Water Levels on the Rivers of Europe
When all is said and done, there is no way to accurately predict whether your river cruise will be affected by low-water or high-water. But in general, high water occurs in the spring while low water occurs in heat of the summer, usually August. The summer of 2018 saw record low water levels on the Danube. However, contrary to the conventional wisdom, I saw record lows on the Rhine in November of 2015. While high or low water can impact your river cruise, in 50+ river cruises, I’ve never experienced a major disruption because of high water or low water, and I have cruised in both. I should add that I did not river cruise in the summer of 2018. In the comments below, some readers say their dream vacations were disappointing because of low water. Others had their trips scuttled altogether because the river cruise companies could not operate. My hope is that this page will serve as a useful forum for sharing information about the conditions on the rivers and how the cruise companies are handling adverse water levels.– Ralph Grizzle
Whether a river has high or low water levels is something you’re unlikely to consider when planning your river cruise – until it happens to you.
Unlike ocean cruising, river cruising is all about narrow margins. Low bridges make the air draft of a ship – how much of it sticks out of the water – critically important. Most river cruise ships have collapsible upper deck railings, removable furniture, and even navigation bridges that lower completely into the floor.
What’s under the keel – or hull – of your river cruise ship also makes a difference. In some cases, there can be less than a foot of water under the keel. River cruise ships have incredibly shallow drafts to begin with, and river cruise operators construct their ships as efficiently as possible. They’re the high-performance sports cars of the cruising world.
Unfortunately, low water and high water conditions can exist – and they can throw a real wrench into an otherwise flawless cruise.
For current updates from river cruisers currently on the rivers (or from those who have returned recently) be sure to see the comments at the bottom of this post.
The Rhine is perhaps the most dependable river when it comes to being able to continue navigation due to low water. I felt the boat scraping the bottom of the Rhine in Rudesheim in November of 2015, but we made it past. See Is AmaWaterways The Champion Of Low Water?
Water levels are unpredictable. In many cases, the cruise line may only find out on your actual sailing, or a few days beforehand, that a particular stretch of water isn’t navigable.
See related article: Low Water Levels Continue To Affect River Cruises; Plus Why This Happens In The First Place
Water levels aren’t uniform. That is to say, if there’s low water on the Danube, the entire Danube isn’t affected. In 2014, water levels were too low for many ships to pass between the German cities of Passau and Regensburg. In past years, the stretch heading across the Austria-Hungary border has been problematic.
History isn’t a good indicator of high or low water. In June of 2013, Passau was hit by the worst flooding – and the highest water levels – since the Middle Ages. In 2018, the Danube was so low that many cruise ships terminated their journeys in Passau.
What happens if high/low water levels affect my sailing? River cruise lines will typically attempt to keep your itinerary as operational as possible. Generally, when high/low water levels hit, three options are available to cruise lines:
- Continue the affected itinerary by having guests ‘swap ships’ – typically, being bussed from one town to the next, where you will embark a sister-ship or similar vessel to continue the rest of your journey. Read about our ship swap on Viking.
- Complete the itinerary as far as possible aboard your ship, and then transition to hotels (on the company’s expense) to complete the remainder of your itinerary.
- Outright cancellation. This is the rarest option, exercised when no other options are available.
I’m not sure if I should cancel my river cruise because of high/low water levels. What do I do?
Unless you have travel insurance that covers cancellation, do not cancel your river cruise over high/low water. Wait for the cruise line to either pull the plug or offer alternatives. If your sailing commences in a few weeks, cancelling your sailing will result in you loosing all monies paid. If you wait for the cruise line to pull the plug, offers typically include the ability to switch to another sailing at no cost; the offer to complete your cruise as scheduled at a discount or rebate; or the offer to cancel with minimal or no penalties. Of course, such offers are determined by the cruise line, but typically favor the guest.
Curious as to what the current conditions on the rivers of Europe are? A reader has provided us with a map showing the water levels on rivers in Germany. From reader “Sabine” see this link: https://www.wetteronline.de/pegelstaende?gid=HES
Several cruise companies maintain pages about current sailing conditions:
- Emerald Waterways: https://www.emeraldwaterways.com/current-sailing-conditions
- Scenic: https://www.scenicusa.com/current-sailings-conditions
- Viking River Cruises: https://www.vikingrivercruises.com/my-trip/current-sailings/
To see what our readers had to say about how their trips were impacted by low water levels, click here.
My sister and I are planning our 5th river cruise next year – this one on the Mekong River (Vietnam to Cambodia); however, we keep hearing in the news about the water levels being quite low – the lowest in 100 years. Does anyone know if the ships are still able to pass or if they are docked and bussing people to different stops? Want to know anyone’s experience to determine if we should reschedule and travel elsewhere. Definitely do not want to end up taking a bus tour.
We sailed December 5, 2019 with Ama and had no issues at all. What a wonderful trip!
Sitting in Regensburg Germany on the Viking ATLA, enroute from Nuremberg to Budapest. The water levels on the Danube are fine and everything has been on track so far. The weather has been cold and a bit rainy at times, but Christmas time in this part of Europe is magical.
Now sitting at the dock in Budapest, still on the same boat as we boarded in Nuremberg almost a week ago Viking ATLA). Water levels have been fine all the way down the river. The weather for the past 3 days has been very nice, with a few clouds and temperatures in the 35-40 degree F range.
Water Levels – River Cruise Advisor –
Awesome things here. I am very glad to peer your post. Thank you so much and
I’m looking forward to touch you. Will you kindly drop me a e-mail?- calator.tel
Am just completing a seven-day AmaWaterways cruise from Nuremburg to Luxembourg along the Main-Danube canal, the Main, the Rhine, and the Mosel. No problems with water levels whatsoever. At times it wasn’t very deep (who knows, maybe that is normal for that particular place(s)), but we always got through without squeeking.
We are currently approaching Cologne from Amsterdam to Budapest. ( oct 29- nov 12)Good levels so far. I know it is a daily situation with river levels, but whatever happens is all just part of our travel story. Viking is providing us with a fantastic trip. Getting our moneys worth for sure. Rain in forecast for upcoming cities….
Thanks for the update, will be doing this same cruise next year Oct 20-Nov4, would appreciate more updates and if you write a review somewhere would like to read it. Have a great trip.
We just completed the Grand European Tour on Viking, Oct 17 – 31, Budapest to Amsterdam. There are not enough words to express how AMAZING the trip was and Viking is second to none!! We did have to change ships around Regensburg and Nuremberg but Viking handled it seamlessly and perfectly. It really was not a big deal at all except we had become attached to our bartender on Viking Tir. We will do this trip again and there were several on our ship who had done this trip as many as 6 times. ENJOY!!!
Thanks so much for the update! We’re doing the Christmas market cruise with Viking on Nov.22 and are really looking forward to it! Hopeful that the water level will cooperate!
We are currently in Passau. Viking Gefjon Amsterdam to Budapest oct 29- nov 12. Water levels are doing well. We were told 2 days ago that we will not have to change ships.
The ship,service, foods, tours have app been perfect. So many members of the crew go out of their way to know and remember details that make the trip very personal.
Just left Passau towards Regensburg on Viking Tor. Levels are good so far, high temp was 39F in passau,
In Nuremburg, 32F & SUNNY early this morn, looking at a high of 45F. No water level problems at at except rain, Budapest to Nuremberg on Viking Tor.
Our trip went off perfectly. Oct 29- nov 12 Viking grand tour from Amsterdam to Budapest. Water levels stayed ok,with no changes. Viking was wonderful. Not only keeping us posted about the water levels, but the entire cruise. Excellent staff, smooth sailing, interesting included tours daily,and optional ones to purchase separately. The foods were beautifully prepared and presented. I loved their steaks( not normally a steak person) rack of lamb and soups. All desserts were perfect. Highly recommend.
Thanks for this great info. I’m researching to book Budapest to Amsterdam around this timeframe for my hubby’s 60th birthday. Viking looks to be the way to go based on how well they treat passengers if there has to be a ship change.
Currently cruising on the Emerald Star, Budapest to Amsterdam. Left Budapest on the 27th. The water level was low but we made it without any issue. The crew never mentioned any possibility of an issue. Currently docked in Melk along four other ships. Lite rain a couple of days ago. Very cold. No rain on the weather radar for the next couple days. Still unclear what will happen in Passau but there is no talk of a ship swap. (Yet!)
Hi Dan,
Appreciate the information and hope you post more. Also if you post a review anywhere I would be interested in reading it as will be doing the same route just opposite direction next year Oct 20-Nov 4. Have a great trip.
Yesterday we were told melk to passau and passau to regensberg are the 2 problematic routes on the danube. 2 ports were used to resolve the problem – durnstein and straubling. Viking handled the bussing to passau extremely well. We did not have to change ships because
Viking was able to resolve the low water levels. Thank you viking!
Hi Veronica,
Appreciate the information, will be doing Viking next year Amsterdam to Budapest around same time frame. Hope you keep posting and if you write a review somewhere would like to read it. Thanks and have a great trip.
Hi ron! We r now in budapest which exceeded my expectations of all the ports. I will be posting my raving reviews on viking site, trip advisor and cruise critic! This is our 3rd viking cruise and i commend viking for another amazing cruise specially their great handling of the different alternative ports used due to passau low levels. If u can take additional days to both prague and budapest!!!
Thanks for the post Veronica. The season looks to be improving with a little rain. Viking will appreciate a good review as there were some scathing ones left on consumeraffairs.com for September cruises. I’m relaxing a little now, cruising in December.
Nuremberg to Budapest. Nov 2 to 9. no boat changes
did anyone travel from Budapest to Nuremberg yet in December. Im cruising there December 15 thru the 22nd. How is the water level on the Danube?
We are currently on the Budapest to Nuremberg cruise on Emerald Waterways, completing December 15th (so we are halfway done now). Water levels are fine. There have been no announcements about any concerns of water levels.
Good news Linda, thank you. We’re cruising Amavenita 6 December Amsterdam to Budapest.
Thanks for the update. My husband and I are doing the Christmas Market cruise in December with AmaWaterways. I can’t wait.
Any news of water levels ? We too are doing the Amalea cruise from Dec 13 th to 21st Nuremberg to Budapest.
Thank you. Starting cruise this coming wednesday & couldn’t find straight answer on how river is now. So thank you again so much. Hope the the rest of you cruise continued to be delightful.
We are sailing AMA Venita. We left Amsterdam on the 8th November. The ship has just pulled into Regensburg. There has been no apparent trouble with river levels. The staff are exceptional, the service beyond expectation, the rooms are lovely, as well as clean. The tour itself has also exceeded expectation. Plenty of activity if you choose to do it (hiking, dancing, cycling). The food is very good. It is typical European fare which on occasion is heavy but the (always available) menu (salmon, sirloin, chicken) with accompanying veggies or salad is an alternative. The cakes are to die for, breakfast – plentiful fruits as well as hot breakky. I have written this here because some of the reviews of APT below were less than glowing. Let me assure all of those about to do an APT cruise that they will not be disappointed. The only thing that is a little disappointing is the quality of house wine and beer in the lounge. Wines at dinner are better.
Hi Ann, thanks for your comments. We are also travelling on the Amavenita shortly so I’m really pleased to hear your glowing review. It’s a shame that the meals are heavy as we are small eaters and prefer light meals, not always chicken or salmon. That being said I’m sure we’ll find something to our liking including the wines. So ready for this cruise, it’s been a long time coming. No apparent issues with water levels either
Leaving on AMA Viola form Vilshofen to Budapest on Oct 23rd. How are water levels?
Just received an email from Viking that due to water level problems Viking Jarl will NOT be our ship on Oct. 27, 2019 Nuremberg to Budapest. Viking changed our ship to Viking Atla. I called Viking and was told that the duration of our cruise will be on Viking Atla unless another ship swap is warranted. I called the Viking Insurance Dept and was told full refund is NOT an option but by Friday we must decide if we want to cancel the cruise and receive a Viking Travel certificate for a future cruise for the amount that we already paid Viking. Many past comments posted by travelers are adamant about not going on the cruise due to bad bus rides/bad hotels/missed tours. Any comments or recommendations is appreciated. Thank you
The boats are the same, the only difference is the name and the picture at the top of the stairs.
We did Budapest to Amsterdam a couple years ago and had to do a boat swap. They did it seamlessly and it was not a problem.
Thanks for the info. No matter what happens we will enjoy it. I do not worry if a change, just more friendly staff to meet. It will be wonderful….. excited!!!!!
hello everyone, I recently took a cruise from Amsterdam to Switzerland. Viking Cruise was phenomenal the ship swap was extremely smooth we had an absolutely wonderful time and there’s nothing to worry about.
I just wanted to mention I’m leaving on November 3rd to go to Amsterdam to Switzerland once again on Viking Eir. Any info about the stretch down the Rhine River would be good for me too. I hope everyone’s having a great time.
Hi, Jon;
We sailed on the Rhine from Amsterdam to Basel Switzerland from 10/15 to 10/22 (on Avalon’s Expression) and had no water issues. Wonderful experience. Top notch crew, service, food, excursions etc.
The water levels on the Rhine are adequate at the moment. To see european levels per river, check out http://www.elwis.de
We just got home today from a 23 day cruise (Bucharest-Amsterdam). They swapped boats for week 1 (the Aegir couldn’t get from Budapest-Bucharest to pick us up—so started on the Embli). Our embarkation was about 1-1/2 further but Viking made it seamless—they added a guide on the bus with us and we got an informative trip to the ship. (We used packing pods as we knew a ship swap might happen so it only took 5 minutes to repack and step across to the new ship—highly recommend the pods).
Once we got to Budapest they put us on the Aegir. We had heard last night, the water wasn’t looking good (we barely got through). BUT do not let the ship swaps discourage you, the ships are identical and you go into the same room. There was a broken lock that caused us to miss a morning tour, but they reimbursed us.
All said, go in with the attitude your on a wonderful trip and roll with the changes. On land or on the river, you will still see some wonderful things…maybe even things you wouldn’t see on the river. But … I hope the water cooperates and you are able to do the full trip on the river!
many thanks all! much appreciated. will post updates to share! I love this web site!!!!
Thanks so much for the input can’t wait to leave one week from Monday. Everyone be safe out there keep your eyes open and your head moving.
Myra,
I will be a first time cruiser next year. What is a packing pod? Sorry for the ignorance. I am getting a bit concerned about water levels, seems it hapens more often (climate change?) Anyway, any packing ideas would be great. Thank you.
Check on Amazon,I 0lan to get some. It’s like smaller packages to pack your clothes 8n and you take them out to put in drawers. Makes it easy to repack.
We completed the Viking Grand European tour from Amsterdam to Budapest in late September. Every Viking ship is identical so changing you departure ship is a non issue. We had a ship swap from Nuremberg to Passau and it was seamless. You should have nothing to worry about with Viking.
We cruised Nuremberg to Budapest September 17 to the 27th. We also did the three days in Prague. Some observations:
1. The hotel in Prague is a communist era dump named the Corinthia. The room first assigned did not have a closet nor a bureau so clothes stayed in luggage. Hotel is also poorly located and nowhere near the center of Prague. Hotel didn’t even have a small convenience store for sundries. Prague is nice but try to stay somewhere else.
2. Bus ride Nuremberg took four hours and left Prague at 2pm thus resulting in a complete lost day
3. Cruised to Regensburg which I found to be the best city on the trip. However, Vikings schedule brought there on Sunday and everything was closed.
4. Due to river levels being too low, took yet another bus ride to Passat.
5. From Passau a scheduled stop in Kremlin was skipped and yet another bus ride to Staubing, being deposited in an industrial park area to reboard a new ship. We were now a day behind thus skipping Kremlin.
6. As we were a day behind the day trip to Vienna, the most scenic part of the tour, was done overnight thus missed.
7. A final bus ride to Budapest got us to our ship.
Viking corporate will not be truthful about Danube levels. I spoke to several crew members/service staff who indicated certain sections of river had been closed for a few weeks.
Bottom line, get cancellation insurance that allows cancellation for any reason. Do not depend on Viking to be truthful. Do not believe all that you see in Vikings advertising.
Thank you mike for your detailed account of your viking BUS cruise. Many postings agree with yours in the website of consumeraffairs.com. Many definitely outlined the negative aspects against viking. Trustworthiness will bring loyalty from travelers. Viking has failed in customer satisfaction in the many postings i read.
Kremlin, thought that was in Russia?
I stayed at the Corinthia in August. It was lovely. Great room, nice breakfasts, easy easy access to transportation right outside door. Heard no complaints from any of our cruise group about hotel.
Agree about the Corinthia- shuttle to the old town center- very easy and a lovely park and fort/ castle nearby with beer garden – no complaints at all
Typical Viking. So many other lines to choose from.
Sorry to hear of your nightmare trip. Sounds like you had more of a coach tour rather than a river cruise which you booked and paid for.
We are travelling with Scenic from Nuremberg to Budapest starting on 2nd December for Christmas Markets Tour.
I hope we don’t experience what you’ve been through.
Sorry, but I can’t see how you start a new thread on here, so I looked for the most recent topic that was doing a similar tour to us.
Agreed. Went on Viking Romantic Danube over Thanksgiving 2021. We dealt with low Danube levels as well as covid lockdowns.
1. We were supposed to bus about 2 hrs or so to Regensburg from Prague to start the cruise. The water was too low, so we had to take a bus about twice as far to Passau where our boat was. We didn’t leave at 11am like we were told. We left at 1pm so most of the day was wasted. Got to the boat about 5pm. They weren’t in a normal cruise ship dock, it was an industrial dock. so we couldn’t go ashore in Passau the first day when we arrived. We weren’t within walking distance of town.
2. We were bussed to Regensburg the next day, but only got to stay from about 9:30a-5p. It was a 1/2 hour walk from the bus to the center of town. We ended up with only an hour or so at the Christmas market at Thurn & Taxis because it didn’t open until 3pm and we had to walk 30 min to get back to the Viking bus.
3. It’s too bad because the Christmas market was big and the town was great, with terrific food. Don’t miss the sausage at Historische Wurstküche. You won’t be sorry!
3. We completely sailed past Krems & Vienna Austria due to covid lockdown.
4. We were supposed to try to stop in Bratislava as a consolation but the next morning, we were informed that they had locked down also. We ended up at Komarom, Hungary in some random little dock not meant for cruise ships. They took us to a wine tasting by the Estergom Basilica. It was an hour bus ride each way and I don’t think we spent more than a couple hours touring the basilica and doing the tasting.
5. We were told when we got back to the boat that water levels were also too low to sail to Budapest, our final port. We were set to spend a full day there and then go to a hotel after for a post-cruise stay on our own. I had picked a hotel (Kempinski, we LOVED it) that was really close to 2 Christmas markets. Since Viking planned to bus everyone for 2 days to Budapest, an hour and a half each way, we left the cruise early. We took the first bus they had to Budapest the next morning and exited with our luggage. We checked into our hotel 2 days early. Since we’d missed so many ports, we were a day early to Budapest. Instead of the planned 2 full days in Budapest, we got 3. We had a great time.
Viking keeps every bit of news under wraps until they have a revised plan to execute. At that point, no one has a choice really to do anything different. I had to scramble at the last minute the night before to get my travel agent to book us additional nights at The Kempinski in Budapest. Luckily, she was 8 hours behind us and had time to make it happen. We immediately, after the meeting about how Budapest was going to be handled & speaking to my agent, informed them that we were exiting the cruise early.
We sailed on the Viking Egil from Nuremberg to Budapest from 12 – 19 October 201. It had rained the 2 weeks before our cruise so water levels were good. Our trip was in sunshine and near 70 F all week. As another poster opined, Regensburg was also our favorite stop, followed by Budapest. Bring good walking shoes and be prepared to walk 10 – 12,000 steps everyday. Also bring some sunscreen just in case, and a spare battery for your camera.
Another commenter listed this website to track river levels.
https://www.wetteronline.de/?gid=BAY&iid=Donau&pcid=pc_pegel_data&sid=River
If the link doesnt work go to wetteronline and look at the tab Weather Data and then river level on the line below it. Nuremberg is not on the Danube, it is on the Eurocanal which links the Rhine, Main, and Danube rivers. The key city to montitor is Straubing and the website below currently shows Straubing has 117 cm of water; the Viking boats draw 170 cm of water so they would not be able to get through. As others noted the Viking boats are identical, and if they need to swap you woud disembark in Regensburg and then be driven to Passau to contine on another boat.
