This September, Viking—a cruise line known for its Scandinavian approach to ocean, river, and expedition sailings—made a major push into China, a country that has struggled to attract foreign tourists since reopening its borders. In the past, cruising in China occurred mostly on the Yangtze River, but the river hasn’t yet rebounded as the popular cruise destination it once was. Instead, Viking is taking to the sea, offering international visitors a new way to cruise in China.
The line’s new sailings on the 930-passenger Viking Yi Dun hug the country’s southeastern coast, from Shanghai to Shenzhen, stopping in ports that were part of the Maritime Silk Road, a series of historic trading ports. It marks the first time international passengers can explore coastal China with an English-speaking cruise line; other cruise lines drop into Shanghai as a port of call, typically on multicountry itineraries around Asia, but Viking’s new 10- to 20-day itineraries (including land-based extensions) operate fully within China.
To gain access to this route, Viking had to partner with the state-owned China Merchants Group, meaning that the ship flies under a Chinese flag and has an all-Chinese staff. The partnership also gives Viking exclusive access to many lesser-known ports.
Viking’s gamble on this new form of cruising in China is already paying off: Bookings for the first season (September to November) were so successful that the cruise line recently announced an expansion in 2025 with more sailings in China and itineraries that combine China and Japan.
I had the chance to go on the inaugural sailing of the 10-day “China Discovery” itinerary. Here’s what it was like.
Viking passengers were welcomed with a performance in Zhoushan, known for the seaside Buddhist temples of Mount Putuo.
Courtesy of Viking
The itinerary
The 10-day “China Discovery” itinerary began in Shanghai, and before setting sail, the ship spent one night in port, giving us a day to explore the city (either on our own or through planned excursions offered by the cruise line) while using the Yi Dun as a home base. I joined a Viking tour of the walled 16th-century Yu Garden—a pocket of Ming Dynasty–era calm and contemplation hidden in the middle of this whiz-bang city of 25 million people—but my favorite part of overnighting in the city was the up-close-and-personal view of the futuristic illuminated skyline of the Pudong district from the ship.
Once we embarked, the ship meandered down China’s southeast coast, along the East China Sea, before skirting through the Taiwan Strait and continuing into the South China Sea. Along the way, we stopped in ports that were new to me and most passengers on board: Zhoushan, part of a sprawling archipelago known for the seaside Buddhist temples of Mount Putuo; Dongtou, an area of picturesque fishing villages and seaweed farms; Pingtan, which has been dubbed “the Maldives of China” and is an access point to Fuzhou, from where many of the immigrants to Manhattan’s Chinatown originated; and Xiamen, a booming city with a history of swashbuckling pirates and foreign trading companies, giving it an East-meets-West atmosphere that feels unlike the rest of mainland China.
The cruise finished in Shenzhen, the Silicon Valley of China, at which point we disembarked and many departed from the nearby Hong Kong airport. Several of my fellow passengers also joined the “China Discovery” itinerary as part of more expansive Viking offerings that include pre- and post-cruise land-based excursions to places like Beijing, the Great Wall of China, Xi’an (to see the Terracotta Warriors), and even Tibet.
A highlight was exploring the historical district of Fuzhou, from where many of the immigrants to New York City’s Chinatown originated.
QinJin/Shutterstock
The excursions
The onshore experience might be slightly different from what cruise passengers have experienced elsewhere, such as on a European river cruise or Caribbean sailing, where you can simply stroll down the gangway and explore on your own. In some cases, the ports on this itinerary weren’t equipped for independent exploration—meaning, for instance, you might not be able to find taxis or ride shares, or there simply isn’t a pedestrian-friendly district that invites aimless strolling. In some ports, Viking has set up free shuttles to places where you can explore on your own, such as luxury malls, but the safest bet was often to stick to the impressive roster of included and extra-fee excursions.
