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Cruise Saudi adds Viking to its roster of visiting cruise lines

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Cruise Saudi’s CEO Lars Clasen presents plaque and keys to Viking Star's master during the ship's debut visit to Jeddah Islamic Port
Viking Star, currently enroute to Sharm el Shiekh before sailing through the Mediterranean on the final leg of her 120-day voyage ending in London in May, visited Saudi Arabian ports of Jeddah and Yanbu last week marking Viking Cruises’ debut in the kingdom’s Red Sea ports.

Cruise Saudi welcomed Viking Star for its inaugural visit on March 30.

This makes the fifth ship to sail Saudi waters as part of Cruise Saudi’s mandate to build a world-class cruise industry in the country, opening a new gateway for tourism in line with Vision 2030, Saudi’s transformation blueprint.

New cruise line to Saudi

Cruise Saudi CEO Lars Clasen called Viking Star’s visit ‘an important milestone in welcoming a new cruise line to Saudi.’

He added, ‘We are excited to offer tourists a new and exciting opportunity to discover all that Saudi has to offer from pristine islands and beaches of the Red Sea to unique culture and heritage – all underpinned by the quintessential Saudi hospitality.’

Cruise Saudi has welcomed ships from international companies including MSC Cruises, Scenic Group and Silversea which, together with Viking, have completed more than 70 sailings during the summer and winter seasons in 2021 and 2022.

Viking Star departed Los Angeles in January and charted course south to Mexico and Central America then around South America on an eastbound itinerary continuing to the Mediterranean and through the Suez Canal to the Red Sea.