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Ship comparison

Scenic Opal vs Viking Tir

The verdict

Which should you choose?

Scenic Opal is an intimate Scenic ship carrying 169 passengers, in service since 2015. Viking Tir is an intimate Viking River Cruises ship carrying 190 passengers, in service since 2019.

Choose Scenic Opal if you want more adventure and nature, a more family-friendly ship or a more romantic trip: it outscores Viking Tir for adventure & nature (7.0 vs 5.0), family friendly (6.0 vs 5.0) and romantic (8.0 vs 7.0) in Cruiseable’s Bliss scores.

Choose Viking Tir if you want more space per passenger, more of a party or a lower starting fare: it outscores Scenic Opal for party (7.0 vs 6.0) in Cruiseable’s Bliss scores, it has 26.3 gross tons per passenger (vs 16.1) and its cruises start from $2,499 (vs $3,577).

Side by side

Specifications

marks the better figure where more, or less, is plainly better.

Scenic OpalViking Tir
Cruise line Scenic Viking River Cruises
Ship size Intimate Intimate
Maiden voyagenewer highlighted 2015 2019 (better)
Gross tonnage 2,721 5,000
Passengers 169 190
Crew 51 50
Passengers per crew memberfewer is better 3.3 (better) 3.8
Space per passengergross tons per passenger; more is roomier 16.1 26.3 (better)
Decks 4 4
Length 443 ft 443 ft
Beam 63 ft 95 ft
Speed 14 mph 17 mph
Cruiseable ratingout of 10 8 / 10 —
Cruises on sale 78 9
Upcoming sailings 145 45
Cruise lengths 7 to 34 nights 7 to 14 nights
Fares fromlower highlighted $3,577 $2,499 (better)

Bliss scores

How they rate, out of 10

Cruiseable rates ships out of 10 on ten parts of a cruise holiday. Scenic Opal leads on 3 of the ten, Viking Tir on 1, with 6 level.

  • Active Scenic Opal: 7.0 Viking Tir: 7.0
  • Adventure & nature Scenic Opal: 7.0 Viking Tir: 5.0
  • Cultural Scenic Opal: 7.0 Viking Tir: 7.0
  • Dining Scenic Opal: 7.0 Viking Tir: 7.0
  • Entertainment Scenic Opal: 6.0 Viking Tir: 6.0
  • Family friendly Scenic Opal: 6.0 Viking Tir: 5.0
  • Party Scenic Opal: 6.0 Viking Tir: 7.0
  • Romantic Scenic Opal: 8.0 Viking Tir: 7.0
  • Spa & fitness Scenic Opal: 7.0 Viking Tir: 7.0
  • Staterooms Scenic Opal: 7.0 Viking Tir: 7.0

Scenic

Scenic Opal

The luxury river ship Scenic Opal from the Scenic fleet voyages through the heart of Europe on the Rhine, Moselle and Danube rivers. The 85-cabin ship features a heated vitality pool for guests to enjoy on the panoramic Sun Deck.

Highlights

  • Complimentary cocktails, spirits, beer and wine
  • Personal butler service
  • Brand-new and launched in June 2015

Sailing now

78 cruises on sale, from $3,577.

Questions

Scenic Opal or Viking Tir?

Which is bigger, Scenic Opal or Viking Tir?

Viking Tir is bigger at 5,000 gross tons, against 2,721 gross tons for Scenic Opal. Scenic Opal carries 169 passengers and Viking Tir carries 190.

Which ship is newer, Scenic Opal or Viking Tir?

Viking Tir is newer, with a maiden voyage in 2019 against 2015 for Scenic Opal.

Which has more space per passenger?

Viking Tir, with 26.3 gross tons per passenger against 16.1 on Scenic Opal. The higher the figure, the more ship there is for each guest.

Which has more crew per passenger?

Scenic Opal, with one crew member for every 3.3 passengers against one for every 3.8 on Viking Tir.

Which is better for families?

Scenic Opal scores higher for family friendliness in Cruiseable’s Bliss scores: 6.0 out of 10, against 5.0 for Viking Tir.

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