Highlights of my sailing included a seven-hour exploration of the sacred Buddhist sites of Mount Putuo, which is reached by ferry and home to a 108-foot-tall statue of the bodhisattva (enlightened being) Guanyin; a fascinating figure, she is sometimes portrayed as a man, sometimes as a woman, sometimes as both, or sometimes as genderless and is often compared to the Virgin Mary. (Be warned: Southern China is deceptively tropical this time of year, and I have truly never sweat more in my entire life—so be prepared with bottles of water, towels for wiping your face, and maybe even an umbrella to protect yourself from shade as the locals do.)
I also loved my visit to Fuzhou’s iconic Sanfang Qixiang (or “Three Lanes and Seven Alleys”) area, which has been called the “Beverly Hills of Imperial China.” Now it’s a collection of beautifully preserved alleyways, lined with mini-museums in old houses, tea houses, souvenir shops, and restaurants serving the cuisine of this region, Fujian.
If you’re an architecture buff, don’t miss the chance to visit the UNESCO World Heritage site Gulangyu during your day in Xiamen; it’s a car-free island where centuries of foreign settlement and trade have yielded a truly unique assemblage of building styles that draw on art deco, modernist, neoclassical, and something called “veranda colonial” influences. Hands-on travelers can skip sightseeing in favor of immersive experiences and lessons, like learning calligraphy, painting traditional sea-mud pottery, carving seashells, or picking and brewing tea leaves.
The Viking Yi Dun, formerly the Viking Sun, docked in Dongtou, an area of picturesque fishing villages.
Courtesy of Viking
The ship
For now, all of Viking’s new China itineraries operate on the Viking Yi Dun, formerly the Viking Sun, which debuted in 2017. I could have easily assumed the ship was on its maiden voyage, as it showed almost no signs of age other than some tiny imperfections like chipped fabric on the arm of my stateroom couch.
My 338-square-foot Penthouse Veranda stateroom felt surprisingly spacious, with a king-size bed, a wide balcony, and Nordic touches like cozy wool blankets with the traditional Marius weave pattern and great-smelling Freyja Collection toiletries. I maximized space by unpacking all my clothes in the dresser inside the closet, and there’s an under-bed storage space to stow your suitcase. Rooms range from 270-square-foot Veranda Staterooms to the sprawling, 1,448-square-foot Owner’s Suite, but the beauty of Viking is that every room category gets a full-size veranda. Bathrooms on cruise ships tend to be tight, but the one in my stateroom had abundant space, with heated floors, anti-fog mirrors, and a glass-enclosed shower that came in handy for my multiple daily showers after hot and humid hikes and tours.
A major benefit of sailing with Viking is that all staterooms feature a balcony.
Courtesy of Viking
Design-wise, Viking is remarkably consistent, and the Viking Yi Dun is no exception, with not-so-subtle Nordic motifs that nod to founder Torstein Hagen’s Norwegian heritage. I’ve sailed on the company’s expedition-class Polaris ship to Antarctica, and I felt a comforting sense of déjà vu—from the reindeer hides draped over the backs of couches in the bar to the birch-forest wallpaper (complete with cute hidden trolls) and the Scandinavian books in the library. Other Viking trademarks include the Nordic Spa (with a sauna and a snow grotto), the compact pool (with a retractable roof deck), and the Star Theater (for shows and lectures).
Note that the internet situation can be tricky to get the hang of. China’s so-called Great Firewall blocks many websites commonly used in the United States (Google, Wikipedia), as well as certain social media platforms such as Facebook, X, and Instagram, so obtaining a VPN is usually standard practice for foreign visitors who want to bypass the firewall. I have a T-Mobile plan, which offers free texting and web browsing in China, and Viking has reliable Wi-Fi on board, but I often found it confusing to calibrate which combination of services (Viking Wi-Fi with VPN, T-Mobile service without VPN, etc.) would give me the best chance of success on certain websites. In other words, just tell your boss you won’t be able to answer emails, blame it on the firewall, and get back to relaxing at the pool.
