Viking a global leader in experiential travel which offers river, ocean and expedition voyages on all seven continents, today announced a new collaboration with Freddie Strickland and Ben Gifford at the upcoming 2025 RHS Chelsea Flower Show, which will take place from 20 – 24 May.
As a long-standing supporter of the RHS, this will be the eleventh time Viking has been part of the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, often billed as the ‘world’s greatest flower show’ – and its fourth consecutive year of sponsoring a balcony garden.
A Space to Read Balcony Garden sponsored by Viking has been designed by Freddie and Ben as an outdoor reading room for passionate gardeners – a place to sit and read in between tending to their collection of much-loved plants. Combined with a verdant and harmonious planting scheme, the simple and natural materials help create a tranquil sanctuary. The brick design on the back wall is reminiscent of a well-stocked library with a bookshelf created from a timber inlay, and the garden will feature two small shelves for pots and storing books. Natural wood accents, a nod to the paper used in books, add a warming texture to the garden. There are comfortable armchair style seats for sitting and reading with subtle lighting provided to allow the owners to enjoy reading into the evenings. The garden is home to a collection of terracotta and copper pots gathered over a lifetime of travels, paired with bespoke metal planters to correspond to the small balcony space.
The garden brings together two interests of Viking’s guests: the outdoors and reading. This is evident in Viking’s onboard libraries, which are curated by Heywood Hill, an independent London bookseller and Royal Warrant holder. These shared interests are also reflected in Viking’s lecture offerings about the literary heritage of different destinations around the world and shore excursions to literary landmarks. Closer to home in the UK, Viking have an array of literary cultural partners and support a range of literary events. Viking is the presenting sponsor of the Edward Stanford Travel Writing Awards and supports London’s leading literary festival, Wimbledon BookFest. In 2024 Viking was the headline sponsor of the Highclere Castle Book Readers’ Awards, which gives readers recognition for their reviews. In line with its ongoing cultural partnerships, Viking is supporting The National Literacy Trust – an independent charity that empowers children, young people, and adults with the literacy skills they need to succeed.
Wendy Atkin-Smith, Managing Director of Viking UK, said: “We have been proud supporters of the RHS for many years, and this is the fourth year we have sponsored a balcony garden – they provide great inspiration for how a small outdoor space can create a functional and interesting garden. We also like to get behind emerging talent and to encourage creativity across the board – it’s Freddie and Ben’s first time designing a garden at the show, so we’re thrilled to be able to support their debut. All of the staterooms on our ocean ships have private verandas, so the balcony gardens align well with the design of our ships and our Nordic heritage – as well as our love of the outdoors. Our verandas are also one of our guests’ favourite places to read so this was our inspiration behind this year’s design.
Viking is destination-focused and designed for curious travellers who have interests in science, history, culture and cuisine – many of whom share our love of reading as well as exploring the world. Our guests are captivated by our onboard libraries and fascinating lectures and our offering of shore excursions that uncover the literary history of each destination.”
The Balcony and Container Gardens is a judged category open to designers who have never exhibited at the RHS Chelsea Flower Show before. Ben started his horticultural career over 25 years ago and the majority of the gardens he has built and designed have been city gardens. Freddie graduated with a degree in Fine Art but his love for the outdoors, which stemmed from lots of time spent gardening with his grandmother, eventually overtook his passion for art. Freddie was crowned the RHS Young designer of the year 2021 following his gold medal award-winning show garden at Tatton Park. Living in the South West of England, designers Ben and Freddie often work together on garden projects throughout the UK. Their collaboration came about through a mutual respect of one another’s work, and their different skillsets enhance their own practices.
Garden designers Freddie and Ben said: “We’re both enjoying working with Viking and we’re so grateful for their support on this project. It feels like a natural alliance – the garden aims to give a solution to those who love both the outdoors and reading, which we have experienced first-hand are both real passions of Viking’s and their guests. We have both been blown away by the onboard libraries. There is such a range of novels from art to history to destination-focused reading to horticulture – a collection which our intended owners of this balcony garden would dream of.
After spending time sailing on one of Viking’s ocean ships we were inspired by the understated, elegant ship design, celebrating clean and simple lines, natural woods and mid-century furniture, which very much aligns with our vision for the garden. To reflect our theme of reading we are planning to integrate features within the furnishings which will make the garden feel warm and cosy – the exact feeling you aspire to when you curl up with a good book. The ships feature modern Scandinavian design with cosy nooks and soothing, light-filled lounges and super soft sofas with cashmere blankets as well as private verandas which are the most perfect place to read.”
Viking offers a variety of shore excursions on select river, ocean and expedition itineraries that give guests the opportunity to explore historic and award-winning gardens and explore the literary heritage of destinations around the world. For example, select itineraries on the Viking Mississippi feature stunning historic mansions with spectacular gardens. Additionally, on the literary side, guests can visit Mark Twain’s childhood home where he grew up and drew inspiration for his most famous novels, and visit the Museum Gallery which features 15 original Norman Rockwell paintings which depict scenes from Twain’s novels. On Viking’s Paris & the Heart of Normandy itinerary guests can opt to visit the bookshop, Shakespeare and Company, which was founded in 1919 and was a popular hangout for writers including Hemingway, Fitzgerald and Gertrude Stein, as well as the enchanting gardens that inspired one of history’s great painters, founder of impressionism, Claude Monet.
To make a booking or for more information about Viking call 0800 458 69 00 or go to www.viking.com