Drakkar was the best built in the Viking fleet and appeared only in the biggest wars. It was constructed using the clinker design. This means it was planked using oak boards which overlapped slightly and then nailed together with iron nails.  Drakkar could easily deliver four hundred warriors to a battlefield.

Drakkar could navigate in water a meter deep. In shallow water, the warriors would move to one side of the ship to tilt it so it would pass over rocks and shoals. The tapered bows and sterns enabled the Vikings to row the ships forwards and backwards without first having to turn the ships around.

Drakkar was very sturdy, and yet flexible enough to withstand the waves of stormy seas and light enough to be dragged overland between two lakes or rivers.  It can move at a very swift twelve knots. If the winds were calm, oarsmen could move the ships briskly through the water at about five knots--the same speed as a quick walking pace.

The bow of the Drakkar had a very ornate carving of a dragon head, thus earning it the nickname "dragon ship."

The deck of a longship was completely planked over. There were no sleeping quarters below deck. Crewmen and warriors stored their personal belongings in chests on the deck. The oarsmen sat on these chests when rowing.  At night, the sail was removed from the mast.  In bad weather, it often served as a tent.  The Vikings, inventors of the sleeping bag, would sleep under the sail.