On Sunday, Viking's newest ship Viking Neptune was christened in Los Angeles, California in a traditional ceremony. The ship's ceremonial godmother, Nicole Stott, a retired NASA astronaut, aquanaut and artist, blessed the ship for good luck and safe sailing - a maritime tradition that dates back thousands of years.

The appointment of Viking Neptune also comes at a time of record sales for Viking, with the launch of Viking's new 25th Anniversary Sale on 1 January resulting in the highest number of bookings in a single week in the company's history.

"Today is a proud day for the entire Viking family as we name our newest ocean liner in Los Angeles, home to Viking's US office for more than 20 years," said Thorstein Hagen, Viking President. "Viking Neptune is a ship named for both the most distant planet in our solar system and the god of the sea—and our newest Viking godmother, Nicole Stott, as a NASA astronaut and aquanaut, also has connections to space and the sea." We are grateful for her great contributions to the scientific community and are proud to have her as part of the Viking family."

"It is an honor and a privilege to be the godfather of the new Viking Neptune. As someone who has been blessed to explore space, the ocean and some of the otherworldly places on our planet, I understand the importance of broadening one's horizons through travel. "I am very excited for all those who travel around the world on this elegant ship," Nicole Stott said. 

In keeping with the naming tradition, during the ceremony, Nicole used a historic Viking broad ax to cut the ribbon that allowed the bottle of Norwegian aquavit to be smashed against the ship's hull. Prior to the ribbon cutting, the ax was presented to Nicole by Sissel Kirkebo, one of the world's leading crossover sopranos and godmother of Viking Jupiter, who used it at the naming of her ship in January 2020. Guests at the event also enjoyed performances by Sissel and Norwegian violinist Thor Jaran Apold.

After the naming ceremony, Viking Neptune departed Los Angeles for Honolulu on January 8th.

The ship is currently sailing on the 2022-2023 Viking World Cruise, an epic voyage from Fort Lauderdale to London that spans 138 days, 28 countries, and 57 ports, with overnight stops in 11 cities.