You can also see the position of your boat at this website. You will see there are not many boats between Regensburg and Passau right now.
https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:12.7/centery:48.6/zoom:9
Brenda says
October 29, 2019 at 7:45 am
We did our cruise on the Danube with Viking Oct 18-25. The first few days were great. We did a ship swap after we left Regensburg. We sailed to Straubing and left our ship Viking Tor there. We left the ship an hour later than was originally planned and spent three hours plus one hour at a rest stop to meet up with Viking Var. By the time we got moving again, it was too late to do any of the excursions except one of the optional excursions to the opera (or something like that). So basically we missed everything that day. It was even dark when we cruised the scenic Wachau Valley! We did manage to sail again on the Viking Var until we got close to Budapest. We had to take a bus into Budapest because the water levels were so low the ship could not make the trip in with the passengers on board.
While in Budapest I spoke to someone from another ship that had managed to sail all the way, she said on the last lock before Budapest their ship scraped bottom and they had a three hour delay while the ship was assessed.
So, unless there is some major rain in the forecast, expect to be doing a ship swap.
Happy sailing.
No one can control the weather. If you want perfection in every way, then cancel.. otherwise go with an open mind to go with the flow and enjoy whatever the experience gives you. There is nothing worse than being with fellow travelers who complain about changes when they knew it may happen..if you’re unsure please do not go , others will enjoy even if you will not. Having done a cruise in 2018 when the water levels were extremely bad, and not being in top health, I went open to anything as I traveled from NZ and do not regret one minute, but I am a very positive person. . Others were not
Current on the Viking Jarl en route to Nuremberg. We have been informed that we will be doing a ship shop very early tomorrow morning. I’ll update afterwards if I can.
Sorry about the autocorrect typos.
Gail – any further changes with water levels ? Looks from here like rain is on the horizon next week – just not sure if that will be enough for our trip leaving Nov 3.
We are also on Viking Jarl leaving Budapest on 11/3 fir Nuremberg. Any more info as of today? Thank you!
We are currently enroute to Budapest from Regensburg with news water levels are sufficient. Other Scenic ship Opal navigated from Budapest to Regensburg last few days with no trouble. It appears Viking are being cautious on the Regensburg Passau leg. Nevertheless less no ship change for us on the Jade and safe cruising for everyone.
Guessing you got notice of a ship switch since we just were notified that we are leaving Nuremberg Sunday on the Jarl ( changed from the Alta). Hope all goes well .
On viking atla nov 1 friday leaving vienna for budapest. Great day in vienna with 3 other viking ships in vienna. Viking ve, viking uluur and viking skadi. Not sure where they r going. This is my last update since we finish our cruise in budapest. Safe travels to all and for this awesome web site!!! And many many thanks to viking for an amazing river cruise! This was our 3rd viking cruise and look forward to more!!!
Is anyone travelling with APT? We are in Australia and I don’t ever see comments about their fleet.
APT would be AmaWaterways. They have a lower draft and are able to get through areas that some of the other ships can’t. So far, I haven’t heard of any issues with them.
No APT is an Australian Co. My sister travelled late Sept with them and they had to change ships due to water level. No compensation. She had done this trip With APT a few years ago, and I did it the year before and I rated it as 10 out of 10 at that time, but she was very disappointed this time.
Food not as good as the first trip, no local food choices, Cheeses were only basic supermarket levelno drink service you had to go to the bar to get yourself, lousy coffee, ships needs updating.
one other cruiser had a breakdown of costs on what they had paid and this included $2000 (maybe euros) for tips per person. Regardless of this service was not good on the 1st boat and on 2nd Boat the staff were downright rude and had would refuse requests. From the sound of it they should have part of their tips refunded. I am very disappointed that an Australian Co have dropped their standards so much. I had always recommended APT but now…….
Hi Jeanette, I’ve read elsewhere that some ships have a better staff than others and I don’t have a lot to compare. One 4 night river cruise in Egypt and one 12 night ocean cruise. My agent confirmed that the cruise ships are getting through, as at last week because of the lower draft. Rain forecast so keeping my fingers crossed. I’ve got my travel documents now and have downloaded the APT App, so I’m watching the weather details. One disappointment before we get started is that their Signature Highlight Experience on the 1st class train to Salzburg is now a bus trip. The Danube Nightlight Dinner cruise has been cancelled to, but that’s due to new government regulations following the disaster that took the lives off many earlier this year……understandable and not their fault, but no replacement experience, just dinner on board I guess. Perhaps we’ll use the night to say goodbye to new found friends. I’m still hoping to have a remarkable experience.
Hi Cindy, I assumed the same as you, but my TA said they are not part of waterways, but do indeed have a lower draft and were getting through. Fingers crossed.
Budapest to Amsterdam , 11/10 to 25/10 on AmaReina APT, no water problems, it seems APT need less water depth than Viking.
AmaReina , Budapest to Amsterdam 11/10 to 25/10 no water problems. Seems their ships need less water than Viking.
Thank you all for your comments. One correction from me. AMA Viola leaves Vilshofen on Oct 27. Anyone sailing AMA right now on the Danube?
We did the Danube from Budapest to Vilshofen, sailing Oct 9-16, and no problems with the water levels, were on the Joy, operated by Tauck.
Just checked ship locations on web site cruisemapper.com and found no ships between regensberg and nuremberg. Found many ships on canal so i called the viking atla who confirmed they are on the canal. Called viking who claimed no water level
Problems on danube. Please if anyone is on Danube River cruise would appreciate water level updates. We r supposed to cruise Sunday Oct 27. Thank you
We are on the Danube. Viking Skadi October 19- November 2.. We will be taking coaches to our new ship Braggi in Nuremberg today due to low water levels. Unable to navigate Passau to Nuremberg. Guests on Braggi now will be taken by bus to Passau.
Will only miss morning excursions booked for today- moved to afternoon
Lots of bus trips the last 2 days. But all handled very smoothly. Will miss the Skadi staff. Looks like rain in the forecast so maybe better.
Thank you Nancy. Your update is much appreciated. Numerous calls to Viking yesterday including a call to the ship Viking Atla and were repeatedly told Danube River is sailable and yet ship’s course was changed and noted NOT to be in the Danube but in a canal from Regensberg to Nuremberg. Safe travels.
We are on the Danube. Viking Skadi October 19- November 2.. We will be taking coaches to our new ship Braggi in Nuremberg today due to low water levels. Unable to navigate Passau to Nuremberg. Guests on Braggi now will be taken by bus to Passau.
Will only miss morning excursions booked for today- moved to afternoon
Lots of bus trips the last 2 days. But all handled very smoothly. Will miss the Skadi staff. Looks like rain in the forecast so maybe better.
We are leaving November 6th from Amsterdam to Budapest. Interested in the river as well as the weather. Thanks
We are leaving Amsterdam to Basel on November 9th on MS Rhapsody (Grand Circle)
Interested in water levels in late October and early November
Penny – we are on the Amsterdam/Basel Grand Circle cruise in late November – mainly chose it because of Strasbourg – so beautiful. Lucky for us – at least so far – our trip is on the Rhine and better levels than the Danube. We had scheduled this trip for last year — but water levels too low. We appreciated Grand Circle cancelling totally instead of getting us over there and busing us around. Have a wonderful trip!!
We are on the Grand Circle Rhapsody leaving Antwerp to Basel on November 10. Keeping an eye on water levels as our Christmas market cruise last November wad cancelled due to low water. Grand Circle refunded the entire cruise plus air and gave us a nice credit. They were excellent and we would have been more disappointed if we had to bus rather than cruise. We stay on the ship in Basel and are doing the Christmas Markets a long the Rhine ending in Amsterdam. Grand Circle is amazing.
I am supposed to get on Viking Skadi on Nov. 2. Looks like I will be getting on Braggi instead.
If we has to be taken by bus from Passau to Nuremberg, this will our second time, last time was Nov. 5, 2015 from Nuremberg to Passau. Hopefully there is enough rain in this next week to raise the water level.
We did our cruise on the Danube with Viking Oct 18-25. The first few days were great. We did a ship swap after we left Regensburg. We sailed to Straubing and left our ship Viking Tor there. We left the ship an hour later than was originally planned and spent three hours plus one hour at a rest stop to meet up with Viking Var. By the time we got moving again, it was too late to do any of the excursions except one of the optional excursions to the opera (or something like that). So basically we missed everything that day. It was even dark when we cruised the scenic Wachau Valley! We did manage to sail again on the Viking Var until we got close to Budapest. We had to take a bus into Budapest because the water levels were so low the ship could not make the trip in with the passengers on board.
While in Budapest I spoke to someone from another ship that had managed to sail all the way, she said on the last lock before Budapest their ship scraped bottom and they had a three hour delay while the ship was assessed.
So, unless there is some major rain in the forecast, expect to be doing a ship swap.
Happy sailing.
Please see posting 130am Oct 26 by Nancy on Viking Skadi; They Had to be bussed because of low water levels Passau to Nuremberg. And yet my numerous calls to Viking yesterday- they continue to deny problem on Danube River.
Please continue to post updates as we are a week behind you .
Hello everyone who travels are wonderful. I’m leaving from Amsterdam on the 6th of November going to Switzerland. I am just wondering if anyone has any problems with water levels on the Rhine River right now? Thank you
Claire we just boarded viking atla in nuremberg. Awesome ship and staff. Today the Atla sails to Roth and then to the Main Danube River. Next water level update tomorrow tuesday then if water levels low may have to change ship thursday. Having a great time right now.
Many thanks to viking! Program director Paul is amazing!
Went through ship swap on Viking at Nuremberg. Seamless transition. Didn’t miss out on anything but one night cruising.
Oct 27 boarded Viking Atla in Nuremberg; great ship and staff! Next water level update in 2 days and if water levels are low then we may have to change ship on Thursday. Viking Atla Staff amazing specially Paul Lau the program director!!! Thank you Viking!
Oct 29 tuesday just sailed nuremberg to regensberg. on the amazing viking atla. We will get update tonight on water level and was told if theres a problem we may expect a ship swap by thursday. Having an awesome time with an awesome staff! Thank you viking!
We did our Romantic Danube Cruise with Viking Oct 18-25. The first few days were great. We did a ship swap after we left Regensburg. We sailed to Straubing and left our ship Viking Tor there. We left the ship an hour later than was originally planned and spent three hours driving plus one hour at a rest stop to meet up with Viking Var. By the time we got moving again, it was too late to do any of the excursions that day except one of the optional excursions to the opera (or something like that). So basically we missed everything that day. It was even dark when we cruised the scenic Wachau Valley! We did manage to sail again on the Viking Var until we got close to Budapest. We had to take a bus into Budapest because the water levels were so low the ship could not make the trip to our port with the passengers on board.
While we did see some of the countryside, I would have preferred to leave the ship on time and forego the hour long stop at the rest stop, where we had to pay for our own lunch if we wanted to eat. In my opinion it would have been more pleasant to leave the ship at the original time quoted and spend a few minutes at the rest stop and then spend the rest of the time in the small village where we boarded the Viking Var.
While in Budapest I spoke to someone from another ship that had managed to sail all the way, she said on the last lock before Budapest their ship scraped bottom and they had a three hour delay while the ship was assessed.
So, unless there is some major rain in the forecast, expect to be doing a ship swap.
Happy sailing.
Viking atla update oct 29 tuesday at 645pm. cannot sail from regensberg to passau so ship is sailing to straubling. Will be bussed to passau 45 minutes from straubling. We will get another update at noon to find out if boat can pick us up at passau or we have to be bussed back to straubling. No talk of ship swap. Viking atla has been awesome! Had a great day in regensberg.
Thanks for update . Looks like rain in the forecast , are you seeing the same and will it be too late ?
Oct 30 wedn. Viking atla in straubling not passau due to low water level. 830am bussed 1 hour to passau. Absolutely beautiful day in passau. Awesome concert at st stephans cathedral. Great Lunch provided at local restaurant. 5pm bussed to ship 30 minutes away at another port not straubling. Tonight will sail to krems austria. No ship swap!!!!! Thank you viking for an amazing day in passau
Thank you for all your update, Veronica! You help me understand how the low water situation is managed by Viking. It looks like Viking was able to move your boat downstream without the weight of 190 passengers, and now you can continue the cruise on the same boat. Happy cruising for the rest of your trip. My husband and I are scheduled to be on Viking Atla from Budapest to Nuremberg on 11/24 (our first river cruise). I can see a ship-swap decision can be a very close call when the water level is marginally passable for the boat.
Thanks barbara!!! Dress very warm!!! Its cold. Viking Atla staff amazing!!!!!
On AMA Viola which left Vilshofen on the 27th of October for the Danube Cruise. Made through to Vienna. Everything looks OK to end in Budapest on 11/3. Wausau Valley level was 173 with 165 being the limit for our ship. Not sure of the units, maybe cm? Which means about 3.5 inches to spare. Levels look low, especially when you look at the banks, but we see ships from all lines on the River.
Oct 31 thursday. On viking atla with latest update no ship swap. The worst is behind us which was regensberg to passou. Slow sailing on wachou valley arriving at 11 instead of 9. Unable to dock in melk but docked at durnstein and rode bus 45 minutes to see the wonderful gotweig abbey 110-330pm then back to ship docked in tuln instead of melk. Now sailing to vienna to arrive by 7pm. Blessed to be on Viking atla for the whole cruise! Many thanks Viking staff for an amazing danube river cruise!!! Have not seen rain oct 27 til 31.
We are on the Emerald Star. We were able to dock in Melk without an issue. There are at least 3 other ships here as well. As it was explained to us, some captains are more conservative about the river than others. Hoping to make it to Amsterdam as well.
As retired Navy, I appreciate conservative with the ship, not grounding is good!
Steve, how were the water levels on your Vilshofen to Budapest trip? I’m considering this same itinerary for next year and trying to decide between early May and early Oct.
Currently sailing on the Viking Jarl from Budapest to Nuremberg (October 6 to October 13, 2019. We are docked in Vienna tonight. We were told by the staff that we were cleared all the way to Nuremberg!
We are on the Vali Budapest to Amsterdam. Area has had rain; we are cleared all the way to Anstwrdam
Left Budapest yesterday for Amsterdam, water levels fine, expected to go all the way.
Thank you. 2 weeks til we do same route. Your posting is very reassuring. Enjoy your travels!!!
Update, we are one day away from Amsterdam, sailed all the way.
Water levels were touch and go in patches between Budapest and Passau but we made it through slowly. Weather has been warm and fine. Not a lot of rain around so can’t say if water level is still ok, best of luck.
Thanks for your post – I have been checking daily for updates!! We leave on the Viking Tor Friday, the 18th – Nuremberg to Budapest. Feeling more hopeful than a couple of wks ago! Enjoy your trip.
We are on the Viking Tor – Nuremberg to Budapest, Oct 18-25. We just got news today and it looks like we will be doing a ship swap in the next day or so. We were supposed to sail to Passau this evening, but the plan has changed and we are only going as far as Straubing this evening. We will find out tomorrow if we will be doing a ship swap or not. We have been having a great sailing so far.
We are on Viking Budapest to Nuremberg 19th Oct start. Hearing today if ship change required.
thanks so much for the update we will be on viking jarl oct 26 nuremberg to budapest.
we will post update during our trip
On Viking Ve from Budapest to Amsterdam. River levels looked good until yesterday when we were told the probability of a ship switch is likely to occur at Nuremberg. We would clear but sister ship Gefjon may not so switch is necessary to accommodate the continuation of their cruise.
We are on the same cruise!
Oh no Dave!! Sorry to hear about the switches. Thought the rivers were better…
We are on Gefjon on 29 th. Does that mean it will not get to Amsterdam by then???
We didn’t expect the ship swap as water levels looked good when our cruise started in Budapest. Apparently water levels can change quickly especially on this stretch of the old Danube which is without dams or locks. Viking has handled the swap on their usual guest friendly and professional manner.
Thanks for the info. Is anyone on the Avalon Expression leaving 10/15 Amsterdam to Basel on the Rhine? Know anything about water levels?
We just had clear sailing on Emerald Waterways Sun from Basel to Amsterdam 9/28-10/5.
Thanks for keeping us informed.
Thank you for your comment
Hoping there’s more rain on the way before December 6 🙂
Thanks so much for the update; we sail Viking Jarl Oct. 26. Any more rain in the near future? How is the weather? Many thanks again.
Great, we’re on Viking Tor, Budapest to Nuremberg, boarding Friday, 08 Nov, looks like the Vorosmarty Ter Christmas Market opens that day! We’re skipping Panoramic Budapest on Sat (did it on Passage to Eastern Europe in April), goin to the Central Market and the Christmas Market instead. About 25 minutes walk to the Central Market from Viking Tor and 6 minutes walk to Christmas Market.
My wife and I will be on the same trip. Is the Christmas Market just a 6 minute walk from the dock? We want to do the Panoramic Budapest in the morning, maybe the Market in the afternoon.
Stuart, Christmas Market is on Vorosmarty Ter (square) shows as 6 minute walk on maps from where Viking shows the ship to be docked on their website. Docks are north and south of the Szechenyi Bridge on the east (Pest) side of the river.
See you onboard.
Viking just emailed us about water level problems on the Danube so our ship has been changed Oct 27 Nuremberg to Budapest. Very disconcerting!!! Seems like a bad omen for our cruise.
Great, we board this Sunday in Budapest for Amsterdam.
My wife Patti and I may be on same trip Viking Skirnir Budapest to Amsterdam
Some folks we know are returning tomorrow Amsterdam to Budapest and say water levels are better
And they did not need to change boats
@Kent We’re on a different cruise company, still may cross paths though ?
We pick up Tir in Amsterdam on Oct. 17 to Budapest.
Hoping for good sailing.
A few nights of rain would be welcome.
We are in Amsterdam today, 10/16, setting sail tonight south on the Rhine to Basel. They have had enough rain in the last 2 weeks, they are confident the water levels are OK. Have fun!
Excellent to hear!! We are off on the 29 th!!!
Enjoy your travels
please keep posting, I’m taking the same rip in two weeks
Just got email from Viking. Due to water level problems they changed our ship to Viking Atla for Oct 27 Nuremberg to Budapest. They said the original ship Viking Jarl cannot be in Nuremberg for us. This sounds ominous!
That’s encouraging. I am sailing on the Jarl on October 19th and just got the e-mail from Viking outlining all the (unpleasant) options if the water levels are too low.
Gail, what were the official options, if you don’t mind. Thanks
Joe, I got the same email. Here are the options:
Embark an identical sister ship – If previous low water adjustments prevent your ship from embarking at its regular embarkation port, you will instead be met by an identical sister ship in its place. Please note, your stateroom selection will remain the same and you will be notified of the ship name ahead of your embarkation.
Adjust our sailing speed – We may need to adjust our sailing speed which could result in slight alterations to the standard sailing schedule.
Dock in alternate locations – We may be required to dock in alternate locations that are not impacted.
Swap ships part-way through your sailing – Should the river become impassible at a certain point, we may need to enact what we call a “ship swap.” Because Viking operates identical ships traveling along the river, we are able to transfer you by motor coach from your ship to an identical sister ship further along the river to resume your itinerary.
We got the same email yesterday. Leaving on the Viking Braggi Budapest to Amsterdam October 19.
Nancy, if there is a ship swap, maybe we will run into each other. 🙂
(Trying to stay positive.)
We are on Uniworld Beatrice. Nuremberg to Budapest. It has rained quite a lot. So much that when we had our excursion in Regensburg, we had to meet the ship 45 minutes down the river due to HIGH water levels.
We are on the Uniworld Princess Budapest to Amsterdam left on October 9th. Picking up the Uniworld Duchess in Wurzburg on October 18th. They had a ship swap earlier in September. Have to get back to our original ship. In Vienna now (October 11th). So far all looks good. Shouldn’t have any problems ?.
Thanks for the info. Leaving Budapest to Amsterdam on Oct 13. Hoping levels stay favorable.
Thanks for the information. I am sailing Avalon Budapest to Amsterdam on October the 25th. I hope the levels remain comfortable.
That is very positive to read! We are on Viking Gefjon oct 29. Amsterdam to Budapest . Very excited!!
