If you’ve seen a Viking cruise advert on TV you may be wondering where the advert was filmed. Viking film their TV adverts across the world and in this post I break down each advert into their filming locations.
Each adverts filming location is split by the time it is displayed on the advert.
Which Castles Are in The Viking Cruises TV Advert?
The 2020 Viking Cruises advert shows Aggstein Castle in Austria, Highclere Castle in Hampshire, Katz Castle in Germany, and Rheinstein Castle also in Germany. The 2021 Viking Cruises advert shows Pfalzgrafenstein Castle in Germany.
Viking Cruises 2021 Advert Filming Locations
In 2021 Viking released a new TV advert entitled ‘Welcome Back to The World’. This advert was the first since the cruising shutdown of 2020.
The advert was filmed in locations across the world, from Norway to Japan, Australia, Turkey, Hungary and Germany.
| Timestamp | Filming Location |
| 00:01 – 00:25 | Lofoten, Norway |
| 00:26 – 00:30 | Lake Kawaguchi, (Mount Fuji), Japan |
| 00:31 – 00:33 | Sydney, Australia |
| 00:34 – 00:45 | Library of Celsus, Turkey |
| 00:46 – 00:47 | Suleymaniye Mosque, Turkey |
| 00:48 – 00:49 | Budapest, Hungary |
| 00:50 – 00:52 | Pfalzgrafenstein Castle, Germany |
The full advert can be seen below:
Lofoten, Norway – 2021 Filming Location 1
Lofoten is an island group located in Nordland, Norway. It is famous for it’s dramatic mountains, beaches and bays. The current population of Lofoten is 24,500 and there is evidence of humans living in Lofoten going back for 11,000 years.
Lofoten is 112 miles north of the Arctic circle and in summer the sun does not set.
Lake Kawaguchi – 2021 Filming Location 2
Lake Kawaguchi borders the towns of Fujikawaguchiko and Minobu in Japan and the second largest of the Fuji Five Lakes.
It is one of the best places to see Mount Fuji.
The lake is a popular destination for many with hotels and campsites located there. The lake itself reaches a little over 15 metres in depth and has 19km of shore line.
Sydney, Australia – 2021 Filming Location 3
Sydney is the capital of New South Wales, Australia. There are two cruise terminals located within Sydney and 8 more along the coastline of New South Wales.
It is a very popular cruise destination with many cruise lines sailing regularly from Sydney. Royal Caribbean, Norwegian Cruise Line, Celebrity, and Princess all sail regularly from the port as do multiple Australian cruise lines.
The scene shown in the 2021 Viking Cruises TV Advert is that of the Sydney Opera house which is passed by cruise ships docking in the port.
Library of Celsus, Turkey – 2021 Filming Location 4
The Library of Celsus was built in 100AD and is one of the only remaining examples of a library from the Roman empire.
At the time the building was the third largest library in the world.
The interior of the building was destroyed by a fire and the front wall shown below is all that remains. It is a very popular destination to visit on cruises that visit the port of Kusadasi. I took an excursion to visit the library in 2019 with Celestyal.
To learn more about that cruise, and how we managed to visit two cruise ports per day, check out this post: What Celestyal Cruises REALLY Like? – Daily Photo Diary and Review
Suleymaniye Mosque, Turkey – 2021 Filming Location 5
The Suleymaniye Mosque, is located in Istanbul, Turkey. It’s estimated that the foundation dates to around 1550.
For almost 500 years the mosque was the biggest mosque in the city before being overtaken by the Çamlıca mosque in 2019. The mosque is one of the most recognisable sights in Istanbul and is very popular with tourists visiting the country.
Budapest, Hungary – 2021 Filming Location 6
Budapest is the capital city of Hungary and is one of the most visited countries in Europe. On an average year 12 million tourists visit the city.
33% of all Hungarian residents live in Budapest. I have visited Budapest on a number of occasions and it is one of my favourite cities in Europe. There is LOTS to see and do, the city always feels very safe and clean and it is cheap too (coming from the UK).
Budapest is particularly popular on river cruise itineraries as the river Danube runs through the city. On the sides of the river Danube are Buda and Pest. The name Budapest was given in the 1870s to signify the unification of the two sides.
To learn more about the river cruise I took that started in Budapest, check out this post: Saga River Cruise – Review and Guide (Food, Entertainment, Ships, and More).
Pfalzgrafenstein Castle, Germany – 2021 Filming Location 7
Pfalzgrafenstein Castle is a toll castle located on Falkenau island. Nicknamed the ‘Pfalz’ the castle has been turned into a museum.
The castle was originally built in the 1300s and had additions made to it in the 1600s and 1700s. It collected tolls until 1867.
