Viking Announces Additional 2023 Sailings

Cruise and tour operator Viking announced July 2 that new 2023 sailings of its Mississippi River cruises are now on sale. The company’s first custom vessel, Viking Mississippi, will debut in August 2022 and will sail voyages on the Lower and Upper Mississippi River, between New Orleans and St. Paul.

Viking said several sailings have already sold out for the 2022 season, and the strong demand was a factor in leading Viking to open additional 2023 sailing dates “sooner than originally expected,” the company said.

“We are very pleased at the initial response and support we have received from guests and community partners along the Mississippi River,” said Torstein Hagen, chairman of Viking. “Like me, many travelers are planning ahead for when we will once again be exploring the world in comfort: to exotic destinations as well as those closer to home. We look forward to welcoming guests as we bring modern river cruising to the Mississippi River in 2022.”

Viking said it expects the new cruises to bring more than 5,800 guests to the region in 2022 and more than 17,600 during the first full sailing season in 2023. Currently scheduled ports of call on Viking’s new Mississippi River cruises comprise seven U.S. states: Louisiana (Baton Rouge, Darrow, New Orleans and St. Francisville); Mississippi (Natchez and Vicksburg); Tennessee (Memphis); Missouri (Hannibal, St. Louis); Iowa (Burlington, Dubuque and Davenport); Wisconsin (La Crosse); and Minnesota (Red Wing and St. Paul).