Sailed on the Gefjon a few weeks ago. Great crew and staff, you will be pleased. Joe
Just got email from Viking that due to water level problems our ship for Oct 27 has been changed to Viking Atla instead of Viking Jarl graveling Nuremberg to Budapest. This is very frustrating.
That is concerning to me since we are supposed to sail from Nuremberg Nov 3 on the Alta . Already received our first water level email warning Monday .
Claire, I recommend you call Viking to ask what ship will you embark on because I called Viking and they told me we are on Atla Nuremberg all the way to Budapest arriving Nov. 3 in Budapest.
We’re traveling Nuremberg to Budapest Oct 18-25, 2019 on Viking Tor. How is the water level on the Danube? Any updates would be greatly appreciated.
Karen, we are on the same ship as you Oct 18-25.
I saw this above – October 11, 2019 at 12:45 am
We are on Uniworld Beatrice. Nuremberg to Budapest. It has rained quite a lot. So much that when we had our excursion in Regensburg, we had to meet the ship 45 minutes down the river due to HIGH water levels.
That news is welcome. Maybe we will see you on the cruise. We are traveling in a group of 7.
Thanks Brenda – I did see that post! We’re packing and crossing our fingers. We’ll be sure to say “Hi” – you’ll be easy to find with a group of seven!! See you next week.
We will be Viking Tor Nuremberg to Budapest on Oct 17. Any updates on river levels?
Jean, we are on the same cruise as you. The last I saw, water levels have come up. Maybe we will see you on board. Happy travels
Viking just emailed us that water levels caused a change of ship for our cruise oct 27 nuremberg to budapest. How are your water levels now? Thx
Thanks for the update. It’s great to have current information. We sail out of Budapest on the 30th, so it shouldn’t go down dramatically between now and then as I assume the dry season has ended.
In Vienna now, and its raining, so fingers are crossed! Tho from Budapest to here, there were times we only went 2kph, as they said we barely had 12 inches under the keel.
Let it rain!
Is anyone on Avalon Artistry II. How is she managing? If you have a ship swap can the previous ship travel through low water without passengers? Or is it impassable in certain areas? It must be a nightmare for cruise companies!
Artistry hit bottom last nite…we travelled very slowly and got through. It was very stressful for crew! We made it to Regensburg today, Oct 3.
Is anyone on the Avalon Envision (Nuremberg to Budapest) ? Please keep us posted on how you did. I am doing that trip on 10/13. Thank you.
What cruise ship are you on and which company please?
Company is Avalon, ship is Artistry II. I’m on the same ship as Ed. It got loud for awhile last night but we did make it.
Hi how are things sailing from wertzberg to Amsterdam on Monarch dutchess. We are supposed to sail out tomorrow night. Anyone have an update as to if we will be able to complete this cruise. Anyone being bussed now along this route??
Not hearing anything from gate one. Left Budapest sept. 26. Have been bussed from Passau. Please send a water level update.
Sue
How is the river levels for you now?
We are sailing and the levels are good.
Where are you – which river and what cities?
We are on Viking Gefjon. Yesterday we were in Passau and our passengers were told that the Danube water level was good. During the night we sailed from Passau to Regensburg. We spent today in Regensburg and are headed to Amsterdam. Good news because we thought we were changing ships after Passau. ?
Thanks for the info. Is anyone on the Avalon Expression leaving 10/15 Amsterdam to Basel on the Rhine? Know anything about water levels?
I was just looking ahead at the projected weather for Regensburg and Passau. There is rain and showers in the forecast for several days on and off for the next two weeks. Hopefully that will help out with the low water situation.
We are on the Viking Prestige today in Krems going towards Budapest. No issues with water levels so far, we started in Passau on 9/28.
Thank you. We are end of October on Viking. Nice to see something positive
We are setting out on Oct 17th Nuremberg to Budapest on Viking TOR
We are on Viking Budapest to Nuremberg on 19 th Oct.
Really hoping no busing as we had to last year on the Rhine. Thanks for the updates.
We were on the Rhine last year in Mid November. We did a lot of busing. Didn’t realize just how much until we looked at a map of the river when we returned home. I don’t think it will be as bad this trip. Leaving in two weeks.
We are on Viking Hermod the 15th, Passau to Budapest. Haven’t heard anything from Viking concerning water levels.
we are on viking jarl romantic danube oct. 26-nov. 3 – worried about water levels
In Vienna now, and its raining, so fingers are crossed! Tho from Budapest to here, there were times we only went 2kph, as they said we barely had 12 inches under the keel.
Let it rain!
Rain, that is good news. Most of the low water levels have been reported in and around Regensburg. I had no idea that the river from Budapest to Vienna was getting low also. Bring on the rain.
YEAH!!
I’ll be on Viking’s “Frances Finest” cruise in November, sailing on the Rhone and Seine rivers. Any idea whether these rivers are currently having low/high water issues?
Found a great website… you can track your boat, as well as see others. I’ve watched it the last few days, and do not see boat movements between Regensburg and Passau, so am assuming ship swaps and bussing are still occuring for most cruise lines between those ports.
https://www.cruisemapper.com/?mmsi=269057499
Enjoy!
On Avalon from Prague to Budapest. Turns out they are bussing us straight to Passau on Tuesday, Oct 1. Thus we miss Nuremburg completely and can only bus to Regensburg. We will be docked in Passau for 3 nights.
Nancy, has there been any rainfall whilst you’re cruising?
Just arrived in Prague on Sunday. No rain here despite dark clouds. Couple drops.
Any info on the viking cruise from Prague to Berlin??
We start on Oct. 24th.
On the Viking Astrlid Berlin to Prague on 10/24 and curious to know if it will be a river cruise or bus trip.
Just boarded Viking Beyla this afternoon for the Elbe River cruise to Berlin. Captain announced we will be sailing tomorrow. First time in about 3 months.
Nancy – Keep in touch and we can meet you and Keith in Passau. We’re on the Viking Viljhalm and will arrive tomorrow evening.
Rich and Kathy M.
We were set to sail October 18 from Berlin to Prague. We got the letter yesterday for a full refund or 50 % off cruise portion of trip to use on a future cruise. We opted for a full refund as did not want a bus tour.
Hi Barbara,
We just returned from this “cruise”. Time on a bus was minimal because the distances are very short. 2 nights on ship at Wittenberg & 3 in Dresden. We loved having more time in Dresden & views from ship were lovely. The Viking crew did lots of extras, You might reconsider going.
Bob,
That’s wonderful news. We are on the Beyla starting 11/5 – and was really wondering if we would be cruising or Boatelling!
Please post on how the trip is going.
Any updates on the Viking Beyla or Astrild in the Prague/Berlin routes?
Water levels ok for cruising?
A Viking Elbe ships just pulled up and docked at Decin about an hour ago.
We sail on 11/24 and just received e-mail stating that at the time the boats are sailing but depending on water levels this might change.
Just got back from Prague to Berlin, ship sailed all the way. Food was great, crew was great, entertainment was great. Enjoy your trip
Just completed the Viking Grand European (Budapest to Amsterdam). Did NOT have any water issues, however, we were interupted mid cruise to stay in a hotel for 2 nights, because our ship Embla required maintenance (generator replacement). We continued our cruise in Nuremburg on Aegir, to Amsterdam.
Another problem we experienced was that many passengers were sick (coughing, sneezing etc) on Aegir. The ship need additional hand sanitizer stations throughout the ship. Only had two at entrance to restaurant.
We are on Scenic starting in Nuremberg on September 30th. I really appreciate you taking time to give an update.
Hi Carol Ann,
We just finished our Scenic Cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam. Had to swap ships and were on a bus from Passau to Regensburg. It was absolutely seamless and professionally managed. All free choice schedules maintained, bags delivered to cabins before we arrived, personal preferences communicated etc etc. In Amsterdam we met people who were with “another” cruise company and they had been in a bus for 7 days from Passau to Amsterdam. Scenic will take care of you. Enjoy
Xerxes is absolutely right. On Scenic and had a ship swap yesterday. Scenic handled it seamlessly. Many other cruisers had to be bused. There is a stretch that is impassable right now. We didn’t miss a beat. Perhaps a slightly longer bus ride back from our excursion but so worth it to keep sailing! Best of luck to everyone!
[email protected]
Good morning from Budapest. Looks like a nice day. Arrived yesterday. Changed planes in Amsterdam, had rain and fog there, warm ( 70s ) and sunny in Budapest.
We booked on Gate 1 Monarch Dutchess but due to low water Gate 1 and Royal Emerald did a swap. We are on the Emerald, beautiful ship. It has a balcony that you can sit out on, love it. So far we are very impressed with what Gate 1 has worked out.
I would difinately reccomend upgrading to the second floor on a river boat. Love being able to see out when in the room. Lower level, you can only see out when your standing up.
Again, amazing job Gate 1, we are scheduled to board the Monarch dutchess in 8 days.
We are on your swap ship. We booked the royal emerald and have been on the Gate 1 monarch duchess since our embarkation in Amsterdam on Saturday 28 September. We are swapping this afternoon at regensburg to the Royal emerald. You will be pleases to hear that the service and food on the Monarch is terrific. The rooms I suspect are quite a bit smaller.
We are currently (Tuesday early) in Straubing (unscheduled stop) (spent all day Monday is Regensburg) on Viking heading from Nuremburg to Budapest. We were told on the first night that if we have to do a ship swap it will be Wednesday (tomorrow). It was supposed to rain all day yesterday but most of the day it just sprinkled. No more rain expected until tomorrow (Wednesday).
Last night (Monday) we were told that the water is 15 cm too low between Straubing and Passau and that overnight we would sail to Straubing unless miraculously there was more water
to continue to Passau.
They will bus us to all excursions today (to Passau or Salzburg) and bus us back here this afternoon to pack for ship swap to occur tomorrow morning, (unless ship can move to Passau while we are out. )
Today’s excursions will be slightly modified due to the commute.
I feel that Viking has kept us informed and is going to accommodate us the best they can to keep as close to the original itinerary as possible. The staff has been wonderful and we realize this is a day to day decision and beyond their control.
Thank you very much for your update!! I am warily watching, as we are on the Viking Grand European tour Sept 30-Oct 14th, and have been notified of possible low water issues, but not yet confirmed impact. Hope you get good rain tonite and tomorrow evening!
https://www.marinetraffic.com/en/ais/home/centerx:15.1/centery:48.3/zoom:10
That’s a link to marine traffic on the Danube. It gives you up to real time info of where the ships are sailing. We leave today for Budapest, heading west to Amsterdam and it looks like we could be bused for a bit of the trip/
Thx Wayne! We leave Budapest sat. Does it still look ok like you’ll need tg off and bused???
I think so. Our ship was changed to the Artistry II this week. I’m thinking the Tranquility couldn’t make it back to Budapest, so we will swap ships down river. We sail from Budapest sat too. Flying out tonight.
Wayne, we are on the Artistry II leaving from Amsterdam on 11 October heading to Budapest. Any idea whether you will get through Passau and Regensberg yet? Praying for rain!
Wonder if we are swopping with you. Told today on Viking Egil we leave tomorrow Weds at Linz instead of sailing straight to Passau as planned. From there bus to Passau with excursions proceeding as planned, then bus to join Viking Gullweig at Staubing. A hassle packing up but like you, staff have been excellent.
Yes! We are now on the Egil.
The rest of the trip has been slightly modified to catch up for lost sailing time. We had a 3.5 hour bus ride this morning to do the swap.
We are still very happy that we came on this trip! The boat is fantastic, the ports interesting, and we are enjoying what cruising time we have.
My wife and I are taking the grand tour on Viking from Amsterdam to Budapest, departing on October 5. Has anyone heard anything about rain in the forecast that may help water levels. Sounds like many are having to get on busses between Nuremburg and Passau. Any word on water levels through that stretch improving. Thanks, Keith
We are following these posts closely also. We are scheduled to sail Sept 29 from Amsterdam to Budapest- Viking Grand European also. Hoping for some rain!
Elegant Elbe Cruise on Viking Astrild
Low water level on the Elbe caused our October 6-11 Berlin – Prague sailing to be modified from cruise to bus trips, so we opted to accept the full refund that was offered instead. We didn’t expect to be traveling again in the next 12 months, so the 50% voucher that was offered if we accepted the revised itinerary would be of no value to us.
Consistent with what I’ve read elsewhere, Viking waited until 2 weeks before our departure date to notify us. The notice came two days after I had called Viking and was assured, absolutely, that there was no problem on the Elbe, and the cruise portion of the trip would go as planned. I had called because a friend we were to meet in Berlin had asked for details about our time in there, and I wanted to make sure the trip would not be modified.
I learned from this experience. It is good that we scheduled the complete package through Viking including air and insurance. The refund will cover every penny we paid. That made me glad I had not arranged air and insurance on my own as I usually do. Several components of the trip were modified since our initial deposit, including two hotels, four airline reservations, and ultimately the cruise itself.
Thank you for this information. That’s exactly what Viking told me. We are leaving mid October for this trip and I hope to hear from them soon. I also will take the refund.
I had the same issue for clients that I booked. I am thankful I booked the air with Viking as I assume that even if they had insurance, it would not have covered the air for a modified schedule. Something to keep in mind for future river cruises.
Thanks Bill for the good info. We postponed last December thinking it wouldn’t happen two years in a row. Due to booking everything separately and being offered an alternative, we were left scrambling to reorganised at late notice. Final offer received Friday, rebooked Saturday for a Tuesday departure because we initially had 3 nights in Amsterdam precruise.
It was extremely expensive travelling from Australia with business class airfares and now doing it again so soon.
I have to say Switzerland in winter was amazing as was our travel agent Patricia.
Hope to catch a break this year as we’ll have to accept the offer. Will be totally devastated if we don’t cruise the Rhine to Budapest.
Has anyone been on the Romantic Danube Viking River Cruise from Nuremberg to Budapest in the last few weeks? We are scheduled for October 13-20.
Just received notification about the low water levels and the possible alternate scenarios. No refund offered yet.
Thank you.
We just finished this cruise – disembark in Budapest today. We did swap ships. It was a bit of a hassle to pack up but was handled well and at least the busses were comfortable and the countryside beautiful. After Regensburg we docked in Straubing instead of Passau. From Straubing they bussed us to excursions in Passau or Salzburg. The next day we bussed from Straubing to another ship in Grein. At some point people had to decide whether or not to bus to Gottweig Abbey tour in Kremsvor stay on ship to sail Wachau Valley. We stayed on ship as did most. The valley was gorgeous and there wasn’t much other daytime sailing on this cruise with all the changes. The rest of the cruise times were modified some but we fit most everything in. The crew has communicated well and has been fantastic I hope the river levels improve and others can sail without modifications, but we still had a great trip!
Linda, please email your experience during your travels if you can. A group of five of us are taking the same Viking Romantic Danube cruise and we leave Nuremberg on Nov. 1. Thanks.
We are scheduled to sail Viking Ingri on Oct 9. Had our Bon Voyage call Monday, 9/30. We asked how water levels were. They said it would be fine Passau to Budapest. Still very nervous. We already cancelled the Elbe River 29 September.
We are scheduled for the Elegant Elbe cruise on Viking Beyla – Prague to Berlin starting 11/2 (we board the ship in Decin 11/5 I believe). Any updates on water levels? Having a hard time finding accurate information on expected water levels. Looks like a lot of rain in the area forecast over the next few weeks.
Hi Walt,
There are good websites to track water levels. The 2 ships on the Elbe have not moved since June & the rain forecasts do not indicate they will move this year. The bus trips are minimal.. check the map & you will see the Elbe trip is very short. We just got back…2 nights on ship in Wittenberg & 3 nights in Dresden. It was great having more time in Desden. The view from the ship in Dresden was lovely. The Viking crews were great & lots of extras… we do not not regret going.
Elegant Elbe Cruise on Viking Astrild 10/24-11/2 Berlin to Prague and concerned our river cruise will turn into a bus trip…hopefully Viking will notify us by next week with same offer.
We just found out the Elegant Elbe Prague to Berlin October 18-28th with Viking has changed due to low water. Offering 50% off paid amount or full refund. Will go from Prague to the boat docked in Dresden 2 nights, then transfer to similar boat docked in Wittenberg for 3 nights. Then to hotel in Berlin.
Thanks Michael -not sure what we’ll do??? UGH. Hate this. I wanted a true river cruise experience….
I got the same letter for the same cruise and decided to take the refund. I did not want a bus tour which is what the vacation will be. The boat will not sail. It’s being used as a hotel.
We are supposed to sail on the Astrid 10/24 also. Agree that it would be nice to hear next week so we can decide and perhaps make alternate plans….
A Viking ship just showed up overnight on the webcam at Decin. Looking at the hourly images, I haven’t seen any passengers. Believe this is a good sign for Viking Elbe travelers.
Dennis,
What is the URL for that Webcam? I would love to track our ship.
This is for where the ship stops in Decin:
https://www.webcams.travel/webcam/fullscreen/1359725100
And after all that…they did sail! Wondering if the low water levels are done for this fall, or if the levels could drop down again.
this was on the Viking site this morning-
Elbe River
The Elbe River has been experiencing low water levels throughout the summer; however, recent rains have improved conditions and the river is currently sailable. Should water levels recede, Viking has several contingency plans to bypass any affected areas and minimize the impact to each cruisetour.
We will continue to monitor water levels daily, activate plans and notify guests directly as needed.
4 of us just returned Sept 16 on Amawaterways Amavida sailing the Douro River in Portugal– Porto to Vega de Terron with transfer to Madrid. Water level was fine & ships are smaller on this river. When I asked, he said on this particular river they have more issues with HIGH water as some of the bridges are very, very low. We witnessed this as we passed on near the end of the trip and it was Sept! I was a bit afraid of hot weather, but we lucked out and after Lisbon, weather was great – no rain even – ( Sailing was Sept 3-10)
We loved this itinerary–a smaller , narrower river than out Rhine Cruise on the AmaKristina and just beautiful steep vineyards almost the entire cruise. Portuguese people on shore are super friendly and good values in this country. We did our own overnight in Lisbon for 3 nights and loved the steep cobblestone streets and day trip to Fatima. Took train from Lisbon to Porto to board ship. We also loved Madrid and did that on our own with train to Barcelona after.
Our 2nd time the 4 of us sailed with AMAwaterways and we really enjoyed the experiences.
If you are looking for a different river- Consider the Douro. .
hello – I have just read your review of the Douro cruise – my partner and I are due to sail with Emerald Waterways next August and are starting the trip with three days in Lisbon.
I believe that the operator coach guests who opt to take the extended 3 days in Lisbon but we are keen to travel by train. Do you have any tips or advice about the best way to do this – do we need to book train tickets way in advance, travel time and access at Porto to the dock.
any other feedback about the cruise would be very helpful too.
many thanks
PAul
Wish I could help Paul. I know little about the train. The Douro is wonderful, though.
you may want to look into a travel pass ahead of time for the dates you be traveling so you can utilize the trains less expensive than out-of-pocket as you go.
We always travel in Europe by train. We always book through Deutche Bahn (check their website). They book train tickets pretty much throughout Europe. There will be schedules on-line on their website for where you want to go. We pay by credit card for 1st class tickets, but you can’t book your seat until a month or two before going on your train, but you can reserve your lst class seat. Only first class has reserved seats. 2nd class is fine except the trains are crowded in Europe and you don’t want to be sitting on your suitcase in the aisle. I have witnessed this in France and also in Germany. Check the website seat 61 and his u-tube channel. He has great advice for first time Europe train goers. Remember two things that are very important: you are responsible for your luggage –no baggage cars and storage isn’t the greatest on some trains. Plus, when the train says it is leaving at a certain time, it leaves and it doesn’t wait for you. Good luck and have a bon voyage…..
Thanks Karen. Just want to add that my strategy is exactly the same. For the minimal cost of upgrading to 1st, you eliminate many hassles – and possibly stolen luggage. I’ve seen it happen.
My husband and I are excited to be going on the Viking “Romantic Danube” cruise from Budapest to Nuremberg, embarking on the 13th! Has anyone else been on this itinerary recently or have any info on the trouble areas around Passau and Regensberg? Hoping for smooth sailing all the way!!
Our AmaWaterways cruise on the AmaViola began in Budapest Aug 25 and ended Sept 1 in Nuremberg. No problems at all with water levels along the way and a few evenings there were rain showers. Enjoy your cruise in that beautiful area.
