Sun Viking is what the professional critics call crowded. With a passenger/space ratio of 25, she certainly appears to be so. They ARE wrong! This is a comfortable ship, and never, by any touch of the imagination, could it be considered crowded. If the critics took the time to figure the outdoor deck space into their calculations, they would see that in actuality, Sun Viking is (was) quite spacious. So much for the opinions of professionals.

Sun Viking was 18,556 tons. 563.2 feet long. 78.8 feet wide with a 20.6 foot draft. She is registered in Norway with Norwegian Officers and an International Crew. She is diesel powered.

In her later years, Royal Caribbean used Sun Viking to blaze trails into new parts of the world. Her last assignment was to lay the groundwork to Asia, having been assigned there full time. There, she was noticed by the owners of Star Cruises, who made an offer for her, based on her superb upkeep and maintenance, that Royal Caribbean Management was unable to refuse. She was transferred to Star ownership in January, 1998. There she sailed as SuperStar Sagittarius, for just a few brief months, when she fell victim to the Asian economic downturn. She now sails the South Korean Market for Hyundai as their "Hyundai Pongrae."

Sun Viking has two, virtually identical sister ships: The Nordic Princes, currently sailing as the Carousel for Airtours Sun Cruises; and, the Song of Norway, currently the Sundream, also for Airtours. Unlike her sister's Sun Viking still maintains her Viking Crown Lounge while they were removed from the other two prior to sale.

Copyright © 1998 Mel Litzenberger. All Rights Reserved