Viking Spa on Ocean Ships: What’s Included, What Costs Extra, & What the Thermal Spa is Like
One of the best perks of a Viking Ocean cruise is access to the thermal spa. Along with this fantastic area of the ship are paid treatments and a complimentary fitness room, making a visit to The Nordic Spa on deck 1, forward, well worth it.
Viking Ocean Cruises has built one of the best complimentary amenity spaces at sea, and most people don't even realize it’s included.
The LivNordic Spa on every Viking Ocean ship is a full Nordic thermal suite: sauna, steam room, snow grotto, cold plunge, hydrotherapy pool, and heated loungers, and it’s included in every cruise fare. You could say it’s free, as long as you’re a guest on the ship!
We have tested it multiple times (including paid spa treatments) and are sharing how the spa works, what's included, what costs extra, and how to make the most of your visit so you’re well prepared once you’re onboard.
Planning Your Visit to Viking's Nordic Spa
Hours of Operation (8:00 am to 8:00 pm)
Generally, the Nordic Spa is open from 8:00 am to 8:00 pm daily, giving you ample time to fit in a visit whether you're an early riser or prefer to unwind after a day ashore.
Best Times to Visit (and How to Avoid Crowds)
If you want the thermal suite all to yourself, go early in the morning. Sometimes there is one or two other people. The last hour or so just before it closes, when most guests are inevitably at dinner or the evening show, is also a great time. Whenever we have visited during these times, we have nearly always had the entire spa to ourselves.
Sea days tend to be the busiest overall, since there's no port to distract people, so if your itinerary has a mix of sea and port days, use a port day to visit the spa while most other passengers are ashore.
Sea Days are Busiest
If you’ve ever tried to schedule a massage on a sea day, you know it’s tough to get an appointment unless you’re among the first to book.
A word of caution about sea days, however: if the area you’re sailing has rough seas, it could tarnish your spa enjoyment. On a recent cruise, we envisioned enjoying the thermal spa's hot tub during our one sea day. That was quickly nixed when we realized the boat's motion in rough waters meant we had to change our afternoon plans. (Even though our waterproof ReliefBands and motion-sickness remedies help immensely, the sloshing water in the pools during rough seas isn’t something most people want to contend with.)
We've also had spa treatments where the boat rocking makes a massage less than relaxing. So just keep this in mind depending on where you're sailing and how affected you get by the motion of the ocean.
Nordic Spa Cost & Pricing Structure
To us, the most useful thing to know about Viking's spa is that the thermal suite and its amenities — sauna, steam room, snow grotto, cold plunge, hydrotherapy pool, and lounging areas — are entirely complimentary and included in your cruise fare.
You only pay for treatments, like massages and facials, and grooming services (hair, nails, etc.), which are priced à la carte and charged to your onboard account.
Paid Spa Treatments
As we mentioned, the thermal suite itself is free, but anything that requires a spa specialist/masseuse costs extra. Massages, facials, and body treatments are booked and paid for separately, the same as at a spa on land.
We've booked massages during various Viking Ocean sailings, and they have been worth it, but they obviously incur a cost, while the thermal suite costs nothing. If you have an onboard credit, a spa treatment is a fabulous way to use it!
How to Book Appointments
No reservation is needed for the thermal suite; you can walk in any time it's open.
Treatments are a different story. Because they're popular and time slots are limited, it's worth booking as early as possible, either online through My Viking Journey before your cruise or in person at the spa as soon as you board. Popular times and popular treatments fill up fast, especially on sea days.
If you want to book before you board through My Viking Journey, mark your calendar for when your spa treatment bookings open. The exact date depends on your specific cruise and your stateroom category. The higher the stateroom category, the further in advance you can book spa treatments, dinner reservations, and excursions.
Dress Code & What to Wear to the Spa
A swimsuit is the standard choice for the thermal suite (in fact, it's mandatory), since you'll be moving between the hot tub, cold plunge, and hydrotherapy pool, and it’s all co-ed except for the locker rooms.
Viking provides a robe and sandals in your stateroom closet, so you don't need to pack anything special beyond your swimsuit. You'll typically find a large robe, a small robe, and two sets of slippers. Use the spa lockers to store your belongings.
Mikkel's Favorite Swimwear Brand
No matter where we travel, I always pack a Change of Scenery swimsuit. They're high-quality, last for years and years, and come in stylish, flattering designs that make you feel confident in all the right places. They also sell fabulous resort-wear that you can take from day to night.
Locker Room Facilities (Key Card Locks, Complimentary Robes & Sandals)
When you first enter the spa, you’ll head to either the men’s or women’s locker room.
