The Massara shipyard in Cairo has launched the Viking Hathor , which will make its debut on the Nile River in August. The vessel, with a capacity for 82 passengers, will be part of Viking's 12-day " Pharaohs and Pyramids " itinerary
“Egypt, with its cultural treasures and antiquities, continues to top the list for many Viking travelers,” said Viking President Torstein Hagen.
The Viking Hathor, identical twin to the Viking Aton of 2023 and the Viking Osiris of 2022, will now be moved to a nearby outfitting dock for final construction and interior outfitting.
The ships feature a Scandinavian interior design, a distinctive square bow, and an indoor and outdoor Aquavit deck.
Six ships on the Nile in 2025
Viking will have six ships sailing the Nile by 2025 with the addition of a sister ship, the Viking Sobek, already under construction and scheduled for delivery next year. The company's Egyptian fleet also includes the Viking Ra and the Antares.
Itinerary “Pharaohs and Pyramids”
The 12-day ' Pharaohs and Pyramids ' program begins with a three-night stay in a first-class hotel in Cairo, where travelers will be able to visit sites such as the Great Pyramids of Giza, the Saqqara necropolis, the Muhammad Ali Mosque and the Grand Egyptian Museum.
Then they return to Luxor to tour the temples of Luxor and Karnak before embarking on an eight-day round-trip Nile cruise.
The tour includes visits to Nefertari's tomb in the Valley of the Queens and Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings. Other excursions include the Temple of Khnum in Esna, the Dendera Temple complex in Qena, the temples of Abu Simbel and the High Dam in Aswan, and a visit to a primary school in a Nubian village.
The trip concludes with a flight back to Cairo to spend the last night in the city.
Extension in Great Britain
Viking also offers pre- and post-trip extensions. The five-day “British Collections of Ancient Egypt” trip begins in London, where participants meet their Viking tour director, an expert Egyptologist, and experience “Privileged Access” to the British Museum’s Egyptian Collection before it opens to the general public, as well as to the home and personal museum of world-renowned architect Sir John Soane.
Travelers also visit London’s Petrie Museum, home to more than 80,000 artifacts from ancient Egypt and Sudan. In Oxford, the tour includes the Ashmolean Museum, which houses Egyptian mummies and artwork, and a behind-the-scenes visit to Oxford University’s Griffith Institute for “Privileged Access” to the Howard Carter Archives, which detail the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb.
Another "Privileged Access" visit is to Highclere Castle to view the Earl of Carnarvon's collection of Egyptian artifacts and archives, as well as exhibits not normally accessible to the public.
Istanbul and Jordan
Other offers include a pre-trip three-night stay in Istanbul and a post-trip four-night stay in Jordan with Petra, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
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