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Viking River Cruises Story

A rich tradition of exploration guides Viking River Cruises. Chairman Torstein Hagen, the company's founding chairman, is a Norwegian of Viking descent. He extends his Viking legacy of exploration through the enriching travel experience Viking River Cruises offers its guests.

An industry veteran, Torstein Hagen first tried river cruising after many years of world travel by land, air and sea. He found this up-close exploration of culture, heritage and historic sites to be his favorite way to see a destination. Thus, this "voyage of discovery" played a key role in the establishment of Viking River Cruises in 1997.

Beginning with the purchase of four ships in Russia, the company's expansion continued with the purchase in 2000 of Europe's KD River Cruises—a company with a heritage of more than a century of river cruising, making Viking River Cruises the world's most knowledgeable and experienced river cruise line. The company has now grown to be the world's largest, with a fleet of deluxe ships built to accommodate discerning travelers.