Each side has lockers, and each locker has a drawer with a pair of sandals inside (the sandals run large, which is worth knowing if you have smaller feet, like me). All you need to lock the door is your cruise key card — the same one you use for your stateroom.
Each locker also has comfy robes if you want to change into your swimsuit when you get there or use the robe as a towel while you’re in the spa. These robes are complimentary to use while at the spa.
The locker rooms also have hair dryers, lotion, shampoo, and conditioner, plus a small detail we appreciated: a spinner for wet swimsuits, so you can get most of the water out before heading back to your cabin.
A Norwegian Spa Experience
The LivNordic thermal spa is built around a Scandinavian ritual: alternating between heat and cold to boost circulation and help you relax, not just sit in a warm room. You don't need a reservation or a day pass to use it. As we said, you just walk in during operating hours
A note on the name of the spa: We asked the spa team on Viking Saturn what the “official” name of the spa is.
“The LivNordic Spa” is officially printed on brochures because Viking contracts a third party to handle the spa treatments. However, over the past few years, the official name has changed to “The Nordic Spa,” which is what appears in illuminated letters behind the spa desk. We were told this is because Viking and LivNordic reached a contractual agreement regarding the name. However, we were also told that people refer to it by various unofficial names, including the thermal spa, LivNordic spa, and hot-and-cold spa. So, there you have it!
Complimentary Thermal Suite: Sauna, Heated Tile Lounge Chairs, Snow Room, Cold Plunge, & More
The thermal suite is the heart of The Nordic Spa on Viking Ocean ships, and it's entirely complimentary for every guest on board. That’s right — if you’re a guest on the ship, it’s yours to use! No day pass or wristband needed.
Most thermal spa amenities are co-ed, and you must wear a swimsuit. The only non-co-ed area is the locker rooms, where the cold-plunge pools and saunas are located on each side.
The Nordic Spa thermal suite features a variety of warm and cold options:
- Vitality Pool
- Hot tub
- Cold bucket shower
- Steam room
- Snow room
- Four heated tile lounge chairs
- Sauna*
- Cold plunge pool*
*These two amenities are in the locker rooms. Each locker room — the men’s and women’s — has its own sauna and cold plunge pool.
Relaxation & Hydrotherapy
The spa is designed to go from hot to cold, then back again, followed by some time to rest. A sign in the locker room even says that this is the Nordic way! That's right: the way Norwegians do it.
A portion of the spa pamphlet also lists the spa services and describes the benefits of “bade” — “the ritual of bath” — adding that this method detoxifies the body, relaxes muscles, and stimulates circulation. However, you can use the spa whichever way you like!
If you want to start in the locker room, you can go in the sauna followed by the cold plunge pool — truth be told, I wasn’t brave enough to get in the ice-cold plunge pool. The traditional dry sauna smells fabulous, like cedar or Nordic spruce (intentional, no doubt, given the Norwegian-founded cruise line). It's easy to have it almost entirely to yourself if you visit outside of peak hours.
There is also a multi-jet environmental shower (like a rainforest shower at other spas) with several pressurized jetheads. I can confirm the water is colder than you might expect!
There's a hot tub and a separate mineral-rich hydrotherapy pool, named the Vitality Pool, with jets that create a gentle current through the water; both have simple buttons at the edge to turn the bubbles on, and someone usually presses them before getting in. The Vitality Pool is particularly popular, and once you're in it, you'll understand why.
The snow grotto is the feature most people ask us about, and it earns the hype. It's a sub-zero room with snow inside, big enough to fit four to six people. We've seen snow grottos on other small ship lines before that are barely bigger than a closet, so the size of the one on Viking is really nice.
For dry lounging, there are four heated tile loungers inside The Nordic Spa. They're almost always taken at peak times, so if you find one open, grab it, but only if you’re going to use it right there and then. I think we can all agree there’s nothing worse than someone “claiming” a lounge chair with their belongings when they’re not even using it.
Water is available in the thermal suite, and it's worth drinking because between the heat cycles and the steam, it's easy to get dehydrated without noticing.
Atmosphere & Design
The Nordic Spa design leans heavily Scandinavian, which makes sense, since Viking is a Norwegian cruise line. The color palette is off-white/ivory/beige and tan, with pops of dark gray and blue from the pools and hot tub.
Aspen and birch tree decor and a fake fireplace round out the thermal suite area, and the overall effect is cozy rather than clinical, more like a Nordic lodge than a typical cruise ship spa. Viking's Star Class ships that sail on oceans are effectively sisters, so if you're sailing on any of them, you can expect the same spa layout and design we're describing here.
