1,000 passengers, with a majority of itineraries in Northern Europe and the Mediterranean. Onboard features include veranda staterooms, restaurants, a Nordic-inspired spa, Explorer’s Lounge and a curated library; the company states that ocean guests spend an average of more than 10 hours in port per day.[8]+3

Viking Expedition voyages serve destinations including the Arctic, Antarctica, the Great Lakes and Canada. The *Viking Polaris* and *Viking Octantis* each accommodate 378 guests and feature onboard laboratories, an auditorium, an in-ship marina and specialist exploration equipment; the expedition program also includes daily briefings, lectures and fieldwork.[12]+2

Viking describes its cruise offering as all-inclusive, with one shore excursion included in every port and Wi-Fi, alternative restaurants, and beer and wine at lunch and dinner included. Optional shore excursions, bar revenue and shop sales are among the offerings categorized as onboard and other revenue.[3]+2 [5]+12

Geographic presence

As of December 31, 2025, Viking reported 89 river vessels, with its fleet classified across Europe, Egypt, Asia, Russia, Ukraine and the United States; its ocean and expedition vessels were classified as global. These fleet categories describe vessel allocation, not necessarily routes in operation at year-end.[17]+2 The company has also deployed the Viking Mississippi on the Mississippi River.[7]

Viking’s reported revenue is organized by cruise product and language rather than by customer country or region, so the available reporting does not establish revenue shares by geography.[19][20] Its principal executive office is in Pembroke, Bermuda; the filing also lists a Woodland Hills, California address for a contact person, not as an employee-distribution measure.[21] [17]+5

Business segments

Viking reports two reportable segments: River, which provides river cruises outside the United States to English-speaking passengers, and Ocean, which provides ocean cruises to English-speaking passengers. The company groups English-language expedition cruises, English-language Mississippi River cruises, and Viking Asia’s non-English-language cruises and China joint-venture investment under “Other”; Other is not a reportable segment.[19]

For FY2025, approximate shares of total revenue were River 47.2%, Ocean 44.1%, and Other 8.7%. These percentages are calculated from the segment revenue figures in the company’s FY2025 reporting; Other is included to reconcile to total revenue.[22] [19]+2

Company history

Viking was founded in 1997 by Torstein Hagen, beginning with four river vessels. In 2000, it expanded through the acquisition of KD River Cruises and opened a sales and marketing office in Los Angeles; in 2004, it entered China with Yangtze cruise tours and a purpose-built ship.[23][24]

The company introduced its Longship river vessels in 2012 and entered ocean cruising in 2015 with its first ocean ship.[17][9] In 2022, Viking expanded into Mississippi River cruising and launched its first Antarctica expedition season.[7][25]

Viking became publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange in May 2024 under the symbol VIK.[26] In October 2025, it marked the milestone of 100 ships.[27] In May 2026, Hagen became Executive Chairman and Leah Talactac became CEO.[28] [17]+8

Sources

• Viking Holdings Ltd — Full financial report (2025 Y)
  20 citations

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• Viking Holdings Ltd — Presentation (2026 Q 1)[4]
• ir.viking.com[21]
• ir.viking.com[23]
• www.vikingrivercruises.com[24]
• ir.viking.com[25]
• ir.viking.com[26]
• ir.viking.com[27]
• ir.viking.com[28]