Source : the age
The ship: Viking Saturn
- Commissioned 2023
- The cruise Barcelona to Barcelona (16 days)
- Passengers 930
- Crew 465
- Decks Nine, with 465 staterooms
- Length 227 metres
Viking Saturn, in this photo on a cruise in Iceland.
The cruise
A 16-day Malta, Morocco and the Mediterranean voyage beginning and ending in Barcelona, Spain. This interesting western Mediterranean itinerary visits Marseille, France Ajaccio Corsica, Rome, Italy, Valletta, Malta, Casablanca, Morocco, Cadiz and Malaga, Spain, and, for the first time for Viking Cruises, Tunis, Tunisia, and Algiers, Algeria. This cruise is part of Viking’s new “Quiet Season Mediterranean” collection of voyages designed to operate specifically between the northern autumn to spring, eschewing the excessive crowds and the extreme heat of summer in the Med.
The ship
Viking’s heated pool with its retractable dome roof allowing for trans-seasonal dips.
It’s a case of deja vu all over again when it comes to Viking Cruises’ fleet of ocean ships. After all, this is my third sea voyage with this Norwegian-heritage cruise line and, for me at least, familiarity breeds contentment. My ship for this itinerary, Viking Saturn, one of 13 ocean-going ships in the cruise line’s fleet, feels like home, of sorts. It’s identical in design externally and internally to all the line’s vessels, including two I’ve cruised aboard previously, Viking Jupiter and Viking Sun. Typical of Viking, my ship for this Mediterranean cruise has a passenger capacity of under 1000, qualifying it as a “small ship” in cruising terms, with each relatively compact liner engineered to allow direct access to most ports. While Viking prides itself on a rather forthright though persuasive “no casinos, no children” policy, it could easily add “no gimmicks” and “no fuss”. Viking, with its restrained Nordic approach, is surely the one line most likely to appeal, if not convert, the cruise sceptic to this form of travel. Indeed, the nearest you’ll get to a thrill ride on the likes of Viking Saturn is inside one of its glass-backed elevators with a game of spot-the-trolls emblazoned on passing walls as you go.
Boarding
The boarding sequence on Viking ships is based on your class of on-board accommodation which means, having been allocated a deluxe verandah stateroom, I’m permitted to board at Barcelona’s cruise terminal as early as 11am, with stateroom access from 2pm (I choose the latter option to make the most of my time in the Catalan capital with a post check-out a lunch at Hotel Borneta, my independently arranged accommodation in Barcelona). Thanks to this staggered boarding approach and the manageable number of passengers, the embarkation process is seamless and queue-free. I’m able to access my stateroom almost immediately after I arrive aboard.
The design
Viking touches in the atrium lounge space.
While Viking Saturn’s Nordic design ethos stops short of “cutting-edge Scandinavian” it still takes its inspiration directly from the northern European region’s classic calming aesthetics. The thoughtful touches even extend to a small on-board viking-themed historical display and a display of Norwegian national costumes. Elsewhere, Viking Saturn’s on-board shop champions Nordic design with an array of wares for sale, including exclusive Dale of Norway knitwear, which you’ll notice some on-duty crew members modelling.
The spaces
For a cultured nation like Norway that spawned the likes of the two enterprising Edvards (the artist Munch and the composer Grieg), it’s no surprise that music and art feature prominently throughout Viking Saturn’s public spaces. Munch prints, from the collection of Viking Cruises’ founder Torstein Hagen, adorn the walls along with contemporary black and white photography. All the on-board artworks can be viewed, deck by deck, in more detail with a self-guided tour on the app that’s well worth taking. Classy stuff.
The stateroom
A deluxe verandah stateroom.
