Viking Mississippi Cruise Ship Touches Water for the First Time

HOUMA, La. (AP) — Viking’s highly-anticipated Mississippi River cruises between New Orleans and St. Paul, Minnesota, are a step closer to reality.

The company celebrated the “float out” of its new 386-guest Viking Mississippi ship on Monday at Edison Chouest Offshore’s LaShip shipyard in Houma, Louisiana, beginning its final stage of construction, the company said in a news release.

“It is a proud moment that this new ship has met an American waterway for the first time,” said Torstein Hagen, chairman of Viking. “Our guests have long wanted to sail the Mississippi River with Viking, and we very much look forward to welcoming them on board this summer.”

The ship is set to debut in June, bringing more than 7,500 guests to the river and more than 17,600 during the first full sailing season in 2023, company officials said.

Currently scheduled ports of call on Viking’s Mississippi River itineraries include seven 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, St. Paul).

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