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Viking Ocean Cruises has announced that its first ship - the 930-passenger Viking Star [pictured] - has been floated out, marking the first time that the new vessel has touched water.

The traditional ceremony took place on Monday, June 23, at Fincantieri's Marghera shipyard outside Venice, Italy. With a total of three sister ships now under construction, Viking Star will be the first to debut in early 2015 with maiden voyages in Scandinavia and the Baltic; and the Western and Eastern Mediterranean.

"Today is a proud day for our entire Viking family, as we are one step closer to launching a new era of ocean cruising," Viking Cruises Chairman Torstein Hagen said at the ceremony. "Viking Star's maiden season was sold out before she even touched water, which just demonstrates how enthusiastic our guests are for destination-focused ocean cruises. It is this enthusiasm that has led us to place orders for two additional sister ships, Viking Sea and Viking Sky."

Designed with the environment in mind, the Viking Star features energy-efficient hybrid engines, hydro-dynamically optimized streamlined hulls and bows for maximum fuel efficiency, onboard solar panels, and equipment that is designed to minimize exhaust pollution and meet the strictest environmental regulations.

The vessel is engineered at a scale that allows direct access into most ports, so guests have easy and efficient embarkation and debarkation.

Image: Viking Star