Viking Astrea, the second hydrogen-powered cruise ship in Viking's ocean fleet, has been floated out at Fincantieri's Ancona shipyard in Italy. The milestone came with the usual ceremony — a cord-cutting before the dock flooded — and the ship has since shifted to an outfitting dock for interiors and final construction.

Delivery is scheduled for May 2027, a few months after sister ship Viking Libra launches in November and becomes the world's first hydrogen-powered cruise ship. Astrea carries 998 guests and will spend its debut season on Mediterranean and northern European itineraries, with fares from £1,995 per person.

The hydrogen setup is the headline here. Both ships use a hybrid propulsion system from Isotta Fraschini Motori, Fincantieri's fuel-cell specialist. Liquefied hydrogen feeds a polymer electrolyte membrane (PEM) fuel cell system capable of generating up to six megawatts, letting the ship run with zero exhaust emissions for stretches of a voyage. It won't cover an entire itinerary on hydrogen alone, but it matters hugely for ports and waters where emissions are restricted or frowned upon — Norway's fjords being the obvious example.

Elsewhere on board, Astrea sticks to the Viking house style: Nordic and Scandinavian design throughout, with staircases featuring large replicas of the Bayeux Tapestry.

Viking isn't alone in pushing cleaner fuel. Hurtigruten completed a climate-neutral sailing in Norway on biodiesel in October 2025, and Havila Voyages ran a biogas-powered sailing in the same region the following month. Havila's ships also carry battery packs good for around four hours of emission-free power.

For travellers, the practical upshot is that low-emission cruising is moving from concept to brochure. If you've been holding off on a fjord or Mediterranean cruise over environmental concerns, ships like Astrea — sailing from 2027 at a fairly mainstream price point — are worth watching. Expect more lines to advertise zero-emission capability in sensitive waters as standard, not exceptional.

Story via The Independent Travel.