Viking manages to incorporate luxury touches with little fanfare, something which extends to my aforementioned Nordic blond-timbered deluxe verandah stateroom. At 25 square metres, it’s about the size of some decent boutique hotel digs. The bathroom is equipped with anti-fog mirrors and underfloor heating as well as a reliably powerful shower, while in the main living space there’s an espresso coffee pod machine (fortunately, or unfortunately, it may be the best coffee you have aboard). On this late autumn-cum-early winter cruise it’s a little too cool to bask on the private verandah (really a balcony) but it’s reassuring to know it’s there, especially for enjoying arrivals and departures in and out of the sometimes spectacular featured ports.
The food
Viking Saturn has its share of a la carte options, such as the reservations-only Manfredi’s Italian diner and the walk-in The Restaurant, but most passengers, your reviewer included, are consistently drawn around the clock to the more relaxed World Cafe and Aquavit Terrace. It’s one of the most appealing food-station-cum buffet dining options at sea, with Viking’s multinational chefs going to commendable and appreciated lengths at World Cafe to reflect the cuisine of the ports visited. On the same deck, seven, afternoon tea can be enjoyed inside the strikingly trellised Wintergarden, overlooking the heated pool with its retractable dome roof allowing for trans-seasonal dips. Elsewhere, don’t miss the delectable Scandi-style open sandwiches, cakes and waffles served at the stylish Mamsen’s in the Explorer’s Lounge on the opposite end of the same deck.
Wellness
Thermal Suite in the Nordic Spa of a Viking ship
One of the ship’s most distinctive features is its “snow grotto”, part of Viking Saturn’s impressive Nordic-style spa and sauna complex. It’s rightly billed as the ideal place to recharge and revitalise after a day of foot slogging or pedal pushing on shore, or even on one of the sea days.
Entertainment
An exclusive partnership with Oslo’s Munch Museum allows Viking’s vessels to showcase, in the ship’s expansive deck one atrium-like Living Room space, the digitised artworks of Munch in the form of Munch Moments presentations, accompanied by live classic music including works by Edvard Grieg. For more elaborate performances, expert lectures or films, head to Viking Saturn’s 450-seat state-of-the-art, multipurpose theatre (a novel touch are the seat cushions which feature the faces of celebrated Scandinavian stars of the silver screen).
The crew
Aside from certain members of the all-important crew up on the ship’s bridge, the Scandinavian touch tends to begin and end with inanimate objects – Viking Saturn is staffed by the usual United Nations retinue of Filipinos, Eastern Europeans, South Africans and Indians. As ever on cruises, the standouts among the crew, who number 465, are the ever-cheerful and efficient Filipino housekeepers (there are no butlers, per se, on Viking ships). Even though gratuities are included in the cost of the cruise, do remember to reward them generously at voyage’s end.
The verdict
Passengers are consistently drawn to the more relaxed Aquavit Terrace.
Same, same and loving it. This is one deluxe, no-nonsense cruise ship belonging to a no-nonsense cruise company which delivers oceans of Nordic style, design, comfort and sophistication.
The details
Viking’s 16-day Malta, Morocco & the Mediterranean cruise, beginning and ending in Barcelona, from $13,495 a person with departures on November 13, 23 and 28 and December 8 this year, still available at the time of writing. Companion flies free on voyages between 2025 and 2027, with up to $2400 + $500 Shipboard Credit if booked before March 31, 2025. Etihad Airways flies from Australia to Barcelona via Abu Dhabi. Barcelona’s boutique Hotel Borneta is located in the city’s atmospheric El Born neighbourhood with rooms from $444 a night. See vikingcruises.com.au; etihad.com; slh.com
Our rating out of five
★★★★★
Swell
Koselig is more or less Norway’s equivalent of Denmark’s hygge, roughly defined as a love of cosiness and the joy of the smaller things in life. Both exist in happy abundance aboard Viking Saturn.
Not so swell
Cruises lines, with Viking no exception, love to welcome the next group of passengers on the same day as disembarking passengers. Fine for them, but having to vacate your stateroom by 8am can feel a bit of a letdown after 16 days at sea.
The writer was a guest of Viking Cruises and Small Luxury Hotels of the World and travelled with the assistance of Etihad Airways.