Note: The spa area on Viking's Expedition ships, Viking Octanis and Viking Polaris, is a little different than Viking's ocean ships.
Spa Treatments & Grooming
Beyond the free thermal suite, The Nordic Spa runs a full menu of paid treatments and grooming services, similar to what you'd find at a resort spa on land.
Viking Spa Pricelist: Treatment Menu
Viking doesn't publish its spa treatment menu online, and pricing can vary somewhat by ship and sailing, so the best way to see current prices is the physical menu at spa reception or in your stateroom, or by asking the spa concierge once you're on board. The menu typically spans massages (Swedish, deep tissue, and a signature Nordic-inspired ritual), facials, and body wraps or scrubs. We added our price list from this sailing so you can see real numbers before you go.
Grooming Services: Manicures, Pedicures, Haircuts, Beard Trims, Etc.
The spa is also where the ship's salon is located. Alongside massages and facials, you can book manicures, pedicures, haircuts, beard trims, brow and lash tints, brow shaping, and waxing for an additional cost.
These treatments are useful if you want to look sharp for a night you decide to dress up a little, or for a big shore excursion. (I want to note, however, that while it's typical to look nice in the evenings, Viking Ocean cruises are not that dressy.)
Knowing you can get a hair treatment onboard helps if you get your hair blown out once a week or every two weeks and you’re away for a while. We often travel for two to three weeks at a time, as do other cruisers. Usually, we see a man in the hairdresser’s chair getting a haircut or a woman getting her hair blown out during embarkation day, no doubt because they've been traveling for some time.
While the spa offers normal manicures and pedicures, you can also book an 80-minute Björk Foot Ritual for a special treat, which includes a pedicure with a foot scrub, mask, and massage. Twenty-minute foot massages are another option.
If you do a blow-out, consider their hair ritual options, which are 50 or 80 minutes (you choose) and include head massages and scalp treatments.
Products Used in Treatments
The spa uses Nuori skincare products for facials and sells them to guests who want to buy the same products. (Nuori skincare products are specifically used during the very popular Nordic Facial, the spa's signature treatment.) Products by Care of Gerd are also used at the spa.
Vision and Care of Gerd supply the haircare products. All products are available for purchase on the ship, but you can also find many of them online.
Tipping Policy
Viking's daily service charge, currently about $20 per person per day, covers stateroom stewards, waitstaff, and other hotel staff, but it doesn't cover spa treatments.
If you get a paid treatment, be sure to add gratuity on the receipt you sign when your treatment is done.
Fitness Center
Viking Ocean ships also include a full fitness center at no extra charge, which is worth mentioning because Viking's river ships don't have anything comparable. There's no gym and no spa like this on the rivers, so this is an ocean-only perk.
Facilities & Equipment
The gym is sizeable and well-equipped, with cardio machines like treadmills, bikes, ellipticals, rowing machines, plus strength equipment for legs, chest, and back, and a small free-weight area with dumbbells and benches. It can get busy on sea days, so timing your workout around popular meal times or early mornings helps.
There are also mats to lie down and do some stretching or yoga, for example.
Beyond the facilities, check the Viking Daily schedule for things like walking the track with the Cruise Director. If you want to walk it alone, four laps equal one mile.
Group Fitness Classes and a Private Personal Trainer
Viking offers occasional group classes, such as yoga or stretching, though the schedule is lighter than what you'd find on huge ocean ships with 2,000 or more passengers. Some classes are complimentary, and others have a small fee. The daily program delivered to your stateroom or available in the Viking app lists what's running that day and whether it has a cost.
You can also book a 50-minute private personal training session for up to two people.
Viking Nordic Spa FAQs
How Viking Ocean's Nordic Spa Compares
Compared with most other cruise lines, Viking's approach to the thermal suite stands out because it offers it free of charge. Mass-market ocean lines like Celebrity, MSC, Norwegian, Royal Caribbean, and Princess typically charge for thermal suite access, either as a day pass or a cruise-length pass, and those fees can add up quickly. Also, most small ships with 1,000 passengers or fewer don’t have a thermal spa this extensive.
It’s not really fair to compare the Viking's spa to its small ships or “long ships,” because Viking river cruise ships don't have a spa like this. Riverside Luxury Cruises’ ship Mozart has a small thermal spa with a pool and hot tub, and Emerald Cruises yachts offer a complimentary infrared room for guests. But otherwise, from our firsthand experience, we can say that Viking's The Nordic Spa is a definite standout perk of cruising with Viking that you cannot get on other cruise lines.
