Viking’s newest ship, the Viking Vesta, was floated at Fincantieri’s shipyard in Ancona on Friday, July 5.

The float out of the Viking Vesta commenced on July 4 at approximately 11:00 a.m. local time, marked by the Viking team cutting a cord to allow water to flow into the ship’s building dock. After a two-day process to set the Viking Vesta afloat, the ship will be transferred to a nearby outfitting dock for final construction and interior completion.

“It is always a good day when a new ship meets water for the first time,” said Torstein Hagen, chairman and CEO of Viking.

“Over the last decade, we have built the world’s most elegant small ocean ships together with Fincantieri. As we prepare to welcome the Viking Vesta next summer, as well as her identical sister ship, the Viking Vela, this fall, we look forward to introducing even more curious travelers to the Viking way of exploration.”

Scheduled for delivery in 2025, the Vesta will enter service in July 2025, sailing itineraries in the Mediterranean and in Northern Europe.