We depart October 1 from Basel on the Rhine to Amsterdam. Any water issues.?
We are on Viking Vili currently on the middle Rhine. Water is low but passable. We just passed a group of rocks in the center of the river that the cruise director pointed to as he was discussing low water. They are not making any commitments yet on the Danube.
On the Viking Vili approaching Bamberg. We were informed last night of a ship swap tomorrow on the way to Budapest. Should get another ship at Passau. Time to pack!
Hi Mike, how did your ship swap go? Where did it happen & what was the experience like? We leave in a few days from Amsterdam & have been emailed by Viking to give us a heads up we may need to expect the same.
Does the river flow continue to decrease as we approach December? We are scheduled to sail 11/29 from Basel for the Christmas markets.
I think it all depends on the weather. If they start getting rain, everything could turn out for the better. We were on the Rhine River mid November 2018. We had to do a ship swap when we got to Cologne, Germany. From there we were on buses most of the time, for the excursions
Grand Circle Tour boats sailed easily from Vienna to Amsterdam August 25th to September 7th. There was no discussion of low water. Actually, the top deck was closed for a few days in order to get under bridges.
My parents are sailing Avalon
Cruise 9/ 25 to 10/7
Itinerary…Prague to Budapest. Dad is losing sleep that the cruise will get cancelled due to low water at the last minute. Anyone sailing Danube between these cities, please let us know if they should be concerned. Thanks!
Correction my parents are sailing Avalon
Cruise 9/25 to 10/7 …Nuremberg to Budapest. Anyone recently sailed Danube between these cities, please let us know if they should be concerned. Thanks!
Cruised on Grand Circle Tours from Vienna to Amsterdam August 25th to September 7th and all was just fine. I was worried for us too and appreciated this blog.
Tito – we left Budapest and are in Passau right now. We cannot go farther because the water level is too low. We’re going to be bused to Regensberg tomorrow. Your parents trip won’t be canceled- they’ll be bused too.
Gail you have been the greatest with the updates. Loved it when you called out a captain for saying there was plenty of water and saying he had fibbed. We are sailing with Scenic on the 30th. Fingers crossed for rain.
We are on Avalon cruise from Nuremberg to Budapest right now (September 22, 2019) and can’t get past Regensburg because low water levels. We’ll be bussed to Vienna and Budapest. Quite disappointed because ship is very nice. Supposed to rain on Monday, so may have enough water for your parents. Good luck!
We did the Crystal Mahler from Budapest to Amsterdam finishIng on the 9th. Made it through Pfelling then by inches. Just checked Vesselfinder.com. The Mahler just turns around and does the reverse trip every 17 days. It is headed back now and has been in Straubing for 4 days. Should be in Vienna by now. Crystal has no boats to swap with, so I am assuming they are busing folks to Melk, Vienna and Budapest also. It needs to be in Budapest by Thursday to pick up its next set of passengers and head north again. We got stuck in same situation on their Debussy last October going down the Rhine. We were able to divert down the Mosel at Koblenz, and it was still a wonderful trip. They do a great job in difficult situations, but this is not the trip you dreamed of.
On Avalon Artistry II and we were Just informed tonight before dinner that we will have to disembark at Regensburg on Tuesday, September 24th, due to low water levels on the Danube and be bussed to hotels in Vienna and Budapest for the last 3 nights of our river cruise. At least we made it this far and are only missing 3 days of our cruise!
We are also on Avalon and just talked to people on the Viking ship and Scenic ship that are also stuck here in Regensburg. Both those companies are having their people pack up but have a sister ship waiting for them past Passau so they can continue their cruise. We are quite disappointed that Avalon is not doing that since that is one of the reasons we picked them. Their marketing presentation said that if levels were low they would transfer you to another ship.
I am so sorry to hear this. So you are not sailing at all? How is Avalon handling this for you? How disappointing. I sure hope you are able to at least sail for a portion of your trip. Good Luck. Liv.
Currently on the Danube at Vienna having come from Budapest. I asked the captain about water depth and he indicated there was plenty of water for our cruise through Nuremberg and on to Amsterdam.
Hi Phil. We are on Scenic Crystal at Passau. Have just been informed that water levels have fallen very low in the last 24 hours and we are unable to sail to Nuremberg. Will bus it there and swap ships and board Scenic Ruby. Situation has been very well handled by the crew. 125k drive and expect to sail to Amsterdam without any other issues.
I think he told you a fib.
Our itinerary is Budapest to Amsterdam beginning on Sept 25. Danube to Main to Rhine Rivers is the plan. Is this your itinerary?
Linda, we are sailing from Budapest to Amsterdam. Arriving Amsterdam on 24th Sept….
On the Scenic Pearl. Left Budapest on September 10 enroute to Amsterdam. We went through Passau, Regensberg and Nuremberg (September 14-16). We were the last ones to get through these areas. Viking, Scenic, etc are now in ship swap basis. We are on the way to Wurzberg. There are dark clouds overhead but no rain in the forecast. We were very lucky to escape the ship swap.
We are on Travel Marvel Sapphire from Budapest to Amsterdam and stuck in Passau for now. We will miss Regensburg and see Passau instead. Not sure about future plans yet. Not meant to rain for half a week yet :/
We are currently on Viking’s Grand European cruise aboard the Skirnir. We left Amsterdam on September 16th due to arrive in Budapest on September 30th and we will be doing a ship swap to the Modi when we get to Nuremberg on Monday. Apparently the water levels are too low between Passau and Nuremberg (ships can’t get to Regensburg). They will bus us from Nuremberg to Passau after our Nuremberg excursion on Monday. Then they will bus us Tuesday from Passau to the excursion in Regensburg, so we will be overnight in Passau for two nights. Viking usually does an excellent job handling ship swaps so not worried at all. After all, water levels are completely out of their control!
We are departing Amsterdam on the same trip on Sunday, Sept. 29. Is there hope of improvement in the water level? How quickly does it change? Any insights are welcome! We are so looking forward to our trip. Hope that you are having a good time!
Kristine you may be lucky…looks like there is rain in the forecast early next week for Nuremberg, Regensburg and Passau…but too late for us. I am no expert in water levels but I think I recall someone posting earlier that they were told it can change significantly (like several metres) in 24 hours. Regardless we are having a wonderful time and Viking treats you very well so I hope you enjoy your trip as well!
Thank you! Hope that you enjoy the rest of your trip! We are so excited about ours!
Hi we are going Oct 15-26 with Avalon Budapest to Nuremberg, how is the water level for the Danube ?
Sept 20 2019 sail from Nuremberg to Budapest on Scenic cruise lines was modified on Sept 16 when we arrived in Prague – we were told water is too low between Passau and Nuremberg so ship will stay docked in Passau for 4 days while we do bis trips to Nuremberg, Regensburg and Passau. Hopeful to sail the balance to end in Budapest.
Can we please have any update you can give us? Which Scenic river boat are you on?
Hi. We just completed our cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest IT WAS FABULOUS! Water levels were perfect! No water level problems AT ALL
Hi Bob..may I ask what cruise ship were you on? Thanks
We are scheduled the Viking Cruise departing Nuremberg on September 29 to Budapest. Have received an email from Viking about plans in case of low water levels. How is the river this week? Thanks.
Yes.
Too low for our ship to go beyond Passau so we will be bused
Hi Lynda. We also sail from Nuremburg on the 29th. We haven’t received anything from our sailing co. Avalon. Hoping things improve before we embark. Good luck!
We are just completing Nuremberg to Budapest. We left Nuremberg on Sept 13 – Viking Romantic Danube. We had to swap ships because of low water between Regensburg and Passau. we went by bus to our second ship – about 4hours including one rest stop. It put us about 1/2 day behind schedule and we missed 1 morning excursion. Viking did a good job managing the ship swap and got reservations for lunch for everyone. Overall not a big deal.
Than you for the update Mary.
How were the water levels
We received an email from Viking last night indicating possible low water on Danube
We go from Budapest to Nuremberg Sept 26 is departure date from Budapest
Any info appreciated
We are in Passau and can not continue farther. Our starting point was Budapest.
Thanks for the update.
Carol Ann – you are most welcome for any update I can give. I wish you a very fun and very safe trip
Thanks for the update.
We are scheduled to leave from Nuremberg Saturday Sept. 28, Romantic Danube. It doesn’t seem like it’s going to be as we expected. How was your cruise overall?
Are you on a Viking ship? If so, which one. We are on the Viking Tor and we leave Nuremberg on Nov. 1., Romantic Danube. Thanks.
We are currently in Linz and have been informed that we will not be able to get farther than Passau due to low water levels
Who are you sailing with Gail? Are these only Viking ships that are unable to continue? We sail with Avalon on the 29th. Hoping the water levels increase!!
Kathy M, my parents are also sailing from Nuremberg, destination Budapest. Might be the same ship as yous. They arrive in Prague on 9/25 and sail out of Nuremberg I think 4 days later. They also have not recieved any word on low water levels from Avalon.
Thank you Tito. Hoping thing improve for all of us. A previous post sated rain was in the forcast. Here’s to hoping!! Good Luck to your parents.
Not sure this helps but we docked in Vienna this morning. We left Vilshofen on the 20th and had no issues going east on the Avalon Visionary. What a wonderful cruise!!!
We are on Monarch Princess with Gate One.
Kathy – our ship draws about 5 1/2 feet according to the cruise director. I imagine some ships might have a more shallow draft that would allow them passage with low water levels, perhaps.
Hi there, thanks for the info, we’re on the Viking cruise Budapest to Nuremberg next week, see that rain is in the forecast…hope it will be enough! See in thes posts that it doesn’t look too promising … can only hope it will work out 🙁 .
Any new updates???
Thank you Gail for taking time out of your trip to update us all. I the rest of your trip is smooth sailing.
Kathy M – Thank you. We’re home now and those 11 days flew by! The only port that we couldn’t reach was Regensberg so it wasn’t too bad. If you intend to do all the optional tours, comfy shoes are a must. I hope you have a fun, safe trip and great weather. 🙂
We are in Regensburg now. Water too low to go through to Budapest…transfer to bus 2 days time. They are hopeful of rain. Good luck
What are the temperatures in the Passau, Nuremberg, Budapest area? We are scheduled on the Viking Grand European Tour starting in Budapest on October 1st.
Betty – we just returned from those areas. The beginning of our trip started in Budapest where it was shorts and short sleeves. Into the high 70’s during the day. Finishing in Passau / Regensburg required sweaters and jackets. It was 43 one morning but it did warm up for the afternoon. Your best bet is to google the weather there for the week and to be able to layer your tops with a sweater.
Good to know. Thank you Gail.
Thanks, Gail. Hopefully there will be enough water to cruise.
Betty Moore – I wish you have a wonderful and safe trip !
Thank you Peter.
How did your cruise go on the Romantic Danube. We are scheduled for that trip leaving on Saturday, sept. 28. We have been reading about being bused & ship swaps. We’re not looking forward to that.
My family on same cruise as you. Just heard from Viking that there is possibility of low river water but nothing definite. I understand that they go overboard to help if adjustments in the itinerary are necessary . (Pardon the pun)we are just going with the flow and hope for no disruptions.
Just returned from 16 days on Grand Circle River Concerto from Vienna to Amsterdam – no issues with the water levels, however, the Captain said they were a bit low. Viking ships, AMA, and Avalon were travelling along with us, and no one seemed to have any issues. Weather was very, very hot and humid. Only issue we had was getting to the Amsterdam airport extra early as the baggage handlers were going on strike for 2 hours – Grand Circle Program Directors are the best, and kept of informed of what we needed to do, and assisted at the airport as well.
Just returned on 9/5 from a cruise up the Rhone and Saone on Avalon Poetry II and then the Seine on Avalon Tapestry II. Both were wonderful cruises, with no water level issues on either.
So glad to hear this! We sail the Rhone October 28- Nov 5. From Lyon to Marseille. We had a low water “ bus” cruise last November on Viking on the Danube. I am hopeful to not repeat same. Anyone have any water level updates?
Updated info received today from Viking regarding Grand European Tour (Sept 11)… So, “scheduled maintenance”has already interrupted the trip! ?? Two nights in a hotel!! Why not have the Aegir for the entire trip? Something doesn’t smell right. Maybe water levels are the real issue??
Due to a technical issue, Viking Embla will need to undergo maintenance in Linz from September 16 – September 17, 2019. In order to ensure you are able to visit the sights you came to see while the ship is being worked on, we have arranged for you to spend two nights in a hotel in the Passau region, then embark identical sister ship, Viking Aegir, to complete your journey.
In consideration of this change, we will be extending to you a future cruise voucher for 15% of your paid cruise fare.
Hi, just posted comment about ten down from this one that we are going to be swapped onto the Embla from the Aegir on Sept. 18th in Passau. Why are they doing the swap if the Embla will be back from repair on the 18th when we are to swap to it and you to our boat the Aegir? Doesn’t make sense..
Frankly, I’m disappointed in this ‘swap’ for what appears as scheduled
maintenance. The inconvenience of packing up and going to a hotel for two nights is not worthy of a 15% voucher for a future trip I will never use. I’d rather receive a 15% cash refund!
It would help if they advised us of what hotel we will stay at as well…
We embark on the Embla on Sept 11 and will be getting swapped out with the Aegit as PJ previously mentioned. Embla has had major issues in July and August with generator/engine. We will be in a hotel for two nights and bused to our ports of call and then embark on the Aegir. I believe the reason for the swap is that it would put the Embla two far off schedule to make up time. Hope there are no issues with the Aegir as it was without AC for a week in the heat of summer. I have to say I am disappointed with Viking.
I agree I was just notified also. I can understand water levels but scheduled maintenance???
Sue Ann J: Please give an update on your reboarding, to the Embla. We are scheduled to board Aegir tomorrow (Wednesday). The Embla had major maint replacing the generator.
Hi Pj we will be in Nuremberg tomorrow and after our tour bussed to Passau to get on the Embla. Please tell me it’s going to be repaired and waiting for us. We would have to make a swap now because there’s low water but were just told about the maintence issue with the Embla tonight. Everyone on the boat except for our party thought it was always a low water issue and I didn’t tell them any different. The Aegir has a wonderful crew. Enjoy the rest of your trip.
Hello Sue Ann J… We boarded the Aegir as planned after the 2 hotel nights. We heard the Embla was back in service, but there is (was) a low water level issue. Are you underway on the Embla to Budapest? Crews on both ships are awesome. We are now docked in Koblenz.
I hope you have a better experience than we had several years ago. We had just completed our pre cruise 2 day extension in Budapest when we and and our fellow cruisers were gathered in a large hotel meeting room, provided a luncheon that didn’t have enough food for all, and told that our ship could not reach Budapest do to water level problems and that we couldn’t stay in our hotel as the rooms were rented to incoming guests. They put us is up in another hotel in what looked like attic rooms, bused us all over town the next day, which we had already toured for two days, took us on a lengthy bus ride to another ship where we could only stay one night. Then a long bus and transfer to another ship for the rest of our trip. They offered a discount on a future tour, which was no more than the promotional discounts that are offered in their brochures. Needless to say this was the worst of our 7 river cruises. The others were quite enjoyable.
John – which cruise line did this to your trip?
*UPDATE* Presently on the Embla in Vienna. This ship is going into maintenance on Sunday for 2 nights. There has been a generator problem for several weeks. There is an auxiliary generator mounted on the sun deck in back of the wheelhouse. This generator is scheduled to be removed by crane on Sunday. Apparently there is no direct access to remove/replace generator. The repair shipyard will cut a hole in the ship to remove/replace generator. That should be interesting with a timeline of ship returning to service on time. This is affecting our cruise and the cruise coming from AMS. This is a huge inconvenience for the passengers (paying guests). To be continued….
Possibly someone on the Aegir involved with this delimma, can provide what is going on with your cruise change.
We are on the Aegir and will be changing to the Embla on Wed the 18th. We know we are transferring for mechanical reasons but we have not been told that by Viking. People we talk to believe it is low water levels. We’re not telling them any different as I know they wouldn’t be happy. I’m sure you will enjoy our crew on Aegir and we also have an awesome cooking staff ! Hope the maintenance on Embla goes well and there are no complications or delays! Hope you have a good final week!
Enjoying reading comments from river cruisers!
Does anyone have any updated info on the river levels on the Viking Grand European tour, we leave Amsterdam on Viking Modi 9/16, Amsterdam – Budapest.
On Viking Lif, Amsterdam to Budapest. Just left Regensburg heading for Passau. Water levels are good. No issues to get to Budapest. Also rain in area for next few days which should make even better.
Hello. We just left koblenz on our way to Budapest. Wonderful sailing on the Rhine thus far. The crew is amazing! The trip is memorable. We even had a private concert on board in Cologne.
We are leaving koblenz on the Rhine, heading to the Main and to Budapest. So far, everything has been great.
Hoping for good sailing starting Sunday the 15th on Grand Circle Rhine and Mosel tour. Thanks for posting that things seem to be good in that area.
Janelle, We are doing this same cruise Nov 9th. It would be appreciated if you could comment on water levels. We love Grand Circle! Enjoy your cruise. Tina
On the vali in Budapest leaving tonight to Vienna. Crew does not indicate there is any water level issues heading towards Amsterdam. Will advise as we proceed.
Much appreciated, we are scheduled to leave budapest-amsterdam on the 11th so any notifications appreciated
Just got underway from Nuremberg to Regensburg on the Scenic Amber. No issues on the Main-Danube canal. As other posts have reported do not expect problems as we travel to Budapest. Will update if something unexpected comes up.
Thanks Gary, we are joining Scenic Amber at Nuremberg on 16th. Travelling to Budapest. I will be watching for any posts of yours.It has been an anxious time.. Also do I need to nag hubby about his dress at the concert in Vienna. How formal is it?
Going to concert tonight. They have told us to dress up but nothing really fancy. Cocktail style is what they would like to see. For men, nice shirt and slacks will suffice (as it is all I have with me). Jeans, shorts and sandals for men are discouraged. Did the bike ride from Melk to Durnstein yesterday. Around 20 miles with about 90% flat. Had a great time so if you are physically able to handle it I would recommend it.
Thanls Gary for getting back. John will be happy with that. I just might take a posh frock. My daughter and her husband have E.bikes at home so will be pleased for the info. Not long now.
We are leaving Amsterdam on Sept. 11th on Viking Aegir for Budapest arrive Sept. 25th. We just received an email telling us we will have to do a ship swap at Nuremberg to a new ship the Embla in Passau. I am wondering why the change when I know other Viking boats are getting through that area now and there’s rain and cool temperatures predicted for several days in that area next week. Does anyone know any other reason for our swap?
We are on the same itinerary, Sue Ann, so we would also like to get as much info as possible. This trip has been in the works for 5 years, so I hope everything goes well!
Interesting – we were scheduled to leave Amsterdam to Budapest on the Embla on Sept 25th and now we will be on the Aegir??
Disappointing
We are scheduled with Viking Sept 15th-22nd
Are we going to be disappointed?
Hi Gary, I have just came across this website.
We plan to sail on the “Gems of the Danube” on the Scenic Amber next year at the same time and it sounds like Scenic didn’t have any delays or route changes although we have friends that sailed on Avalon and they were disappointed couldn’t continue on their cruise.
Can you pleaselet me know if you trip went as planned. We sailed on Scenic last year and loved it.
Thanks, CF
Hi! Had a wonderful week of sailing Viking Atla from Budapest to Nuremburg. No problems at all. Beautiful weather every day despite weather reports that it would rain every day. Water levels were great and no issues. It was a great trip! Best of luck and safe travels for all of those departing soon!
Just arrived in Amsterdam on Sunday from Budapest on Scenic Ruby. Great cruise and we made it through no problems.
We just received a notice today Sept 9, that due to previous low water levels we will be boarding the Modi in Budapest and not the Skirnir as planned. It looks like there may have been a boat swap at midway point around Bamberg and the boats were turned around.
Hopefully water levels go up.
Has anyone been on the Viking Elbe “cruise” recently? We know the ships have not moved in several months due to low water. We expect to receive the email from Viking soon offering a refund or 50% voucher for future cruise if we do not bail out. We are considering going …but just wondering if anyone has done the “bus” revision. Short bus trips? Are the ships docked at Wittenberg & Dresden? And do the ships have any view or will we be facing a dock? Any other problems? Thanks for any input.