Viking Cruises Ocean Cruising 2020 Advert
In 2020, Viking released an advert called Reinventing Ocean Cruising. The advert focused on the cruise lines quality as well as the extended time spent in ports.
| Timestamp | Filming Location |
| 00:00 – 00:15 | Venice, Italy |
| 00:16 – 00:20 | Santorini, Greece |
| 00:44 – 00:45 | Venice, Italy |
| 00:46 – 00:50 | Geirangerfjord, Norway |
The full advert can be seen below:
Venice, Italy – 2020 Ocean Filming Location 1
Venice is located in the north of Italy and is made up of 118 small islands.
Until 2020 cruise lines were able to freely dock in the centre of Venice but following a call to ban cruise ships this is no longer the case.
Cruise ships will still be docking in Venice in future but will not be docking directly in the heart of the city due to concerns about the ships damaging the landscape of Venice.
Venice is a very popular tourist destination and is often voted as one of the most beautiful destinations in the world. Popular tourist destinations to visit include the Rialto Bridge, Saint Marks Basilica, St Mark’s Square and the bridge of Sighs.
Santorini, Greece – 2020 Ocean Filming Location 2
Santorini is an island in the Aegean sea around 200km south of the Greek mainland. The port is a very popular tender port where passengers have to use tender boats to get to land.
To learn more about what it is like to tender on a cruise, including how to skip the lines, check out this post: Cruise Ship Tendering – 5 Tips You NEED to Know.
Santorini is visited by 2 million tourists annually and the white buildings with blue roofs have become instantly recognisable worldwide.
Geirangerfjord, Norway – 2020 Ocean Filming Location 4
The Geiranger Fjord is a fjord in the Møre og Romsdal county of Norway. It is a 15km part of the Sunnylvsfjorden.
Geiranger Fjord is a very popular port on many Norwegian Fjord itineraries. It is recognised as a UNESCO world heritage site and is one of the most scenic ports in the world.
If you are considering a cruise to Norway, check out my top tips, Norway is one of my favourite cruise destinations but you need to be prepared: Norwegian Fjords Cruise: 32 Tips You NEED to Know.
Viking Cruises River Cruising 2020 Advert
In 2020 Viking cruises released a river cruise advert showing the most popular river cruise destinations across Europe.
| Timestamp | Filming Location |
| 00:00 – 00:05 | Aggstein Castle, Austria |
| 00:06 – 00:08 | Budapest, Hungary |
| 00:09 – 00:12 | Schloss Schönbühel, Austria |
| 00:13 – 00:15 | Highclere Castle, Hampshire |
| 00:16 – 00:20 | Katz Castle, Germany |
| 00:30 – 00:37 | Rheinstein Castle, Germany |
| 00:42 – 00:45 | Budapest, Hungary |
The full advert can be seen below:
Aggstein Castle, Austria – 2021 River Filming Location 1
Aggstein castle is located in Austria on the river Danube. The castle ruins are open to tourists and visiting the castle provides views over the Wachau Valley.
The ruins date back to medieval times and are approximately 480 feet above sea level.
Budapest, Hungary – 2020 River Filming Location 2
Budapest is the capital city of Hungary and is one of the most visited countries in Europe. On an average year 12 million tourists visit the city.
33% of all Hungarian residents live in Budapest. I have visited Budapest on a number of occasions and it is one of my favourite cities in Europe. There is LOTS to see and do, the city always feels very safe and clean and it is cheap too (coming from the UK).
Budapest is particularly popular on river cruise itineraries as the river Danube runs through the city. On the sides of the river Danube are Buda and Pest. The name Budapest was given in the 1870s to signify the unification of the two sides.
To learn more about the river cruise I took that started in Budapest, check out this post: Saga River Cruise – Review and Guide (Food, Entertainment, Ships, and More).
Schloss Schönbühel, Austria – 2020 River Filming Location 3
The Schloss Schönbühel castle is located in a town in Austria called Schönbühel-Aggsbach. The castle is located on the river Danube.
The castle was built as a defence fortress in the 12th century and is approximately 40 feet above sea level.
Highclere Castle, Hampshire – 2020 River Filming Location 4
Highclere Castle is a grade one listed country estate located in a 5000-acre estate in Hampshire, England. The castle was built in 1679 and renovated in the 1840s.
Highclere Castle is now famous as being the location where the TV show Downton Abbey was filmed.
Prior to Downton Abbey the castle needed million of pounds spent on repairs, an increase in tourism following the show allowed the family that own the castle to return it to its former glory. The castle is now open to the public.
Katz Castle, Germany – 2020 River Filming Location 5
Katz castle is located in Germany and was first built in 1371. The castle is currently privately owned and tourists are not able to visit.
The castle mostly consists of one large tower and one great hall.
Rheinstein Castle, Germany – 2020 River Filming Location 6
Rheinstein Castle is located in Germany near the town of Trechtingshausen. The castle was first built in 1316 and was rebuilt during the 19th century.
The castle has amazing views of the Rhine river and is open to the public. In the 1980s the castle was handed down to the Rhine family, who donated the castle to the German government to be used as a museum.
I have cruised with Viking and LOVED the experience.
To learn more about what surprised me about the cruise line, check out this post:
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