Andrea Zelinski
The world's three largest cruise companies, all publicly traded, have long had to provide public insight into their bookings. Meanwhile, private lines have been able to divulge what they want and when, if anything at all.
That's no longer the case for one of the largest and fastest-growing ocean and river cruise lines, Viking, which went public in May. And what the company revealed in its first earnings call last week is that like the Big Three, which have been bragging for months about their record booked position, Viking's bookings are through the roof.
During its Q1 earnings call, Viking said that a whopping 91% of its ocean and river product is sold out for 2024, as is 39% of its 2025 capacity.
The numbers are even rosier when looking specifically at ocean cruises. Not only is 91% of ocean capacity for this year sold as of May 19, but so is nearly half (47%) of next year's capacity.
In comparison, 92% of river capacity is sold for this year with 30% booked for 2025. Executives said ocean cruise sales are ahead because the line opened up the 2025 ocean season for bookings earlier than it did for river.
"We feel good about these trends as advance bookings were 16% and 30% higher in comparison to the 2023 and '24 seasons, respectively, at the same point in time, and we're booking at attractive rates," Viking chairman and CEO Tor Hagen said during the call.
Prices are up about 13% year over year, said Viking CFO Leah Talactac.
The line is achieving its ocean cruise booking strength with a 17% increase in operating capacity in 2025 over 2024, with the Viking Vela joining the fleet in December and the Viking Vesta in July 2025.
They are part of a steady lineup of ocean vessels on the way for Viking, with at least one ship scheduled for delivery every year through 2029. The line just announced an order for its 17th and 18th ships to be delivered in 2029, with an option for two more the following year.
Viking's long ocean cruising booking curve gives the company visibility into what itineraries are selling well and the ability to react accordingly when deciding on future itineraries, said Talactac. That said, Hagen doesn't expect his company's ocean ships to venture into new regions at this point.
The other publicly traded cruise companies don't usually get this granular about their booked position, sometimes shying away from hard numbers while saying -- for several quarters now -- that they are in some of their best booked positions ever.
And as revealing as Viking's first-quarter call was, Hagen reminded analysts and investors that even while presiding over a public company, he will continue to be as contrarian as ever: Viking won't be providing earnings guidance, something standard with most public companies, and will instead provide a company outlook through its booking curve.