There was also a pretty significant language barrier between the all-Chinese staff and the English-speaking passengers. Of course, it was the first sailing, so there’s much room for learning and improvement, but servers, bartenders, stewards, hosts, and guest-services employees showed a wide range of fluency. As such, it was not always easy to communicate more complicated requests, like rescheduling a shore excursion.
Regarding the language barrier, I sensed some frustration from fellow passengers, but when I asked them about it during lunch on a shore excursion, we all seemed to come away with the same sentiment: We all felt so lucky to take part in such a cool experience that if we occasionally had to repeat ourselves or think of another way to express ourselves, it was simply a part of the cultural immersion.
In addition to a wealth of regional Asian cuisine served on board, you can also head to Mamsen’s for Viking’s famous Norwegian waffle.
Courtesy of Viking
The food and drink
If you’ve ever taken a Viking cruise, you’ll recognize the usual suspects: Manfredi’s, the Italian spot known for its Florentine-style steak, and Mamsen’s, where throughout the day you can order the line’s famous Norwegian waffle with jam and gjetost, or caramelized brown goat’s cheese.
But Viking also does a great job of bringing regional Chinese flavors to its menus, from congee, tea eggs (boiled eggs steeped in a savory marinade that might include some combination of tea, soy sauce, and spices), and yutiao (Chinese crullers) on the room-service breakfast menu to a dan-dan noodle station by the pool bar and a full assortment of Chinese delicacies at the lunch and dinner buffets in the World Café. There is no shortage of dumplings, fried rice, and stir-fried dishes, but also on offer are such regional specialties as poached fish in chili oil, sweet green bean soup, braised soft tofu with hairy crab meat and roe, and sliced pork knuckles.
I was also wildly impressed with the Chef’s Table—which, despite its name, is a full-size restaurant that serves more innovative cuisine and is included in the cruise price. The menu comprises a five-course set menu, and the theme changes every few nights. On my cruise, the themes were Singaporean (chili crab, Hainanese chicken rice), Korean-Japanese (smoked eel chawanmushi with abalone, smooth tofu in a Korean bean-paste broth), and Thai (som tum salad with baby cuttlefish, tom kha gai), and they were all fantastic.
Service across the board was warm and friendly, but note that the language barrier can prove challenging for anyone with dietary restrictions. I witnessed a fellow passenger trying to convey her food allergies, and the staff had some trouble understanding. Her allergies weren’t serious, but if you’re at risk of more life-threatening allergy attacks, I’d suggest translating those words into Mandarin and perhaps printing them out on a card.
When it came to drinks, I stuck to the specialty cocktails on the menus at the Explorer’s Lounge, which looks out over the bow, and the more cabaret-style 1872 bar. They incorporated unique ingredients like baijiu (Chinese grain spirits), osmanthus, chrysanthemum, and Szechuan peppercorn, and they were all well-balanced and tasty—except for a bitter melon martini that was about 80 percent too bitter for even Negroni-loving me.
For anyone looking for an easier way to navigate China, a Viking cruise could be just the ticket.
Courtesy of Viking
The verdict
With its visa requirements, potential language barriers, and firewall, China can be a difficult place to navigate on your own, and there’s something very comforting about knowing you’ll have the steady, reliable hand of a well-oiled cruise operation like Viking guiding you through it all. This trip was my first time in mainland China, and I was impressed by the breadth of experiences offered on the 10-day “China Discovery” itinerary, which provides a satisfying mix of major metropolises and smaller towns, plus nature-filled sites, temples, and villages. Of course, if this is the only time you plan to visit China in your life, you may want to consider one of the longer itineraries so that you don’t miss some of the country’s blockbuster destinations; stops like Dongtou and Pingtan are picturesque, but they seem less essential compared to places like Beijing and the Great Wall of China.
To book: The 10-day “China Discovery” cruise starts at $4,499 per person, based on double occupancy.