Hi there. Scheduled for the Elbe cruise in October. Is there any update on river level?
Hi Lynne, The Elbe water level has been so low that the 2 Viking ships have not moved since June. We’ve been checking websites for info on ship movement, water levels, rain forecasts, etc. There is not enough rain expected … It would take a monsoon to get the water levels up! So you will not be cruising. Others in this forum have told us they do not get the notice from Viking until 2 weeks prior to your cruise date. Viking has been offering a full refund or, if you do not cancel & accept the revised itinerary with buses, you will receive a 50% off voucher for a future cruise. The only good news here is the distances are short so probably not long bus trips. Hope this helps.
From looking at levels and webcams, believe Jeanne is correct. Also fyi – We received our refund back from Viking 12 days after canceling our Elbe cruise.
Did they refund the cost of the flights as well?
How do you find out that the ships have not moved or the current conditions? I know that Viking just says that the water levels are low but that we would be notified if our sailing has been affected.
vesselfinder.com If you are on the Elbe cruise, look for either the Viking Beyla or the Viking Astrild. Sometimes the ships don’t show up on the website, but then check again another day and they do show up. I’m not sure why.
Walt, Yes they refunded everything to the penny, trip, flight, insurance.Dennis
Dennis I find it hard to fathom(haha) that the cruise line would refund money they didn’t receive like flight expenses and insurance costs?! You have insurance to pay those and you never get insurance costs back-I’m puzzled by your comment?
Do you work for them?
I’m on that same cruise – VIking Belya on 11/2 starting in Prague heading to Berlin.
I assume if the ship can’t move, it is used as a hotel and your are bussed to different destinations each day (this saves the packing/unpacking each day) Correct?
Hi Walt, You can scroll down to more Viking Elbe info. One traveler said they are using 2 ships…one in Dresden & one in Wittenberg. So you will have 2 days on one & 3 on the other.
I am on the same cruise leaving Oct 23rd. I just called Viking stating I can’t wait until 2 weeks before my cruise to know if we can go (don’t want to do the bus tour) and the gal put me on hold for a bit and went and found out that “they had rain the last two days with more expected, and even with that the river levels ARE FINE NOW and should be great when we go because they are expecting a bunch more rain”. Do you think Viking is feeding me a line???
Yes! Viking’s strategy is to advice customers at the last minute. Our cruise is Sept 23 & we still have not been notified. We have done our own research on water levels, ship locations, etc. The Elbe ships have not moved since June & there will not be enough rain to make a difference. We will probably not cancel because we are meeting friends who have already left for Europe. The bus trips will most likely be short. You will be in Wittenberg on one ship for 3 nights & Dresden for 2 nights on the other ship.
Have you been notified from Viking yet?
I am scheduled to leave on October 17 for the Berlin extension and called Viking about the water levels. Its their policy to make you wait until the last minute. I would like to reschedule another vacation but they don’t allow this. All this stress when Viking should do the right thing. I don’t believe the water levels will change in the next month. They posted an advisory on the website about the low water levels and still will not allow a change. The beautiful vacation cruising on the Elbe will never happen and Viking knows this. If anyone hears anything on this cruise please let me know.
UGH, I realize many folks are retired and it isn’t a big deal to change plans…but I am still working and have a hard time getting time off work (AND my vacation time does not roll over to next year…I will lose time if I don’t use it). It is a real pain and VERY stressful to have to wait to the very last moment to find out about the water levels. I ALSO, might never get to do this again (I know a lot of folks are like no worries it is still fun, you can do it another time etc.). This is a trip of a lifetime for me and don’t want to pay the big $ to be on a bus and not have the full river experience. And I agree with another poster…why are the posts not in chronological order??
Walt – We should be on the same cruise as you. Fingers crossed.
Debbie,
I look forward to meeting you…..we are in a group of 6 friends who met on a Viking River Cruise 4 years ago and have cruised together ever since….
Hi Walt-
We are still planning on making the trip even if “boatel”. We will definitely miss cruising. We are also doing the Berlin extension at the end. I keep watching the weather in the area and as of now it only is showing some showers in the next few weeks. I’m guessing they will need several days of heavy rain to sail.
Also hoping British airways resolves their strike with the pilots and we don’t have any issues with our flights. We are flying on American outbound, but British airways from Heathrow-Prague and both flights from Berlin to home (Arizona) are on BA.
Hi Barbara,
You are correct. The water levels will not change. We are on the 9/24 Elbe Viking cruise. We also tried to negotiate with Viking to switch to another cruise. Their strategy is to let us know within 2 weeks of our date so we are less likely to cancel. We knew the Elbe ships have not moved since June. We were monitoring ship locations & water levels since then. We are very disappointed they would not be more flexible with us. We just decided to go because our friends are already in France & joining us in Berlin. I have looked at the revised itinerary & the bus trips are minimal & short. We will be on one ship for 2 nights in Wittenberg & then 3 nights on the other ship in Dresden.
Had clients on the Elbe for Oct 1 embarkation date and received the notice of the low water levels. They chose to cancel and Viking advised they would receive a Full refund including all air (booked w Viking) and insurance costs.
Thanks for the information. I hope you enjoy the trip. I still did not hear from Viking. I doubt I will go since I wanted to experience a river cruise. Let us know how the trip was.
Thanks for the information Kim. I hope you enjoy the trip. I still did not hear from Viking. I doubt I will go since I wanted to experience a river cruise. Let us know how the trip was.
Jeff Paglialonga, owner of Teeming River Cruises. Had our first water issue this season on the Danube at Pfelling. Water levels dropped 10′ in less than a 24 hour period. Our ship cannot pass until later this evening. The river is predicted to rise over 12′ in one day. This will put us back on schedule for the remainder of our Danube Tour.
What makes the water levels drop 10 feet in 24 hours??? …and what about a 12 foot rise in a day??
We were notified today that the Viking Aegir will go through to Amsterdam; no ship swaps. We are having a slight modification to our Regensburg, Germany stop, but all shore excursions are proceeding as planned. Later cruises may not be so lucky unless there is more rain.
On Viking Lif, Amsterdam to Budapest. Left Amsterdam August 28th. Amsterdam to Bamberg has been good. No water problems and good weather. Just informed tonight that there will be no water issue and we will be able to make it all the way to Budapest. As indicated in other comments reportly water level actually increased recently.
Thank you Tim, that’s good news. Heading out from Amsterdam on Sept. 10 heading to Budapest.
Does anyone know if the Scenic Crystal and Jasper have swapped itineraries? We leave on Scenic Crystal 9/25 Budapest Amsterdam and have been looking at the ship tracker http://www.anyoverip.de/scenic/index.php?ship=Jasper&d=02&m=9&y=2019 andit seems that way based on their positions. Thanks to everyone updating us on the water levels. I have been checking every day for as much info as I can get.
Hi UB. We were set to sail Budapest – Amsterdam on 11 September on Jasper. To me it looks as though Scenic has swapped Jasper with Crystal. My travel agent spoke to Scenic who deny any such change. I have written to Scenic directly last night and am waiting to hear from them. I use Vessel Tracker and it confirms that Jasper is docking in Amsterdam 10 September. I fail to understand why Scenic does not come clean….. Bon Voyage
Thanks Xerxes. Tomorrow both ships arrive in Nuremburg and it will be interesting to see if they swap to get back on the correct itineraries. I guess ultimately it doesn’t matter, they are the exact same ships……. as long as they both keep sailing, fingers crossed.
I’m also a little perplexed that the Scenic Crystal is listed as the ship on The Sept 11- 28 Amsterdam to Prague run. It certainly can’t be in 2 places at the same time. Ah well, time will tell.
Hi UB. Scenic has still not replied to be even though I have sent them a reminder. The silver lining for you is that your vessel will be Jasper, a newer and better vessel. Pretty perplexing. Perhaps transponders were mixed up in GPS.?
Good point UB….
Hi Xerxes
We are also boarding the Jasper on 11th September to Amsterdam arriving on 25th September,
I received email this morning 5th September, currently in Prague, saying Jasper is not sailing due to low level water and will now travel on the Crystal.
This is extremely disappointing as we only wanted the Jasper being the new ship and might end up with Crystal that is 7 years old.
I hope we receive a refund for the difference in price from Jasper to Crystal.
Hi Louise. Yes it is extremely disappointing. I am unsure if there is a price difference though. I have been asking Scenic since last week about the change in vessels. Up until early this week, they assured me it was still Jasper. After a few emails and documentation on GPS positioning, they finally replied yesterday with a standard letter saying there had been a change and that an email blast would be sent out. They have had this information for a few weeks but have held off till the last minute to advice us. Bad move as it means unhappy customers before we board. I have read some good and bad reviews on Crystal so let’s hope we experience the good ones. Regardless, I look forward to seeing you on board. We leave Brisbane tomorrow for Prague and then on to Budapest. Safe travels!
Hi UB
I have raised the same query with Scenic. They have denied any ship swap via travel agent. Have written to them directly last night and waiting to hear a reply. Very dissatisfied and disappointing
Yes we sailed July 31 from Budapest, was supposed to be Crystal but was in fact Jasper. Apparently an issue earlier on with a lock caused the switch. Jasper was awesome…
Thanks for solving the mystery Terry. Glad you had a great trip!
We are on the Aegir docked in Vienna. Just saw the Skinir departing. We will be in Melk tomorrow. Our crew is reporting no problems yet from water levels but rain would help.
On Viking Budapest to Amsterdam. Finished Danube River and now on Danube-Main canal. Questionable spots (Passau-Nuremburg) are behind us. Until we hit the canal, we were just told it could go either way but now officially told clear sailing to Amsterdam with no ship swap.
Good luck to all to follow.
We’re on Scenic Opal. Made it through from Regensburg to Passau last night.
Read this with some relief Chris. Thank you for your post.
No problems Colleen. We did modify our Regensburg program to get through. Worth it. Hopefully it now rains.
We are flying to Amsterdam from Colorado Springs via Dallas TX in about an hour. After a couple of days in Amsterdam, we’ll embark on Viking GEFJON to Budapest on Sep 3rd. We’re praying for good water conditions. PRETTY DARNED EXCITED!
We are flying out today for same precruise and Gefjon. Perhaps we will run into you.
That’d be fun! If not, see you onboard.
Interesting day in Amsterdam during our pre-cruise extension. I had a little problem at the airport upon arrival (no fault but my own). It was amazing how attentive and helpful the Viking staff was in helping me get back to the airport from our hotel to straighten things out. They were all great. Our wonderful Viking Host at the Mövenpick hotel, Maxime at the airport. They really bent over backwards for me to help things get back on track! My wife and I are now looking forward to a drama-free cruise in a couple of days. Still praying for good water conditions!
How is your cruise going? Any low water issues? We are starting our cruise next week.
Just received notice from Viking that the Grand European Tour from Budapest to Amsterdam embarking on Sept 5th will now be on the Vali rather than the Tir with a possible ship swap.
We are on the Viking SKirnir, in Melk, heading for Budapest. We made it through Regensberg and Passau. We were told last night that we were the last boat through and that ship swaps had resumed in Regensberg. Pray for rain.
The information you are being given appears to be wrong. Viking Ve is behind you in Passau and made it through with no ship swap. I am on Viking Tir going reverse, made it thru the critical spot near Regensburg and have seen cruise & freight ships going past us in the other way. Our sister ship, Vali is with us in Nuremburg and is expect to make it later today/tonight or they would have had stopped us to swap today.
Inside information from crew member, we cleared with 30 cm (12 inches) to spare without any tricks having to be used.
Markings on shore show water level down from normal but all Viking ships are making it though fine at this time. Rain is predicted this afternoon in Nuremburg.
On Crystal Mahler. Left Budapest August 24th for Amsterdam on August 8th. Left Melk this evening. Headed to Passau for the morning, but were told tonight that without rain we can not get to Regensburg Friday. With 10 days still to go, we have no plan beyond tomorrow. It is raining now, but we need rain upstream to get past Pfelling. We were on a Crystal cruise last October from Amsterdam to Basel that had to detour to the Moselle because of no water in the Rhine. Crystal was great and we enjoyed the new itinerary. But, there is no detour available here.
Sorry, that should have been Amsterdam on September 8th. In Passau now and leaving for tours at 2:30. Crystal is repositioning the ship upstream a bit while we are off the ship and we will be reunited with it somewhere upstream later in the afternoon. No further word on what happens overnight and tomorrow when we should be in Regensburg.
Crystal Mahler and Amaviola made it past Pfelling with 10 cm clearance this morning and just now arriving Regensburg. We heard we (Mahler) did offload fuel and water supplies to lighter the ship.
We are on the Scenic Ruby. Left Budapest August 26 heading to Amsterdam. We got through Passau yesterday but thought we were going to have to do a ship swap. Fortunately the Captain was able to get through yesterday while the passengers were all off on tours and we were met by the ship further down the river. Captain said the water is very low but moving ahead 4 hours made all the difference. Having a wonderful time!
Did you have to travel 4 hours by bus?
Mary our bus trip from Salzburg was about 2 hours.
Dennis – just saw your ship in Vienna. We are on the Aegir headed to a Melk. Hoping for good sailing. Enjoy Budapest.
We only had 2 hours from Salzburg – didn’t go to Passau because the captain pushed through so we didn’t have to do ship swap. Now in Nuremberg .
That’s right, I’m on Tier now going to Amsterdam. Was suppose to be Vali but there was a ship swap earlier this summer. They probably just informed you now because we Tier/Vali did not have to ship swap this time. Vali continuing to Budapest and Tier continuing to Amsterdam with no swap this trip only once earlier this year to flip flop which ship.
Left Budapest 8/22 to Amsterdam 9/5.
River depth seems good. River flow seems fast. We have been told we should have no problem except maybe Passau to Nuremberg but looks good. They will not commit until Tuesday 8/27 what happens there, cruise through or ship swap but at worst 1 swap.
Okay everybody,
We found out tonight that there will not be a ship swap for us on the Viking Skirnir. We just left Wurzburg
and we will be in Bamberg tomorrow. They said that we were one of three sailings from Amsterdam to Budapest this summer, that did not have to swap ships. I don’t know if this information will help you a lot because it is hot and dry. Keep an eye on Passau and Regensberg as this is the problem area of the Danube. Pray for rain in these areas and good luck
Thanks for the info Dennis! Looks like there is actually some rain in the forecast for these areas so maybe there is hope for us next week!
Looks like the start of a rainy period for Nuremberg beginning Sept. 2 for several days.
Hi Joe, We will be joining Scenic Amber at Nuremberg on September 19th. New to river cruising Any tips gratefully received.
Hi Colleen
Joining the same cruise.
Fingers crossed for good water levels
Regards Trevor (Australia)
Hi Trevor, Great! See you on board.Hubbies name is John. (England).
We were informed tonight that we will not have to swap ships. We are one of three Viking sailings from Amsterdam to Budapest that have been able to complete the trip with no ship-swap. We just left Wurzburg, heading south to Bamberg on the Viking Skirnir. It has been hot and dry so pray for rain for Passau and Regensberg which are the problem areas of the Danube.
Thanks Dennis for the updates!
WHY AREN’T POSTINGS LISTED IN CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER????????????????????
We are scheduled on the Viking GEFJON on Sep 3 from Amsterdam to Budapest. This is our first time river cruise. We got a notice that the Danube MAY be non-navigable if water levels continue to recede. We are nervous. We fly out to Amsterdam on this Saturday, Aug 31
We r on the mimir aug 30 Amsterdam to Budapest and I have not received notice re Danube – although I spend an hour a day looking at these water levels. Hoping for the best.
Where do you check? We are doing the Scenic Amber -Black Sea Explorer leaving Budapest Sep 24th. Check this site very day in hope that we will be able to stay on the ship. Thank everyone for your posts.
We go end of October on GEFJON too. Would love to hear how you like it too. Hope water levels stay ok for all.
We’re on Emerald Waterways from Amsterdam to Budapest leaving September 10th. We haven’t heard a word from Emerald yet. Our first cruise as well. Keep us posted Bob. And good luck, hope all works out ok.
We are on the Crystal Ravel and just docked in Budapest. Crew says depth ok now but will become an issue for eastern Danube if it drops further.
Cheers
Hi Pete
What does eastern Daube mean?
East of where ?
Regards Trevor
Probably means from Budapest to the Black Sea.
Ralph
Just finished our Tauck river cruise on the Rhine
River levels were great and the weather was fantastic. We started in Amsterdam on the 19th. and ended in Basel on the 26th we were on the MS Inspire great trip
No issues on the Amsterdam >> Basel Rhine River. Gorgeous weather so far and River is flowing well. having breakfast on the bow tied up at Boppard. On the S.S. Antoinette.
Currently cruising down the Main river on Avalon Tranquility ii.Left Budapest August 18th for Amsterdam.No issue with water levels.Due Rudesheim Thursday 29th.All good so far.Very warm days.
Our cruise from Budapest ended in Nuremberg this morning. Smooth and beautiful sailing all the way through. A very special experience. Bon voyage to all!
Thank you Marcy, its nice to hear good news. We are scheduled to sail from Budapest to Amsterdam next Friday August 30th on Viking Vili. We were preparing for a possible switch to a sister ship (Tir?) if the Vili does not make it past the Regensburg/Passau stretch. And also preparing for a transfer past that section. But if you made it from Budapest to Nuremberg that is encouraging. It can still change, but this is positive news. Thank you to everyone who has taken the time to comment. I will try to take time while I am en-route to do likewise.
Thanks, We are scheduled to sail from Nuremburg to Budapest on August 31st. on Viking, hoping for good water levels on the Danube.
Thank you for this information! We are scheduled to sail from Budapest to Nuremberg on Sept 1 on Viking Atla. Received an email from Viking yesterday about the water levels so I am nervous. I know water levels can change hourly, but fingers crossed that water levels remain ok for our trip. I do not want this to become an expensive bus tour!
Hi Kathleen,
We’re leaving the same day on the same route but going in the opposite direction on the Viking Egil. We got the same Danube low water level notice. We’re also concerned and hope any change is minimal. Time will tell.
Brooks
Kathleen, Good luck! Please poet your results. We leave on the same trip September 14. Hope all goes well. Recent posts sound encouraging.
Hi Kathleen, We were on the Rhine last fall (mid Nov) and had to do a Ship swap. We were with Viking also. They really do everything they can to make the cruise an enjoyable vacation. We had to leave our ship in Cologne, Germany and pick up the new one in Kiel. That day we were bused to our Castle tour then to a private sailing on the middle Rhine that included lunch and beverages. After the tour we were bused to our new to us ship.
While we were on the cruise we had a great time, it was still a lot of fun and we did see pretty well everything we were supposed to. It was only when I got home and looked at a map of the river that I realized how much of it we didn’t sail on. We received a voucher to be used on a future trip. This summer I contacted my TA and asked him to find me a deal. That he did, a smoking deal at that! We are doing the Romantic Danube in October. I am looking forward to it and am hoping that the water levels hold or come up. If not, we will still have a great time. There are seven of us in our group.
Interesting blog regarding water levels… Frankly, never considered that being an issue. We, as guests aboard these river long ships probably consider just cruising on the ship with all its’ amenities as the main attraction. The thought of being bused to sights and changing ships simply isn’t acceptable. We all spend a large sum of money to have a ship cruise the rivers, the entire trip…not on buses.
Well, that is exactly what happened to all of us on the Viking Atla late last August on the Danube. Instead of unpacking once, watching the shores pass by from our balcony or from the decks with other travellers, we got to see what we could out the passenger windows of several buses, pay for our beverages and snacks and lunches along the way, have little conversation except with the person across the aisle, and pack up and unpack for several days. Viking, who of course did not cause the problem, did, in a way of an apology, gave a percentage of the money we spent as a credit to use on another trip, but only if we used it in the next year. So we got no kind of an actual money refund. My wife felt that she could not just let it go so now we are about to float the Rhine starting August 31st. What do we hear now from some sources? Yup – possibly too low water for the boats to move on the river due to record high heats and little rainfall. Is that why Viking’s Website is down?
Richard,
Did they notify you that you would be bused prior to arrival? Or was that discovered once you arrived in Budapest? I have been watching weather forecast (which some rain forecasted, although they can never seem to accurately predict our weather here so it does not give me a lot of faith) along with the navigation of the boats. Atla made it ok last week with no problem. I am hoping the same this week and for us. Best of luck to you on the Rhine!
