Representatives of Barbados Port Inc (BPI) , Platinum Port Agency Inc., Foster and Ince Cruise Services and Bridgetown Cruise Terminal Inc., greeted the Viking Sun on its inaugural visit to the Port of Bridgetown on Sunday October 27, 2019. A traditional plaque exchange ceremony was held on board to mark the occasion.
The Viking Sun, the fourth in a series of 10 identical vessels built for Viking Ocean Cruises, spent the day in Port with its sister ship, the Viking Sea. Along with the Norwegian Dawn, also in Port on that, approximately 5 000 visitors were welcomed to the island, signaling the official start of the 2019/20 cruise season.
The 2-year-old ship, sailed in from San Juan, Puerto Rico on its Ultimate World Cruise 2019 journey, a 245-day itinerary, slated to visit 113 ports in 59 countries on 6 continents.
The itinerary is listed as the longest continuous passenger cruise in the Guinness Book of World Records, taking cruisers to Scandinavia, the Caribbean, South America, the South Pacific Islands, Australia and Asia before returning to the Mediterranean and Europe. The Viking Sun set sail from Greenwich, London on August 31 this year for the eight-month long voyage, which ends back in Greenwich on May 1, 2020. An official Guinness World Record adjudicator is expected to confirm the successful attempt with a certification upon the return of the ship to London. Some 55 passengers are sailing the full itinerary on board the 930-passenger liner. Others have opted for shorter cruise itineraries available as part of journey.
