Highland Park Partners with Draken Harald Hårfagre

NEW YORK, N.Y. — Highland Park, the Orkney Single Malt with Viking Soul is proud to present the Draken Harald Hårfagre Expedition America East Coast Tour 2018. The partnership brings together these two modern and bold Viking spirits to inspire people to seek adventure, embrace challenges and realize their daydreams just as the founders of both the Draken and Highland Park did.

The Draken is no replica but a genuine recreation of a Viking ship brought into existence through ambition, relentless teamwork and expert knowledge on Viking history, the Norse sagas, archaeology and traditional boat building. The tour will see the Norwegian ship travel the US east coast from Maine to South Carolina, visiting 14 harbors over the span of four months.

“The Draken ship and its journey exemplify the spirit of the modern-day Viking and everything that Highland Park stands for: determination, adventure, quality craftsmanship and rich history,” said Martin Markvardsen, Highland Park’s Senior Global Brand Ambassador. “Our founder Magnus Eunson was a direct descendant of the Vikings who settled on Orkney over 1,000 years ago and today, our whisky continues to be crafted in the old way by a new generation of Vikings. Highland Park is proud to be an official partner of the Draken ship and honored to support its vision and tour of the United States.”

Each stopover on the tour will offer a unique once in a lifetime opportunity to relive history in a way never before experienced. The experience will include:

  • An arrival ceremony where guests are invited to greet the ship as it sails into port
  • Guided deck tours from 10am to 8pm daily.
  • Screenings of the new Draken documentary which traces the ship’s journey from Norway to the U.S., following in the footsteps of the Vikings who made the first transatlantic crossing and discovered the New World more than a thousand years ago.
  • Talks by the captain and crew as they share their personal experience of the thrill of having relived one of the world’s most legendary sea voyages.
  • Viking Village: An event installation featuring a photo and video exhibit, Highland Park whisky tasting, merchandise and other local vendors.

Construction of the Draken, the largest modern-built Viking ship in the world, began in 2010 and was completed in 2012; the ship performed its inaugural transatlantic crossing (from Norway to the United States) in 2016. The ship measures 115 feet long, with a 26-foot beam and a 79-foot mast made from Douglas fir. She carries 260 square meters of silk sails and a crew of 35 men and women from all over the world, representing a diverse mix of age, gender, nationality and background.

For the full Draken schedule including stopovers, please visit https://www.drakenhh.com/east-coast-tour-2018/ The Draken is now also accepting applications for public volunteer crew positions. To take part in this rare opportunity, visit www.drakenhh.com/join-the-crew.

About Highland Park

Highland Park is a renowned single-malt Scotch whisky from Orkney, a remote set of islands off the far north coast of Scotland. Established in 1798, the distillery combines the highest standards of craftsmanship with the pride and fierce independence of the early Viking settlers who made Orkney their home over 1,000 years ago to create a perfectly balanced single-malt Scotch whisky that stands apart. Highland Park’s range of single-malt whiskies is consistently acclaimed by whisky lovers around the globe, with the brand receiving the accolade of “Best Spirit in the World” from industry expert Paul Pacult on three separate occasions. www.highlandparkwhisky.com

About Draken Harald Hårfagre

In 2016, the Draken successfully crossed the North Atlantic Ocean, re-creating one of the most epic, mythical explorations of all time in the wake of Viking explorer Leif Ericsson. Visiting numerous ports and encountering thousands of people along her transatlantic journey, the Draken Harald Hårfagre emerged as a pillar of culture, education and enrichment, bringing the illustrious Viking age of exploration to life in today’s modern age. Curated by Sigurd Aase, construction of the Draken began in 2010, creating what would be the largest Viking ship ever built in modern times. Named after Harald Hårfagre, the king who unified Norway into one kingdom, the great dragon ship came together in the town of Haugesund in western Norway. The Draken measures 115 feet from stem to stern, is 26 feet wide, and has 260 square meters of silk sail and a 79-foot-tall mast made from Douglas fir. She is a seaworthy ship, able to sail the oceans of the world. www.drakenhh.com.