On the Rhine on Viking Tialfi at Speyer sailing Amsterdam to Basel Aug 24-31; no problems at all nor, as best can tell, with Viking traffic Basel to Amsterdam. Has been hot and dry but river level seems fine. Another website to check for German river levels is bafg.de, select wasserstande in list of services in little box on left side; levels updated hourly(?) each day on comprehensive map.
Leaving for 5he Amsterdam >> Basel Rhine River raise next Sunday. A friend was in Wiesbaden a week ago enjoying the wine fest and said the water levels looked okay. Were any readers on the Rhine lately? Thanks in advance.
Stupid typing ?. I meant the Rhine, River cruise.
We’re on the Rhine now heading north on the Viking Vali just about at the Germany/Netherlands border. River level is fine for us and commercial traffic, but would say it’s down just a bit from optimum. Ending our Grand European Tour in Amsterdam tomorrow. Made it all the way and had a fantastic trip.
Jim T., thanks for the info. Really looking forward to the southbound trip. We were scheduled last Oct but got cancelled due to low water level. Have been worried due to some of the reports on the other European rivers.
Thanks for info. We are scheduled for an AMA Waterways cruise from Basel to Amsterdam on sept 3rd. This is our free cruise replacing the one we were on last fall that got detoured as we couldnt get past Cologne from Amsterdam. Detour cruise was still great and hope we can now enjoy this one. Any current info on rhine levels appreciated
Layne N
We are in to our third day and are at Boppard. No issues at all so far. Even had a light shower last night. Food is wundebar ??
On the Viking Skirnir heading south to Budapest. Just leaving Cologne. Water and weather has been great. Keeping our fingers crossed
Thanks Dennis,
Keep posting reports on water levels and weather.
We will be heading out on another Viking longboat from Amsterdam to Budapest on August 30 (gods and waters willing).
Cheers,
Peter S
Thank you Dennis
Similar to Peter S, we will be leaving Budapest for Nuremberg on Aug 24 so postings will be very appreciated.
Good luck
Murray
Peter— assume you are on the mimir! Hoping we will be ok with water levels! We have had this cruise booked for over 18 months and we are really looking forward to it! I will check the posts on here to see what’s going on!
We will also be on the Mimir August 30 and keep checking this site. Thankyou for info. Hoping for rain which is typically not what I wish for a vacation.
Everything is great on the Rhine. We will let you know about levels at Regensburg and Passau as they seem to be the trouble spots. The crew seems positive that water levels will be ok.
Omg say hello to Michael a bartender and stephen we were on that cruise sept 2017 started at amsterdam to budapest.we were supposed to go last year but no water and we weren’t going on buses
Okay everybody,
We found out tonight that there will not be a ship swap for us on the Viking Skirnir. We just left Wurzburg
and we will be in Bamberg tomorrow. They said that we were one of three sailings from Amsterdam to Budapest this summer, that did not have to swap ships. I don’t know if this information will help you a lot because it is hot and dry. Keep an eye on Passau and Regensberg as this is the problem area of the Danube. Pray for rain in these areas and good luck
We did Basel to Amsterdam and got in Monday. On Vantage Voyager.
No water level problems on Rhine or Mosel
Heavy cargo barges had no problems. Weather quite good.
Are river cruise from Basel to Cologne going normally at present please?
We boarded the Scenic Amber in beautiful Budapest yesterday. Water levels are “perfect.” The cruise director just confirmed how quickly that can change, but he feels positive about at least the next few days. The passage from Passau to Nuremberg is always the trickiest spot. That’s the second to last day of our cruise, so we’re taking it day by day and enjoying each moment :)! Safe travels to all!
I meant Passau to Regensburg….
2 months til we go. Like reading current levels and any issues
Hello leaving Budapest on Aug 24 for Nuremberg. Just got an update from Viking on low water level for Danube. Any boots on the ground out there with current information.
Thank you
We are cruising on the Avalon Visionary on the Rhine heading toward Rudesheim at noon today. Our cruise started in Basel Wednesday and will end a week from today at Munich. The water level on the Rhine from Basel to our current location just south of Mainz has been great. The barge traffic is heavy so water levels are not a problem. Great cruising!
We have been cruising the Rhine up to Boppard through the Rhine Gorge and the water levels have been fine. The water was down somewhat through the gorge but traffic was moving well. Currently we are on the Main headed toward Wurtzburg and Nurenberg. Water levels on the Main are perfect. Traveling on the Avalon Visionary from Basel to Boppard on the Rhine and to Nuremberg on the Main.
Does anyone know about the status of the Viking Aegir? Was just notified by Viking that there could be an issue. Trip scheduled less than a week away.
According to https://www.vesselfinder.com/ it was scheduled to arrive in Budapest 8/14 at 5:00 and it is sitting at the dock in Budapest. Was it Viking’s standard “CYA” notification or something specific?
Ken – did you ever find out what ship you are going to be on?
I bet you will be on the Viking Tir or similar ship and not the Viking Vali which will be in Amsterdam this weekend. A post in June on Cruisemapper.com alerted travelers that the Viking Var had hit a lock and was disrupting traffic back then. (See link below). All is fixed now but I bet that ships couldn’t get through and Viking probably had to do some ship swaps which is why the Vali is now in Amsterdam and the Tir is now in Budapest.
https://www.cruisemapper.com/news/5686-viking-var-hits-danube-river-lock-germany
If you go to Cruisemapper.com and pull up the itinerary of the Viking Vali, it shows that ship as ending up in Budapest this weekend but that’s obviously not what’s happening as you can see on Vesselfinder.com. Same thing with the Tir – it shows it ending up in Amsterdam when we can both see on Vesselfinder.com that it will end up in Budapest this weekend.
Have a wonderful flight to Budapest this weekend and enjoy your river cruise.
Thanks. Though not officially notified by Viking, that’s what I’m guessing also. I’m tracking all 14 Viking Budapest-Amsterdam, Amsterdam-Budapest cruises and 6 ships (3 sets of ‘sister-ships’) are going reverse directions, so I believe there were previous ship-swaps that caused that.
We are scheduled for September 5th Amsterdam to Budapest on Viking Vali… Do you think this mean our cruises will consist of being bused from one city to the next. We haven’t been notified from Viking about a ship change. Thanks for the update.
Just got Viking notice – changed to Tir
Hubby and I are heading out from Amsterdam to Budapest on Sept 10 via Emerald Waterways. We’ve been told that we’re sailing on Emerald Destiny, which is scheduled for departure from the Amsterdam port. However when I look at the itinerary for Emerald Destiny on cruise mapper, it’s no where near Amsterdam, Emerald Star is the ship scheduled to leave A steradian on Sept 10. Strange. Doesn’t really matter one way or the other as long as the water levels are ok. Thanks for all the useful information on this sight, it’s been very helpful.
Standard CYA
On Viking Gefjon in Passau, left Amsterdam on 8/6, no swaps, captain expects to make Budapest w/o swap. Previous cruise B to A made it thru OK also. Good weather, some rain at nite.
Hi Mary, are you loving it? We are scheduled for September 11th! I am worried about water levels and wonder if I should reschedule ? Any thoughts?
Thank you!
Joy
Our first river cruise, cannot predict. Delightful towns, impressive sights, great local guides. Wacchau Valley now, sunshine, then a shower.
Hi Mel, can you please update when you are on your trip or get back? Really worried about water levels?. Thank you!
Joy
Sure. I’ll report when we get back
We are leaving Amsterdam for Budapest On the Skirnir this Monday 8/19.
We are hoping for smooth sailing andI will report back when we return.
Please do that is our same cruise September 11th! Would like to hear about water levels, boat transfers etc ! Kind of worried?. Joy
Aegir is in Vienna. Just saw Skinir’s departure. We’re in Melk tomorrow. So far, our crew is reporting good water levels but rain would make it better.
Just returned from the Scenic Pearl “Gems of the Danube” August 5 sailing. Instead of embarking in Nuremberg we started in Passau and were docked there for 2 additional nights with tours the following days to Nuremberg and Regensburg. Day 3 we started our normal itinerary in Passau. Long motorcoach 3.5 hours between Nuremberg and 1.5 hours to Regensburg. Still had a great time!
Just returned from a Vantage River Splendor 27 day cruise from Bucharest to Mainz (Germany). Sufficient water for the entire cruise, although there was concern expressed about water levels on the Danube upriver from Passau. We cut our day (July 28) short in Passau and left that port during lunch instead of the planned 4PM departure due to reports that this would put is at the low spot at maximum water, but warned that we might have to leave the ship and take the rest of the trip by bus. Fortunately we were able to get past the low water area although we did arrive in Regensburg on July 29 later than planned. No problems the remainder of the cruise on the Mainz-Danube Canal, the Main, or the Rhine.
We are on the Viking Vali and just docked in Passau on our Budapest to Amsterdam cruise. We had a good rain last night and are optimistic we can get past the trouble spot between here and Regensburg this evening. At least we have heard nothing yet about having to change ships. The Danube was a little low passing through the Wachau Valley yesterday, but the rain should help. So far so good.
Jim,
Interesting. I’m suppose to be on the Vali from Budapest to Amsterdam starting 8/22. But if you are on it now (8/13 in Passau) going to Amsterdam, it can’t be in Budapest for me on 8/22. Called Viking, they said they were not aware of any vessel change to my schedule. Maybe they are waiting for Vali and the ‘sister-ship’ Tir to get passed the troubled spot and know if you do a ship-swap and Vali returns to Budapest or continues all the way to Amsterdam before making a final decision on what ship I will be on. Since VesselFinder.com was mentioned on this site, I have been tracking all 14 Budapest-Amsterdam and reverse ships, so I thought this might be the case with Vali. Note: all ships seem to be doing fine, no stoppages or reversals and at least 4 have seemed to have passed the ‘trouble spot’ in the last 3 days. So with rain you should be good.
We were supposed to be on the Tir, but got an email from Viking a few days before the cruise that we would be on Vali because Tir had not been able to get to Budapest. As far as I know, we’re on the Vali all the way to Amsterdam; that may put you on the Tir. We just now left Passau on our way to Regensburg. Looking out our basement window, water level looks pretty good, so it appears we are getting past the choke point. If we do for some reason switch ships before Amsterdam, I’ll add to this comment.
Just got an email from Viking saying we may be on a sister ship but didn’t specify which one, so they may now expect the Vali to make it all the way to Amsterdam.
We were notified of a ship change from the Modi to the Skirmir for our cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest scheduled for 8/19. It looks like to rain is helping with the water levels. Hoping for the best!
We arrived in Budapest yesterday on scenic Amsterdam to Budapest we were lucky and got through the trouble spot ok but the trip before us had to change ships putting us on Jade instead of Jewel no problems thankfully a wonderful trip
Is anyone on the Elbe Viking trip Berlin to Prague? I was wondering if they were still having low water issues?
Hi Lynne, You may have missed my earlier reply to your post. The 2 Viking Elbe ships have not moved for almost 2 months. We have been tracking water levels. Water depth is currently at only 33% of average depth. The rain forecast for the next 30 days is only 1.3″ total . It would take a monsoon to bring enough rain to make a difference in the water level. So you can conclude now that you will not be cruising. They will offer you a bus option.
Thank you
Hi Lynne,
Let me know when Viking contacts you & what they are offering. I have heard they will not notify us until 2 weeks out. Our cruise is Sept. 24.
Are you going to cancel? The bus distances are not long. Wittenberg is only about 2 hours from Dresden
jeanne
Lynne/Jeanne, We are scheduled to leave 29 Aug for Viking’s 1 Sep Prague to Berlin cruise and awaiting notification (hopefully) any time now. Last year we were on their 2 Sep Danube cruise and received a notification that water levels were low on 24 Aug. Since we were adding three days at the beginning, it wasn’t much notice for us. I will provide an update as soon as I receive one. Dennis
I heard from Viking on 14 Aug that sailing would not be possible for our 1 Sep Elbe cruise.
I definitely appreciated the two week notice. We could either cancel for full refund -or- go staying on
stationary ships with Bus tours and receive 1/2 off a future ocean or river cruise.
At this time, there is a split decision at our house.
I’ve been there and done that. Take the full cash refund, you have all options then, and book something in the future – after checking on water level predictions. You would be paying way too much for a bus tour.
We’re booked on Sep 11 Prague to Berlin Elbe cruise but fly from US to Prague on Sep 7. I have called Viking several times for updates on water levels and receive a different answer every time – from “ river continues to be non-navigable” to “water levels are ok and ships are moving” – got that answer on 2 occasions only to call back and get a different agent who confirmed nothing is moving. Very disappointed. Please keep me in the loop if anyone is notified from Viking specifically about their Elbe trip.
Liz, I was getting the same answer too unless I asked them to tell me specifically about the most recent cruise. I heard on 14 August that our 1 Sept Elbe cruise would be stationary; if the same holds true for you, your notification should come on/about 24 August. We are still on the fence about whether to go or not as we’re not sure we’d use the 1/2 off future cruise. I appreciated Jay’s opinion and weighing that in. Dennis
Dennis, Thanks for your comments. I will post the results whenever I hear the options for our cruise from Viking. If offered, we’ll take the refund.
We are still trying to decide if we will cancel or take the bus tour on the Elbe. We probably won’t get our official notice from Viking until 2 weeks ahead. Does anyone know if the 50% off a future cruise offer is good for more than a year?
We are still undecided what we will do. Our cruise is Sept 24 & no amount of rain will help the water levels by then. The Elbe ships have not moved in almost 2 months.
If we cancel & get the refund, it’s too late to find another river cruise.
The good news is the Elbe trip does not involve long bus trips because the distances are short. If we are in Dresden, Its only 37 minutes by bus to Meissen, 53 minutes to Bad Schandau & Bastel Bridge.
Dennis, did Viking give you a detailed revised itinerary?
Yes, they gave me a revised itinerary, but can’t get to it while at my work at this time. I’m pretty sure it was: bus from Prague to Dresden (maybe 90 miles), 2 stationary days on Beyla, bus to Astrild (forgot the distance), 3 stationary days on Astrild, bus to Berlin (think 72 miles). The tours would be on buses either on the way to the ships or from the ships. One needs to be pretty efficient and organized with their suitcase for the packing/unpacking. Also, I just compared the water levels to a screenshot I made 7 days ago; and even though its been raining, they levels are about the same or worse.
We did this cruise in May and it was an excellent experience. When you are counting on a cruise you do not want a bus trip. My suggestion would be to cancel as soon as you are offered a FULL refund. As you can anticipate this happening why not now check your bucket list and select an alternative that you can do this year during your scheduled vacation time and do the Elbe next spring. A river cruise may be out for this year and if $ don’t allow Europe now and in 2020 save the $ and do something close to home that you have dreamed of. Check out Road Scholar which are all-inclusive (you can relax and be taken care of with red carpet care). We have done more than one river and ocean cruise as well as a number of trips with Road Scholar. We try to keep a want to do and be flexible and still keep the dreams alive. Good Luck.
We canceled! I thought it was pretty pricey when I bought it. The non-cruising and changing ships part made it worse.
Dennis,
Do you mind giving me your booking number? My travel agent has called Viking today and is getting the runaround as I have. No mention of a possible cancellation or alternative offers.
She thought it might help if we could refer to another passenger who was offered specific options.
I still do not understand why Viking is not being candid with us. It’s very frustrating.
Thanks, Liz
Hi Liz,
I don’t think you can get straight answers from Viking. Their policy seems to be that they will notify us 2 weeks in advance of a cruise. This policy most likely is more profitable for them because more people will just go on the cruise…even if it involves buses. With only 2 weeks, customers have already been excited about the trip, packed their bags, & hired their catsitter. Its hard to find another trip at the last minute…so we just go along.
I have learned more from other cruisers in this forum, & by checking websites that give water levels & ship movements. Our trip is on the Elbe & no ships have moved there for over 2 months. I tried to convince Viking to let us switch to another river…but they do not budge on their policy.
Howdie Liz, 5406077 Let us know what happens.
Dennis,
Thanks, I’ll keep you posted. They still have made no offers and have now changed the Prague hotel. Since we are going a day in advance and had booked a room in the original hotel, we now have to cancel that and move to the new location, which is almost double the price.
Grrr….
I didn’t see an answer to Jeanne’s question on how long the 50% is good for. I was told the following when I was in the process of canceling: The 50% voucher “requires” you to “book” within one year, and travel within a year. So the maximum time to complete the travel would be two years. Additionally, it’s my understanding from reading other posts that the 50% is applicable to only the “cruising part” of the itinerary. I guess this makes sense because the pre- and post-land parts remain unchanged; in the case of the Elbe itinerary, this would be substantial.
Dennis,
We just heard from Viking that our Sep 11 sailing would be a stationary ship swap + 50 % discount on future river or ocean cruise. Our email did not indicate a time constraint on the future cruise but I assume there is one. Alternately, we can cancel for a full refund, which is what we plan to do. Strangely, as recently as yesterday, they would tell us nothing.
Thanks for all your input and good luck to those of you booked on later Elbe cruises. I guess the routine now is about 2 weeks notice.
Our notification didn’t give a time constraint either, but they gave me the 1 and 2 year info on the phone. The Elbe river level continues to look unchanged and I can see that the Beyla location has been and is in Dresden. For the near future, all of us Elbe travelers will be in the same boat (pardon the pun).
We are taking our first river cruise, sailing Avalon Paris-Normandy on August 31. I’m seeing water levels much below normal on the Seine. Should we be concerned that our vacation will turn into a land trip?
I’ve been following various Viking and Monarch (Gate1) ships on the Rhine River, Danube and Grand European Journey itineraries (Rhine/Main/Danube) using a site called vesselfinder. com (for Viking, make sure to click on the Swiss flag if 2 ships of the same name are listed). Using this site, you can track the current location of your ship day by day. So far this week, at least from what I can see, all ships seem to be able to sail their normal itinerary without ship swaps. That’s great news for my neighbors currently on the Viking Skirnir from Budapest to Amsterdam. We leave in 2 weeks on the Monarch Countess from Amsterdam to Basel along the Rhine and i haven’t noticed any hiccups on the Rhine River in the past 10 days.
Thank you Nancy for sharing this information. We leave in a few days.
http://www.rivercruiseinfo.com/content/river-levels
Our Scenic cruise is on 11 Sept from Budapest to Amsterdam. I found this website which is very informative with regards to river levels.
Safe and happy travels to all
Thank you
Thanks – we leave in a few days for Grand Circle, Great Rivers, from Vienna to Amsterdam, and we understand from German friends that the rivers are fine, and our tour director called to inform us it had been raining for a few days, so all is good.
Please note that the rivercruiseinfo site does not appear to be accurate. If you click under Danube, for example, you’ll notice a server error. That’s been happening for more than a year now. I’ve written the owner and no longer get a response, whereas I used to be able to reach him (more than two years ago). I feel that it is not being attended to properly. Just a word of caution.
Scenic Jade made it through no problem we docked in Budapest yesterday
Nancy,
Thanks for the information, we will be leaving on August 19th on the Rhine from Amsterdam to Basel.
Your going to love that trip so scenic lots of vineyards and castles
We are on the Skirnir and have made it through the Main Danube canal so no ship swaps on this trip due to water levels! We had a heavy rain last night and it is cloudy and cool in Nuremberg today. Thanks for the link to vessel finder!
Just received a note from Viking that we are now scheduled to embark on the Skirmir in Amsterdam instead of the Modi, this Sunday. Any idea what happened to the Modi? Was the water level really low near Nurenburg.
Modi is currently on it way from Amsterdam to Budapest. Skimir is its “sister-ship” running the reverse route/schedule. There was apparently a ship swap earlier this year with those two ships and they just have swapped schedules after that. Same as 2 other sets of Viking sister ships. All 14 Viking Amsterdam/Budapest ships (7 sets of sister-ships) are proceeding currently as scheduled. I was scheduled on Vali but got notification, I will be on its sister-ship Tir.
Jody – glad your trip on the Viking Skirnir is going well. Say hello to my friends the Armstrong’s if you meet them!
I will Nancy, but am struggling to keep up with first names!
