Viking Expeditions

Is a Viking Antarctica cruise worth it?

Yes, if you want a comfortable, adults-only ship and a fare that covers the flight to Ushuaia, and you accept sharing the landing sites with up to 377 other guests. Viking's 13-day Antarctic Explorer starts at $14,999 per person for 2026-27, about $1,154 a day, which is less per day than the lowest fares we found at Seabourn or Ponant.⁶²⁰²¹ The price includes a hotel night in Buenos Aires, charter flights to and from Ushuaia, beer and wine with meals, and kayaks, Zodiacs and special operations boats at no extra charge.¹³⁶

The trade-off is size. Viking's two expedition ships each carry 378 guests, so at a landing site where only 100 people may be ashore at once, a full ship needs at least four rotations, and 11 of the 45 Antarctic Treaty site guidelines admit only ships carrying 200 passengers or fewer.²¹⁵¹⁶ If time ashore matters most, a ship of 200 or fewer, such as Aurora Expeditions' Sylvia Earle, lands everyone in two groups.

What is Viking Expeditions?

Viking Expeditions is the polar and Great Lakes line of Viking, the river and ocean cruise company founded in 1997, which now runs more than 100 ships and is listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: VIK).¹² Torstein Hagen is chairman and chief executive.² Viking began expedition voyages in 2022 with two new ships, the Viking Octantis and Viking Polaris, which sail Antarctica, the Arctic and North America's Great Lakes.¹

Viking belongs to the polar operators' associations: IAATO lists the Viking Octantis in its vessel directory, and AECO lists Viking Expedition Ltd. among its full members.¹⁷¹⁸ Its resident scientists are chosen with the Scott Polar Research Institute at the University of Cambridge or the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, and each ship carries a 36-person expedition team.¹³

How many expedition ships does Viking have?

Two: the Viking Octantis and her identical sister, the Viking Polaris, each with 378 guests in 189 staterooms and a Polar Class 6 hull.² Both were built by Vard, Fincantieri's Norwegian subsidiary, and delivered in 2021 and 2022.³ In March 2026 Viking ordered two more sisters, due in 2030 and 2031 from Fincantieri's Palermo yard, also for 378 guests.³

Every stateroom has a Nordic Balcony, a floor-to-ceiling window whose top half lowers, rather than a step-out balcony.¹³⁴

How much does a Viking Antarctica cruise cost?

Viking's 2026-27 Antarctic fares start at $14,999 per person, two sharing, for the 13-day Antarctic Explorer, with flights from the US extra.⁶ These were the lowest fares Viking showed on October 14, 2026, during its Fall Sale, which it says expires October 31, 2026:⁶¹²

Per-day figures are our arithmetic. Viking calls the struck-through price its "Standard Cruise Fare" and the price shown a special fare.⁶ Its terms say special fares are "based upon published full brochure fares" and that the sale applies to bookings made October 1 to 31, 2026.⁶

Flights cost extra unless the sale makes them free. For the Antarctic Explorer, Viking Air from the US was free on December departures (struck through from $1,499), $1,999 in January and $999 in February.⁶ So the cheapest cruise-plus-air total in 2026-27 was a February departure at $15,998, against $17,999 for the cheapest December departure still for sale, which included free air.⁶

The Antarctica & South Georgia Island trip adds the Falklands (West Point Island and Stanley) and three days at South Georgia before five days on the Antarctic Peninsula.⁹ For the full cost picture, see our Antarctica trip cost guide.

What is included in a Viking Antarctica cruise?

Viking's fare includes an expedition jacket to keep, the use of boots, binoculars and waterproof pants, at least one shore excursion on every landing day, all restaurants and 24-hour room service, beer, wine and soft drinks with meals, Wi-Fi, port charges, charter flights to and from Ushuaia, and a hotel night in Buenos Aires on the way out.¹³ Kayaks, Zodiacs and the special operations boats cost nothing extra.⁶

Not included: flights from home (see above), submarine dives at $499 per person, the Silver Spirits drinks package at $27 per person per night, and gratuities, for which Viking recommends $20 per person per night.¹³ Viking strongly recommends travel insurance and every guest must submit a physician-completed medical assessment before an Antarctic or Arctic voyage.¹³

How many passengers does a Viking expedition ship hold?

