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A fast-growing travel trend is cruising during the winter in locales traditionally visited in the spring through fall.
Many river cruise lines offer Christmas Markets cruises in the cold and dark season in Europe, but now an increasing number of ocean ships are operating winter sailings in the Mediterranean.
The trend is fueled by growing fleets looking for off-season destinations and travelers searching for lower fares and uncrowded cruise ports.
Viking Ocean Cruises calls it the “Quiet Season” and first operated these sailings almost 10 years ago. Other companies followed suit and continue to do so.
Dates and Itineraries
“When our first ocean ship, Viking Star, debuted in 2015, we were proud to offer ‘Quiet Season’ Mediterranean voyages during her inaugural year,” said Richard Marnell, Viking’s executive vice president of marketing. “Since then, ‘Quiet Season’ Mediterranean sailings continue to be one of our key offerings, with a variety of dates and itinerary options and a dedicated place on our website.”
In the 2025 season, Viking has two 930-passenger ocean ships sailing the Mediterranean full-time in winter, with two additional ships operating select itineraries.
A Deluxe Veranda stateroom on Viking Star. (Source: Viking)
Increased Deployment
“Looking to the future, for the 2025-26 fall-to-spring season, we will have increased our deployment to five ocean ships in the Mediterranean full-time during the ‘Quiet Season’ with one additional ocean ship sailing select itineraries,” Marnell said.
“Combined with our inclusive pricing and off -peak-season prices from airlines and hotels, these itineraries are also popular among our guests because of the great value they provide.”
I sailed on the Viking Star in early December 2024 from Barcelona to Civitavecchia and found the difference from a summer sailing remarkable.
Upon boarding, the only other cruise ship in the uncrowded homeport was a Costa Cruises vessel. The weather was in the mid-60s and sunny.
Manfredi’s, the specialty Italian restaurant on Viking Star. (Photo Credit: Viking)
The Sophisticated Viking Star
The Viking Star looked beautiful and as sophisticated as the day it entered service with a sleek Scandinavian design. The service remains personalized and friendly, and the food is top-notch.
Traveling alone, I was pleased that Viking booked me into Manfredi’s, the Italian specialty restaurant, with another solo woman and a married couple. The food was delicious and the company delightful.
The next night, I dined at the Chef ’s Table specialty restaurant and was pleased to see my tablemate was the same woman I enjoyed dining with the night before. We arranged to dine together again at the Chef ’s Table later in the week.
From Barcelona, we visited Sète, Marseille and Villefranche-sur- Mer, France, and Livorno, Italy. The weather remained sunny, with temperatures in the mid-50s – perfect for touring the uncrowded destinations.
Would I cruise the Mediterranean again in the winter months? Undoubtedly, yes.
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