We are currently on the Viking Hild heading to Basel. We just connected with the Rhine after touring the Moselle for several days out of Trier after being bussed in from Paris. Water levels are good so far and the river is running fast (in the other direction). People on board are saying that when their previous cruises were altered due to water levels they had a chance to cancel, or to go ahead with plans and get a substantial discount on their next trip.
We are scheduled for the Viking Hild going the other way – Basel to Paris but not until the end of October.
I’d be interested in how the Rhine is now vs. October. No more heat wave but I don’t know how the seasons affect the river levels.
I think the bus from Paris to the Rhine is the way it’s planned on the original itineraries.
Was the busing more than what had been planned?
My parents and I are on Scenic Budapest to Nuremburg leaving August 15th. I started checking this site for updates much earlier and more frequently than necessary :). Thanks to all for sharing your experiences! I’ll post updates on our trip for cruisers behind us.
Thanks March – we are just a week behind you.
Marcy, we will be watching for your comments as we are doing the reverse (nuremberg to Budapest) starting 9/3
It looks like there’s been a lot of rain lately, so I’ve actually been wondering if I should be concerned that the levels will be too high! This water level watching can make you nuts. As someone else posted, I think we all have to go with the flow (pun somewhat intended) and enjoy our cruises come what may. Easier said than done, for me at least, and I am happy to share my experiences.
We are doing Prague to Paris with APT on the 10th of September 2019.
I am hope the water levels will be ok
My wife and I will be sailing the Rhine River from Amsterdam to Basel, beginning 25 Aug. Knowing we are still almost three weeks out, we were wondering if anyone on this blog has been down/up the Rhine and whether they had any issues. Happy sailing to all?. John
We just completed the Rhine cruise at Basel on July 25th. No problems during our cruise, but you could tell by looking along the riverbanks that levels had dropped considerably over the last few weeks.
The Rhine is gorgeous ! We did Viking from Amsterdam to Basel in the fall of 2018 and loved every bit of it ! Make sure you take in the Dinner evening in Rudesheim ..it’s a hoot ! We have done 2 cruises since ..Danube was low and they gave us a credit. The Rhône ( with pre trip in Nice) was lovely and perfect !
Curious if there has been any rain along the Danube/Rhine rivers in the past few days? Have an upcoming trip from Bucharest to Amsterdam.
We are also anxiously watching as we are doing Scenic’s Budapest – Amsterdam leaving August 26th and any updates on water levels is appreciated.
We just completed Scenic’s Amsterdam to Budapest cruise July 17 to July 31st. We had to do a ship swap mid-way through on the 24th but it was seamless. We were able to do our tours of Nuremberg on the morning of the 24th and have lunch back on the ship. The only disruption, besides having to pack up that morning, was a long (220 km) bus ride in the afternoon to get to the new ship in Passau where our luggage awaited. We even had the same cabin on a newer ship. No tours were missed although on the day following the swap passengers had to be bussed further for their tours. We decided to stay on board that day and relax. Our Tour Director transferred ships with us but the staff was different on the new ship which was an adjustment for them and us.
thanks JB. we’re scenic departing budapest august 12. did scenic say/offer anything for the inconvenience or would you say there was no inconvenience.
We just docked in Budapest yesterday on scenic Jade we were lucky and didn’t have to change ships. Great trip
We haven’t had rain but all seems fine on the Danube. Started in Budapest the other day, in Vienna this eve.
Thanks very much for the update! We don’t leave until the 26th but hoping water levels remain OK.
My cruise ended Saturday morn and never had any issues on the Danube. Grand Circle Budapest to Prague trip
Thank you for the update. Our cruise starts the 19th.
We left Passau two days ago and now in Durnstein on our way to Budapest. River is running strongly with rain at the moment. Interesting to note the flood levels of 2013 some 10 meters up from current level.
A lot of people travel on the 15 day cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest (or in the other direction). About halfway through this cruise the ships coming along the Rhine from Amsterdam through Germany first do some 384 kilometres on the River Main from Mainz as far as Bamberg, then 171 kilometres on the Main-Danube Canal from Bamberg to Kelheim and then another 209 kilometres on the Danube from Kelheim to the Austrian border.
Of these three stretches the middle one (the Canal) has the most locks, which means it is unlikely to suffer from low water, but in fact the first stretch (the River Main) is also regulated, so here there is less danger of low water levels, too. The area which is most affected is the third stretch (the Danube), so I must say to Ralph Grizzle that the main problem area is NOT the Main but the Danube between Regensburg (or Straubing) to Vilshofen (or Passau).
At present the heatwave has abated and there has been some rain, so hopefully this week’s cruises won’t be affected too much.
Thank you Sabine for further elucidating water levels!!! We leave August 5th From Budapest to Amsterdam and have been anxiously wondering how our cruise may be affected.
Thanks Sabine. How do you find your water levels today? We are just a day behind you.
Hallo Jody and Rich,
https://www.wetteronline.de/pegelstaende?gid=HES
Great that you are about to start your river cruise soon!
See if you can manage the above website. “Pegel” is the word for water levels. On the map of Germany on this webpage they give ports with above-average water levels red flags and below average water levels green ones. So today’s map shows the bottom right corner of Germany as red (=above average) . If you click on “Fluss” (river) “Donau” (Danube) there is a table of all the ports on the German part of the Danube. You can see there, for instance, that Passau has an average of 499 (centimetres, I think) and right now has 524 – this translates as more water under the keel! So I hope you won’t have any worries.
Sabine
That is great news – we leave later in August! Thanks for the update.
Just keep checking how the levels are as the month progresses
Hello Sabine! I have looked at that map and was on able to figure out how to read it. Thanks so much for your information as it makes sense now! I’ve been watching the weather and it seems as if areas along the Danube and Rhine have received rain in the last several days. Thank you again! Jody
Thank you Sabine for The information on how to read the site you mentioned. I have struggled to decipher the information! Jody
Checked this site because we’re leaving Aug. 18 for cruise on Rhone/Saone and Seine through France and are worried about water levels. Anyone had a recent experience on the French rivers?
While reading the comments I saw people asking about the food on Avalon. This will be our 3rd cruise on Avalon. Did waterways of Belgium and Netherlands in 2016 and Active Discovery on the Danube (Budapest to Prague) in 2018. Food on both the Visionary and Tapestry was fantastic. Very high quality food with many local touches. Highly recommend Avalon.
I’m very disappointed to find out about water level shifting up and down can effect the ship going through, we had NO idea, and no one told us about it when we were booking our cruse. I think Viking Customer Service should worn first time river cruisers like us, so we can plan better. We spend our life savings for this trip and I’m very concern and sad thinking something will go wrong.
I wish I new before booking this trip and I blame Viking Customer Service for NOT telling us all the
possible changes that might happen and we should consider before final decision.
Here is our trip: Romantic Danube August 03, 2019, Viking Gullveig
Same here only we are on Avalon.
My wife and I are doing the Christmas Market Cruise – Budapest to Amsterdam departing Budapest on December 1st – I followed the river levels / cruises in December 2018 for the trip – river levels were a disaster- was December 2018 just an anomaly or is there genuine concerns about water levels in the Danube and Rhine in December? Also anyone have any insights on Emerald Waterways / food / experience etc ?
Yes we are leaving on 8/10 on Grand Circle on the same Romantic Danube Prague/Vienna/Budapest and we are being impacted potentially. I have no way to know what the water levels are so I know whether to cancel or not. Can anyone help?
We are also leaving on a 10 on Grant Circle, Prague to Budapest. We are also concerned that we won’t be on the shift for the entire trip.
Suggest you go and enjoy your holiday. Don’t worry too much.
We are booked on a similar tour on the Ama Bella leaving by the end of August and we are looking forward to it and thinking about having a good time. Cheers.
And the bus portion of this tour Prague to Linz or Linz to Prague was always planned that way. So nothing changed on the tour with Grand circle
was there any bussing required?
I’m on it right now. At this moment all is good. Am guessing you are taking this boat on the return after our cruise. You will be bused from Prague to Linz and we get off in Linz on Saturday then bussed to Prague.
I bought a book, Frommer’s Easy Guide to River Cruising and read it cover to cover before booking a river cruise. This was the best thing I could have done and there was no surprises on our river cruise in June of this year. It’s important to research all aspects of river cruising since there are so many companies as well as so many different areas to cruise in. I don’t think any travel agent or booking company will tell you about the pitfalls you might encounter!
My husband and I are on the blue Danube leaving Neurenburg on the 23rd of August, My sister and brother n law are also on this cruise, we all agree that Viking never mentioned the possibility of busses rather than boats in advance. We should have been told that the rivers might not be passable. Anyone have water depth info on the Danube ,Neurenburg to Budapest?
All Viking ships Amsterdam-Budapest & Budapest-Amsterdam are going fine at this time & and there has been rain lately try this website https://www.danube-cycle-path.com/danube-flooding.html for water levels on Danube
I agree as our times were totally flexible and could have booked when the water levels were typically okay.
We are on a Viking cruise Berlin to Prague September 9. I am already concerned after hearing about my friend’s cruise having to be bussed the whole time. I guess there is no way to predict at this time.
We are leaving on July 29 on a Tauck cruise on the Danube from Vilshofen to Budapest. Any news on water levels or will this turn into a bus trip? We were on Viking Elegant Elbe in July last summer and it was a bus tour although they did a boat swap half way thru the tour. Viking did a great job of handling a bad situation, but tours like this should be avoided in summer when the water levels are so low.
We asre cruise Rhine with AMA 1 sept. Starting to get concerned. We tried last year and cruise was cancelled 4 days before. Full refund. Problem was that we were overseas and had to make alternative plans. I am also not interested in being bused about. If I wanted a bus tour I would have booked one. Just wish they would make a call sooner rather than later. We are leacing our travel agent a plan b and plan c document to deal with changes should a cancellation happen. My advice to anyone doing a river cruise is to be prepared!
Yes i agree – they should definitely let you know of th risks. We are scheduled with Scenic from Budapest – Amsterdam August 26th and will be in Europe a week ahead, so are looking at a Plan B just in case. I too am not interested in a bus tour, especially with the price we paid for our river cruise. Appreciate any information from people who are there ahead of us.
just got off Budapest to Vilshofen 21st/28th July AmaWaterways new mega ship AmaMagna. No issues with water levels although Captain indicated there will be some issues upriver from Vilshofen towards Regensburg over the coming days unless rain arrives
Yes, you can predict! The Elbe is in bad shape! We are booked on this cruise Sept. 25. We’ve been doing research on water levels. Both Viking Elbe ships have not moved from Dresden since late June. Water levels are very low and no amount of rain will likely correct this! We have concluded our cruise will be impacted. Viking will not allow us to change to another cruise until they make an official decision, which may be 1-2 weeks in advance of our trip. This doesn’t give enough time for plan B. We really don’t want to spend our time on buses!
What are you going to do?
We are scheduled on the Viking cruise from Berlin to Prague on Sept 9 and I am already concerned about the water levels. My friend cancelled her July trip because of the busing from place to place.
I guess there is no way to predict yet.
We’re traveling down the Danube from Tittling, Germany to Budapest, Hungary in August on a AMA Waterways cruise ship. Today we spoke to our tour provider, Backroads, who indicated that there have been no disruptions to date this year as their boats have been able to navigate to the deeper parts of the canal. So while I’ve seen comments that the Viking cruise needed to be rerouted, we’re hoping that it’s partially boat-specific and not all cruises experience a disruption.
Does anyone know if Vantage between Amsterdam and Basel traveling now is affected by water levels? We are leaving on August 5th and are very concerned. We have cancel for any reason insurance. Should we cancel? Help would be greatly appreciated.
Hello!
So far, the sailing on Rhine and Moselle ( Amsterdam to Basel) is not affected by water level. Wishing you to have a great time on Vantage cruise.
We leave on APT river cruise on 2nd August – Amsterdam to Budapest and were told yesterday that we will have to change ships midway because of water levels. Hopefully it doesn’t get any lower – we fly out on Monday
What river will you be on?
Rhine main and Danube
We are due for our river cruise on July 27th on the Danube. Any infomation on current water levels.
So are we. Got an email from Viking. There will be a ship swap mid-cruise and motor coach trips if the river doesn’t rise. Very disappointing, but we are trying to remain positive. Talked to Viking about switching to another cruise, but they were non-compliant!
we are also on the Budapest to Neuremburg Viking July 27th and received an email with “likely” will affect our cruise. not promising but we are going with the attitude, we are not in control of weather and will do our best. it seems only Viking is having issues? lower draft maybe?
I am currently cruising from Budapest to Nuremberg. We were told last night that our cruise boat would stay in Passau and be bused to Regensburg and back and not visit Nuremberg at all.
Which cruise line?
Emerald. It was a GREAT cruise!
I believe there are other complications aside from water levels. Here is an article from June 7 that says that a ship hit and damaged a lock near Nuremberg.
https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/Canal-lock-damage-on-Danube-disrupting-river-cruises
The lock was repaired by June 14th. My cruise went through those same locks July 15th – 21st. There is low water on the danube before you go through all the many locks that is causing the issues. Our ship was the very last ship with Viking to get through the lowest point. There have been 2 heat waves and bouts of dry weather so far this summer in western and Eastern Europe. One in late June and then another around July 17th into the week of July 21st. Unfortunately 2018 had weather with drought conditions too. The rain needs to fall in Europe and then the rivers will open for the boats. This can change overnight so hope for the best.
We also have received an email from Viking regarding our August 1 departure from Budapest to Nuremberg stating the cruise will likely be affected by the low water levels and indicated the possibility of ship swaps and/or different docking locations, etc.
We did that last year and Viking did an amazingly painless “ship-swap” while ensuring no sights were missed. We went from one cabin to the same cabin on a sistership and retained many of the same personnel. Viking is really an outstanding cruise line
We had a ship swap last September and as upsetting as that was Viking handled it with perfection! Our cruise director went aboard the new ship with us, we were assigned the same room # as we had, they picked up our luggage and when we came back from our tour we boarded the identical ship we t to the same room and our luggage was waiting for us. The tour did include more bus time and they had to provide us with a lunch elsewhere BUT all aside Viking handled it very well. Hope this helps!
Thank you, Richard and Joanne, for your encouragement!! Hope our trip goes as well as both of yours did.
We just got bussed from Nuremberg to Passau due to low water levels on Danube
That is strange as we just completed 14 days on the Danube, Main and Rhine with no issues on Uniworld’s River Princess. Vienna to Amsterdam. We are flying home tomorrow there was no mention of low water by our captain.
Picked early date despite crowds and there are lots of ships on the river and tourists inthe towns because we got cancelled last year. There are trade offs. We had cool weather except for one hot day in Vienna and a little rain.
what line were you on Joan? Viking?
we are booked on River Princess Vienna to Amsterdam Aug 18 and are concerned over probable cancellations/deviations. Does anyone know a reliable site for info on river water levels?
We were on the River Princess, and had no issues anywhere before it reached Amsterdam on the 21st of July. Only a few delays because of so many ships waiting to get into the locks. There are many, more than 60, on this itinerary. We missed the heat wave and had little rain, except for a hailstorm in Germany, which was amazing. Made it back to the ship in time but many on tour were soaked to the skin.
As to predicting water levels, there are so many variables that it is pretty hard to do. I suggest that if you think about an alternative plan you might put into operation if your cruise is cancelled when you are already in Europe.
That’s too bad. What cruise company?
Just back from the Douro, but as levels are controlled by a lock system I don’t think they ever run out!
However because the flow is so limited by lock’s the river is rather green and stale at times!
We just returned from a river cruise on the Danube the week of July 14-21 on the Amastella. Water levels were fine. No disruptions.
I was on a Viking cruise from Budapest to Nuremberg from July 14th to July 21. We were the last ship to get through the lowest point in the Danube. While the majority of the passengers (including us) were on their excursions the captain headed upriver and we boarded back on in Deggendorf after our excursions which was passed the spot on the river where it was an issue. Our boat did scrape the mud on the bottom of the river and from what I understand the river was closed for at least the Viking cruises after that point. We are in Prague right now for an extension and the temperature has jumped up to 88 to 90 degree Fahrenheit and dry.
so it does sound like a Viking specific issue- must draw a lower draft than others. we also go to Prague after- I hope the temps go down a bit!
From what I understand Viking longships are slightly larger than AMA ships. There are 190 guests on Viking versus I think 150 on AMA. I think last year in 2018, AMA was able to go through low water areas when Viking could not but by the fall off 2018 the river was so low AMA was affected too. My cruise was very fortunate in mid July to get through because our captain pushed through and made sure to continue upriver while the guests were on excursions. The boat was lighter going through the low points with most of the guests off the boat. Our excursion bus would meet the boat up river at a small docking area and then we continued on. Viking handled the situation best they could. Let’s hope Europe get some rain and the cruises will be fine. Conditions can change overnight with rivers.
This is a follow up post to my 7/14 comment on Viking-we were to set sail on the Elba from near Prague to a point near Berlin on 7/27. I was tracking river levels on the site wetternonline.de [thank you, Rivercruiseadvisor, for this reference]. On 7/24 there were 3 locations where levels were below 70 cm [~2.3 ft], and from other comments on line, the water required for Viking ships is 4 ft +. We were told on 7/20 by a Viking customer service manager that they would let us know well before our air departure of 7/23 if they would be sailing or not. On 7/17, Viking sent us an email stating that this ship would not be sailing and gave us 2 options: bus to destinations using the 2 boats on the Elba as hotels OR receive a full refund including insurance. We chose the latter and have rebooked for September stays in each city, minus the cruise. Water levels are simply too iffy and it was nerve wracking waiting on Viking to make a decsion; which, to their credit, they delivered, as promised. We received our full refund within 10 days. This is not timely information for anyone looking at real time water levels, just a follow up. The website above is good for following water levels, real time. I saw them dropping by the day. Best, John S from Viriginia and good luck to all!!
I’m 17 days out before a Rhine cruise and I’m concerned. Koblenz is down to 127cm and Germany is forecasted for a major heatwave next week. Has anyone heard anything about the Rhine or about any rain being forecasted for the Rhine River valley before Aug 5?
We are due for our river cruise on July 27th. Tracking water levels on the website BfG – green dots say good water levels. You an pinpoint an exact spot by scrolling down on the list. Concerns about the heat wave rolling in just before we leave. Keeping fingers crossed. We probably will go with what we end up with anyway since we have planned a visit afterwards to England and can’t change that easily.
Hopefully we will both have good water levels!!
Any news about Seine and Loire River levels? We’re on Viking’s France’s Finest trip.Aug 20- Sep 3rd starting in Paris.ending in Avignon.
Hi all, any information how the current levels compared to a year ago? Thanks, Joe
Has anyone cruised on the Danube Waltz recently? Viking Longship Vilhjalm. Heard water levels were high,
We are set to cruise the Danube on the 30. We would appreciate any “boots on the ground” information.
we are due to get on Boat in Budapest on July 31…. fingers crossed as well….
We are on a viking cruise leaving 22 July from Budapest and just got an email from Viking giving a heads up of potential problems with it. No futher details yet
On Danube now on Avalon Impression —just left Wachau on way to Vienna. Water levels were fine since leaving Nürnberg.
Did you enjoy Avalon? I have heard the food is just fair. We are planning our first river cruise. Any advice is appreciated!
Hello. Would also like to know how the food is. Will be sailing with Avalon in September.
We had never been a rive cruise before and had no idea of all of these issues.
I enjoyed the trip from Budapest to Passau. We could not cruise from Passau to Nuremberg due to low water issues.
We were bussed from Passau to Prague. We stayed at the Hilton in Prague, The hotel is under construction and it sounded like they were jack hammering right under or next to our room.
We are older and wanted to rest after our morning excursions. They did not stop until 7:00 pm. We asked for a different room, they did not give us a room in a quieter location.
I think that the Hilton should have made it very clear to our travel agent about the construction noise.
We just returned from Budapest on July 5th. We did the Danube Waltz from Passau to Budapest. No problems with river levels, although the locks near Vienna broke and some ships could not get through. We made it through before then. It was an amazing trip!
And we were on the Viljahm.
Leaving next week – just heard today Danube river is low and we already have ship change
I just came off the Danube last week. Water levels were optimal. Things changed quickly if that is the case.
We cancelled on Tuesday the Elegant Elbe Viking cruise we were scheduled to take Saturday. The itinerary basically was changed to a poorly arranged bus trip with hours of shuttling and no cruising.