378 guests, which puts Viking's ships in IAATO's 201 to 500 passenger category.²¹⁵ IAATO allows no more than 100 visitors ashore at a site at once (fewer where a site's guideline sets a lower cap), requires one guide for every 20, allows one ship at a site at a time and imposes "stringent restrictions on time and place of landing activities" on ships of this size.¹⁵¹⁶ At 378 guests, a full ship needs at least four rotations at a 100-person site (our arithmetic).

The Antarctic Treaty site guidelines also shut ships of more than 200 passengers out of 11 of the 45 sites they cover, including Penguin Island, Paulet Island and Baily Head on Deception Island.¹⁶ Viking's 36-person expedition team works out to about one team member for every 10 or 11 guests (our arithmetic), against about one for seven that Aurora gives for its 130-guest ships.¹³²⁴

What is the best month to go to Antarctica with Viking?

Viking says it sails to Antarctica from November to February, and in 2026-27 its Antarctic Explorer departures run from December 4 to February 26; the South Georgia trip runs into March.¹³⁶⁸ December was the dearest month to book: the cheapest cabins still for sale on December departures cost $17,999 to $18,199 (with free flights from the US), while only the February departures still had $14,999 Nordic Balcony cabins (plus $999 for flights).⁶ Wildlife and ice conditions also change through the season; our guide to the best time to visit Antarctica explains the trade-offs.

What happened on the Viking Polaris in 2022?

On November 29, 2022, a breaking wave struck the Viking Polaris south-east of Cape Horn as it crossed the Drake Passage back to Ushuaia, shattering seven stateroom windows; one passenger died and eight were injured.¹⁹ The ship had already cut its voyage short after a Zodiac incident in Antarctica the day before, in which one passenger was injured and another ended up in the water, to make a medical evacuation.¹⁹

The Norwegian Safety Investigation Authority concluded that the windows were "inadequately dimensioned" for the pressure of a breaking wave and that current class rules set design pressures too low.¹⁹ It recommended that the owner, working with Wilhelmsen Ship Management, reinforce the windows on both the Polaris and the Octantis, because winds strong enough to make waves break are common in the Drake Passage for much of the year.¹⁹ We found no public statement from Viking or the Norwegian Maritime Authority confirming that the reinforcements were made, so ask Viking before you book.

What are the drawbacks of a Viking Antarctica cruise?

The main ones are size and rules. Landings run in rotations, some sites are closed to the ships, there are no helicopters, and no one under 18 may sail.¹⁵¹⁶¹³ The Antarctic Explorer crosses the Drake Passage both ways, and none of the Viking Antarctic itineraries we read flies over it, so compare our fly or sail the Drake guide if seasickness worries you.⁷⁹ Viking's cancellation terms are gentler than Aurora's: for trips of 35 days or less the fee is $100 at 120 days or more before departure, rising to 20% at 119 to 90 days and 100% inside 30 days.¹⁴ Aurora, by contrast, keeps the full fare from 120 days out.²⁵

How does Viking compare with Seabourn and Ponant?

Viking is the cheapest of the three per day, and all three fares include flights between Buenos Aires and Ushuaia. These were the lowest 2026-27 Antarctic fares on October 14, 2026, per person, two sharing:

Pick Viking for the lowest daily fare and a large, comfortable ship. Pick Seabourn for 264-guest ships that land in three rotations rather than four, or Ponant, which carries no more than 200 guests in Antarctica and so lands in two (our arithmetic); its Le Commandant Charcot has the strongest ice class. Our guide to choosing an Antarctica cruise covers the small-ship lines too.

Does Viking go to the Arctic?

Yes, though the Octantis schedule we read lists no Svalbard trips. Viking says it sails the Arctic from late June to September, and the Octantis's Arctic trips start or end in Nuuk, Greenland, including the 13-day Into the Northwest Passage from $15,999 and the 81-day Arctic to Antarctic Explorer from $77,999.¹³⁴