Viking Cruises
Viking River Cruises AG is a global provider of river cruises. The company's headquarters is in Basel, Switzerland. Until the end of 2013 there was a German office in Cologne, the Viking River Cruises GmbH. It was closed because corporate strategy is to focus on the lucrative English-language markets. Viking River Cruises is one of the world's largest river cruise companies. In 2006 it achieved a turnover of over 200 million U.S. dollars. Worldwide 1,700 people employed on board and ashore.
Business
The establishment of Viking River Cruises in Russia was in 1997 by Torstein Hagen, the current Managing Director and Chairman of the Board.
In its first year the company operated with four ships on various Russian rivers. 1999-2001 was followed by a new program with eight river cruisers. 2000 on the Viking also the KD German river cruises with their nine ships of Cologne - Düsseldorf and extended the offer to Ukrainian and French Rivers and on the Danube, Elbe, Rhine, Main and Mosel. 2001, with the opening of an office in Los Angeles made it into the United States. In 2004, the first Viking River cruise ship on the Yangtze River in China. In October 2006, the Egyptian Nile was added. In Egypt Viking River Cruises cooperated with the Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts and used for its guests as a Nile cruise ship, the Mövenpick M / S " Royal Lotus ," from November 2007, the Mövenpick M / S " Royal Lily ". Meanwhile uses Viking River Cruises in Egypt no ships of Mövenpick.
2006, two new ships were put into service in February 2006, the " Viking Century Sun " for the Yangtze River and in March 2006 the "Viking Helvetia " for the Rhine. The "Viking Legend" sailed from May 2009 for the U.S. market the rivers Rhine - Main - Danube. As the first domestic cruise ship with diesel -electric drive in this territory to include the " Viking Legend " is, according to the shipping company have around 20 per cent fuel consumption and drive noise. As the largest and best boat on the Mekong, "Viking Mekong " was designed, which toured from January 2010 Vietnam and Cambodia and deluxe cabins and suites for 120 passengers has. In addition, Viking River Cruises sailed from 2009 Lake Nasser in Egypt. As on the Nile, the company cooperated with Mövenpick here and offered a river cruise on the Mövenpick M / S " Prince Abbas " to.
In mid-September 2008, Viking River Cruises decide an important case for itself. The 1st Chamber of Commerce of the Cologne Regional Court ruled that the Viking River Cruises Ltd. is the sole owner of the rights to the trademark " KD " for the area river cruises. Thus, the KD AG, the brand had used for its river cruise division was defeated. (Ref.: 81 O 223/ 07)
The management of Viking River Cruises GmbH took over in spring 2013 by Guido Laukamp Alfoso Escobar, who has left the company, and Klaus Zimmer. From 2015 the High Seas Viking Ocean Cruises Parte should start with a first ship, the 2016, another follow.
Cruises
It offered cruises in Europe, Russia / Ukraine, Egypt and China. One of the main traffic flows in Europe are the Rhine, Elbe, Main, Danube, Moselle, Seine, Dnepr, Volga, Rhone and Douro. When connecting the river system of the Rhine to the Danube and the Main -Danube Canal is busy. In North Africa, the Nile and Lake Nasser be traveled. In China, the Yangtze River is, in Southeast Asia the Irrawaddy and the Mekong cruise. The focus of the trips are the landscapes and cultural assets. According to numerous UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the schedules and programs are taken into account.
Fleet
In Europe, the Viking fleet consists predominantly of almost identical vessels over a range which are manufactured on the Neptune shipyard and will be delivered since 2012. Start of the season in 2014 20 ships will be in use. There are already given more ships in order to be delivered in spring 2015. A finance package KfW IPEX- Bank for these twelve vehicles can infer that the cost per vessel for about 24 million euros are to be reported.
Europe
Russia and Ukraine
China
Southeast Asia
Egypt