Hello Judy – did they only give you one days notice so you were already flown over to Prague or Berlin?
We fly to Prague on July 22 and sail on the 27th after 4 days in Prague – we’re very concerned they are going to wait till we get over there to tell us that they’re going to mod the trip. I have seen this same thing in several forums going back to 2016 – The sales agents act so concerned that you’re happy but then they pull off this kind of strategy, not the way to handle it.
John
I’m so sorry to hear this! Did they offer an adjustment or vouchers if you chose to take the altered trip?
We were on the phone with Viking Sunday and Monday. They advised that they had cancelled the same Elegant Elba trip that was to start 4 days earlier than ours, giving those passengers 12 days notice.
Yesterday, they told us we would get 3 days notice, which is ridiculous considering water levels that I am seeing on the below site are under 3 feet in some places.
https://www.wetteronline.de/?gid=SAH&iid=Elbe&pcid=pc_pegel_data&sid=River [levels are in centimeters, conversion 30 cm/foot]. This is updated daily at numerous points along the Elba and many other rivers, so i assume there are guaging stations with wireless transmitters].
We are being strung out, not real happy about it. Given what we are paying for this trip, we nor anyone elses deserves this treatment or stress.
I do want to add that our cruise on the Rhine in 2015 was absolutely outstanding, no water issues at all. Such a contrast I never expected.
Viking is offering full refund on Elbe River for trip beginning in Berlin on August 19. If you want motor coach then 50%. We canceled and they were very understanding. Appreciation to all of you who update water level situations!
Just arrived (Aug. 27, 2019) in Koblenz from Trier on Moselle. So far water level about 6″ lower than “normal” so no problems.
Any recent travelers on Rhine river cruises? I leave in a couple of weeks for Avalon Basel – Amsterdam and am keeping my fingers crossed
Same cruise line and same destination leaving the 20th I believe. It seems water level is low near Basel but rain forecast for the 11th and 12th there. You can look at this page which seems to show up to date Rhine water levels. Bon voyage. https://www.wetteronline.de/pegelstaende
Thanks. We leave Basel on July 27th with Avalon – Hopefully!
Hi Russell, I am trying to read the chart on the wetteronline page but not really understanding it. For Rhine River – I clicked Colgone – is that the correct one? Also, What are the green flags for? Do they mean levels are ok? I am leaving for Rhine River Cruise on July 27th. TY
Hello, I was wondering if you went on the cruise and if the water levels were ok and you enjoyed it?
Thank you,
Joy
Gail- let us know how the river levels are on the Rhine. I’m leaving Aug 5.
Friends of mine finished cruising Basel to Amsterdam on Scenic a week ago with no drama and no changes. Bon voyage, enjoy. We are watching water levels for Amsterdam to Budapest in December, postponed from last year…..here’s hoping!!!
Make sure you post when you get back – we do this same trip Sept. lst. and would love to hear about the water levels and your trip
Yes, us too … we are scheduled to leave Budapest on August 26th.
Us too, 9/1. I am worried.
Just returned from taking the Grand European Tour (Amsterdam to Budapest) with Viking. Water levels all along the way were fine. Although the top level of the ship had to be closed for five days while on the Mine River to make it under some low bridges. We did have to do one ship-swap at Nuremberg because of a damaged lock earlier in the month. The only reason for the swap was to get us on our originally scheduled ship. The cruise itself was absolutely wonderful, even though we had to endure a major heat wave! Highly recommend this tour and Viking!
We are doing the same cruise in reverse at the end of August, so hoping there will be enough water in the river.
Kate – we are on the August 19 sailing. Are you?
We are on Scenic August 26th. Have not heard anything mentioned about Scenic cruises being affected so far but keeping fingers crossed!
We are on Scenic Aug 26th
We were on the same cruise and boats. Same response for us.
Were doing that same trip leaving from Amsterdam on July 18th… anything special you would recommend that we do? we are spending a couple extra days in Budapest, as everyone said it was beautiful.
Friends of mine finished cruising Basel to Amsterdam on Scenic a week ago with no drama and no changes. Bon voyage, enjoy. We are watching water levels for Amsterdam to Budapest in December, postponed from last year…..here’s hoping!!!
We are currently sidelined on the Budapest-Amsterdam Viking Grand European River Cruise because of low levels on the Danube. We managed to get to Passau, but have pulled into an “alley” just outside of Passau. Today’s Regensburg tours required 3 hours of bus riding (1-1/2 hours each way), and tomorrow we’ll be bused to Nuremberg (3 hour bus ride one way) where we will swap ships. Sadly not the cruise we hoped for because we missed two days/nights of cruising. But it was wonderful until we hit this snag, and I can only hope it will be wonderful once we get past it.
Hi Judy, Thank you for your update. Please keep us informed as we are about to head your way on the same cruse. Would like to know, just in case we need to plans for some other activities for the days we are parked on the Danube.
We are at straubig , on emerald going to Budapest , we can’t go any further as water is low, they hope for rain tonight, think it will take a lot of rain to raise the river levels
We are scheduled to take this same cruise beginning August 5th. Thanks so much for the info as the hours required to be bused to and from destinations will factor into any decision we make if we are given a choice to cancel. If you have time, please keep the updates coming!
We just returned from a fantastic cruise on AMAMora. The water level on the Rhine was high the third week in June, but not flooding or anything to cause a problem. The only change for our ship was that most of the upper deck was closed the last couple of days, as we neared Basel, so the ship could go through the locks and bridges. Only the front area of the roof was available for guests as this is a lower section. I believe they expected the level to lower a bit as July approached.
Wally & Mrs. Wally are taking the Monarch Princess from Regensburg to Budapest leaving July 14th. Any tips? First River Cruise; multiple ocean cruises
Hi Wally and Mrs Wally, please post a review once your cruise has finished. I am doing same trip in october on the monarch princess and very difficult to get reviews about Gate1.
How was your River cruise? We are leaving July 25 for thr Budapest to Regensburg. How was the water navigation and the Monarch Princess?
We just completed a week cruise on a Viking ship from Budapest to Nuremberg and the water levels were fine. They did swap ships at the beginning of the cruise due to higher waters but other than that, smooth sailing. We had beautiful weather with only an occasional shower one day. Viking did keep us docked in Regansburg (our last stop before Nuremberg) due to the fact that a lock was damaged but the bus ride into Nuremberg was only a little bit longer than the ride from Nuremberg docks into town would have been. We couldn’t have asked for a better cruise or weather.
Thank you, going on this trip in a few weeks and glad to hear the water levels were good. Any tips for this itinerary? Is there something you did that you would (or wouldn’t) recommend?
We were not impressed with the optional Bavarian Beerfest in Passau. If you are on the Budapest to Nuremberg cruise, and signed up for the Panoramic Budapest tour ( which we did), know that you will miss the debarkation going thru Budapest and miss all the beautiful photo opportunities. (They bus you at the end of the tour to a pick-up site down (up) river.)
Which other optional tours do you recommend? There are so many and we are looking to hear about the best ones that we should not miss. We are doing the reverse cruise on Viking so I imagine the panoramic Budapest tour would not conflict with the entry to the port.
Hi Jen,
I’m so happy on found this site. Great information. We are going on the Viking cruise on July 19 on the Viking Gullveig. Will you be on our ship?
Thank you to all the people posting on river levels. I’m going on the Rhine from ams to Basel August 5 and I’m nervously watching water levels.
We are doing the reverse on August 7th…. I am a little nervous about water levels as well.
Lisa, you can check river levels here https://www.wetteronline.de/pegelstaende
Just returned from an AmaWaterways Danube river cruise on the AmaLea from Budapest to Vilshofen, Germany. Water levels were high and the river current was very strong, but no flooding or problems with travel. Just north of Passau, the captain informed us that the water levels were rising. What a fantastic display of the talent of AmaWaterways crew when they lowered the ship by 14 inches by pumping water into the holding tanks to weigh the ship down, along with dropping the canopies and the bridge on the Sun Deck! We passed under the last low bridge with 14 inches to spare!
In August of 2018 we sailed the Rhine with Ama, and were told that water levels were historically low. AmaKristina sailed through the narrows without a hitch! We will be taking our third river cruise with AmaWaterways, as they have certainly earned our trust and respect!
Thanks for the post Rick. We’re boarding the AMA Certo on 6/30 enroute to Nuremberg.
Thanks, Rick. We’re cruising with the Ama Lea on August 12 and after cruising on the Rhine last year with seriously low water levels (having to be bussed for about 3 hours) this is good news!
how did you enjoy AMA lEA- am cruising on AMALEA on AUG 09= hope river levels are ok
any ships comments from you would help
We are cruising from Basel to Amsterdam on the Avalon Vista. Water levels have been just fine. We are leaving Strasbourg this evening.
Thank you for posting this!
Yeah! We are leaving Basel on June 22 for the same trip. How has the weather been? I’m seeing lots of rain in the forecast.
We have the same concerns. Leaving on an Amsterdam to Basel cruise on June 26th. Strasbourg seems to have thunderstorm or flood warnings everyday.
I will be on that same cruise
Us too. Traveling on Scenic Opal.
Taking my family on a Rhine cruise Amserdam to Basil leaving July 1 . Hope weather predictions are sunny.
Norma
I’m on Scenic Ruby, leaving Amsterdam for Basel July 1, wondering if river levels are going to be a problem.
Just completed Paris-Normandy-Paris cruise on AmaLyra on Seine River.
Water level ok.
We were just on the Elba river and water levels were fine. June 3to 8, 2019
Viking Beyla wonderful ship and crew
Great to know! We leave in a week. Any tips on the destinations we visit?
Currently traveling on Rhône river from Arles to Lyon France on AMACello with APT.
River levels have been fine
Thankful I found this site. Husband and I will be sailing the Danube on “U by Uniworld” Ship A from Budapest to Regensburg. If anyone has updates please help by replying. Oh, June 8 thru June 15.
We are on Avalon right now, started in Budapest heading as I write this out of Vienna, water is high they put the sunshades down but still are able to get under the many bridges.
We are on a Gate1 cruise on the Danube from Regensburg to Budapest from June 3 to 9. Water levels are very high. Sunshades have had to taken down numerous times but we made it under every bridge although with very little clearance.
Thanks for update Cheryl. Please keep us posted. I depart same itinerary in a couple weeks.
How was Gate 1 cruise. Looking at monarch governess for end of May.
Started June 9th on Viking Legend on the Danube from Budapest to Passau. Today, June 13 on the way to Linz. River is high but no problems thus far.
Thanks Kate
Would be interested in an update from you if possible. We leave Amsterdam on 5th July heading to Budapest on APT. Any updates would be appreciated.
Just returned from a Rhine/Moselle cruise. Water levels good … high on the Moselle but no problems.
We were just notified by Viking that our cruise embarkation on May 28 in Budapest may be delayed due to high water. Please let us know if anyone has done the Budapest to Amsterdam recently and can comment
Paul, My relatives are currently on a Danube Cruise – Nuremberg to Budapest and the levels are too high so they had to do a ship swap near Passau.
Could you post any updates of changes or cancellations. As we leave on the same trip June 8th
Hey Paul I found a site that breaks it down. It’s called wetteronline. You can change to English. It shows as of today. All of the flow meters along the way. Are up,some a little from the mean water level to today. Some are up a lot. This is going to be trouble. There is rain in the forecast. And Austria had more snow also which is melting. I will be checking daily.
We cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest on Viking from 12th June and would appreciate any updates anyone has on levels/need to be bussed etc.
We leave Amsterdam on June 8th to Budapest on Avalon. We are looking for updates now. We will try and keep you informed how our cruise is going.
I just seen on the news a river boat has collided with another river tourist boat in Budapest at 9 pm last night killing 7 people and 21 still missing. The Danube is raging in Budapest. Stay informed people. This is real.
Thanks James that would be great
We are on day 7 of a 15 day Avalon cruise to Budapest and arrive in Bamberg tomorrow morning (June 14). Water levels have been no problem. However, we have been notified that a Viking ship damaged a lock gate south of Nuremberg and traffic cannot continue until approximately the 19th. We will be bussed from Nuremberg to Vienna on Monday. Not happy, but Avalon will give a 50% refund for the days not on the ship.
We are on route on Avalon Envision from Budapest to Nuremberg, currently in Linz where we diverted due to high water levels on the Danube. Only a slight change to our schedule, now finishing our cruise in Regensburg rather than Nuremberg. This morning, however, we noted the Scenic Pearl which was travelling virtually along with us from Budapest to Amsterdam offloaded passengers and luggage this morning, (25th May) in Linz. Avalon have been most professional and kept us informed. It’s been a fabulous cruise!
We are leaving Budapest on the 27th- Viking Grand European and have heard of no possible changes,delays,etc. Interesting that others have.
Anyone have any information?
We are currently on a Viking Grand European river cruise – departed Budapest May 16th and due to arrive in Amsterdam on the 30th. Water levels on all 3 rivers – Danube, Main and Rhine – are high with noticeable flooding in Regensburg. Our ship only managed to arrive in Regensburg from Passau thanks to the captain cranking up the speed significantly in the night. Apparently we just made it under one bridge with inches to spare. Our ship stayed in Regensburg for a few nights and we were bused to Nuremberg for our tours and back. Then they told us we had to pack up and do a swap with our sister ship in Bamberg so we were again bused from Regensburg to Bamberg for our tour. Viking did an outstanding job keeping our itinerary in tact. Much of our weather has been cool and rainy with a few days of sunshine.
Viking didn’t warn us a few years ago that the rivers were low and they knew because they had been bussing people on previous cruises. They bussed us all over Europe which caused us to pack and unpack multiple times. No cruising, just bussing. It was our second Viking cruise. When we complained they said they would give us 25% off a future cruise. As if we’d ever use Viking again! Going on a Tauck cruise in a week.
Same experience with Viking in 3018. Lack of transparency and unwillingness to compensate for list cruising days other than discounts on future trips. No way using them again.
We depart from Amsterdam to Budapest on a 2-week Viking river cruise. Keeping our fingers crossed about the water levels ???
We depart from Amsterdam to Budapest in 12 days (Avalon). I will be very interested in any information you might post on your journey concerning water levels.
we have that same trip panned on July 18 – Amsterdam to Budapest on Viking, pease advise of water conditions if you can ….
We are currently on the Danube (just started a Budapest to Amsterdam cruise. In Vienna today . No problems so far. But are hearing comments because of the warm weather ( up to 28 in Budapest 25 in Vienna . Snow may be melting and rivers rising but nothing official.
Just ended a Scenic cruise in Budapest. High water on the Danube south of Regensburg prevented passage and forced bussing us to a ship-swap downstream. Water in Budapest is high, bust passable. It’s water upstream – and low historic bridges that are problems
May I ask how far downstream you were bused? Passau? Thank you.
We just completed a river cruise on the Gironde estuary, where the Bordeaux river cruises go to the Dordogne and Garonne rivers. Water levels were just fine, and we had no problems. It was another great river cruise in France!
Great article and information. We just booked our first River Cruise which is scheduled for early September 2019 on the Rhine. Being from the States, we had no idea that there were issues with water levels on the Rhine. I guess we’ll keep our fingers crossed for a wet summer in Europe… 🙂
There are limited tools online for checking and predicting water levels. (See https://www.elwis.de/DE/Karte/#) It takes some effort to discern information and to translate. Most knowledge comes from local Dockmasters and Captains in the area. Like Ralph is saying it can be very unpredictable. I like to quote our friend and longtime Cruise Director on the rivers, Roland Noordermeer, “The Danube can at times rise/fall 3 or more meters in 24 hours.” Just an hour of rain can make the difference on whether a ship can pass a certain point. I just looked at the above link and there are no High/Low water issues between Frankfurt and Nuremberg.
Here’s a good map of Germany showing the actual water levels. The technical term is “Pegelstand” or “Pegelstände”
https://www.wetteronline.de/pegelstaende?gid=HES
At present I’m on the River Main near Wuerzburg and it’s raining hard. But the Main is generally a regulated river anyway.
Sabine
On 23 May 2019 I rode my bicycle along the Danube between Deggendorf and Straubing. The river level appeared to be fairly high. That is it was just touching the lower path adjoining the river. The current appeared strong, there was quite a bit of flotsam and the regulating weirs appeared to be controlling river levels. Strangely I did not see a single tourist river cruise or commercial barge all day. See what tomorrow brings on the way to Regensburg.
how do you translate to English on wetteronline.com ??
Sabine, thank you for the info! How can I get the website translated into English?
If you use Google Chrome as your search engine, and are logged in, there will be a prompt by Google asking if you wish to translate to English.
May 9, 2019. Water levels on the Rhône and Saone for our AmaCello sailing we’re fine.
April 28, 2019. Water levels on the Seine for our Uniworld Joie de Vivre sailing to Normandy we’re good. Smooth sailing!
Great to hear Cindy! Thanks for letting us know.
Currently in Rhine…. no problems. If anything, levels are higher than
normal. Beautiful weather!
Thanks KathyD for the update.
Just finished a Uniworld cruise on the Danube [April 28 to May 10, 2019], water levels were pretty high, some areas were at the top of the bank.
Thanks for letting us know Randil.
Boarded the Scenic Ruby April 21st For a Rhine river cruise, Basel to Amsterdam..
Water levels were fine. The cruise was fantastic!
Appreciate you Ken!
You’re luckier than we were. We took the Budapest to Amsterdam cruise with Scenic last October and spent 2 weeks being hauled around Europe on buses. We went from hotel to ship #1 to ship #2 to hotel #2 to ship #3, spending an average of 6 hours a day on buses (one memorable day was 10 hours). Scenic’s only warning was an email the day before our departure saying that we would be put up in a hotel the first night then the cruise would resume. It never did. It was a terrible and extremely expensive ‘vacation’. We understand nature happens but on day #3 when we still hadn’t moved from the dock, my husband asked the cruise director when was the last time they had a normal cruise and he said “May”. So they absolutely knew we were going on a ‘bus cruise’ and didn’t tell us, kept stringing us along with promises (lies) and were totally unresponsive to our distress. Most of us got sick from being on the buses so much, but couldn’t even rest on the ship, we had to get up early nearly every morning to get on another bus going to the next ship or hotel. Their insurance company refunded us $3,165 for a cruise that cost over $20,000. Scenic’s motto should be “you pay for a limousine, we deliver a bicycle”
Your comment was very helpful. Given the choice between bus tour and river cruise, Avalon allowed us to cancel our October 2018 cruise from Basil to Amsterdam, with a full refund including trip insurance and a credit toward any Avalon cruise in 2019. We’re going in July from Luxemberg to Amsterdam.
Our Avalon cruise was canceled last July (or we could have done the bus tour). We were given a full refund, including trip insurance, but we were NOT offered any credit toward another cruise. We couldn’t get the same cruise but are leaving May 29 from Amsterdam to Zurich on the Rhine and Moselle (same # of days as previous reservation). This cruise is about $2000. more per person and no discount offered. I’m not sure why because we asked for discount due to cancelled cruise.
We sailed from Basal to Amsterdam in November 2018. before we left we were informed of the possible disruptions because of the low water levels and given a choice to cancel at no charge or continue. We continued as our flights were already booked and we did spend 2 nights in hotels all at Avalons expense. we also received 50 % of our money back and a discount on our next cruise to be taken before then end of next year.
Just took the Emerald Liberte down the Rhône from Lyon to Arles & the water levels were fine. In fact, everything about that cruise was fine!
Gold star for you! Thanks Meg for helping our community with your comments.
Since my cabin was below the water line, all I saw was water. Brown, murky water. Next time it will be an Ocean Cruise.
You need a better cabin! Thanks for commenting though.
We just returned from a Viking cruise from Nuremburg to Budapest. The water levels were fine… no problems. The only impact to the cruise was that there was dock work underway in Nuremberg so on arrival day we were bussed to the next stop (Regensberg). The first day tour of Nuremberg was via coach (which I thought was fine). All on all, it was a wonderful trip… highly recommended!
which river cruise were you on? we are still in a toss between viking and Uniworld for June 2019 on the Rhine
[email protected]
We did “Romantic Danube” from Viking.
Are booked on Viking’s Romantic Danube starting in Budapest with a pre cruise extension on May 30/19. Hope the water levels continue to be good.
Hey Barb – how is it going. We are booked for the Danube Waltz cruise from Budapest beginning June 8 on the Viking Legend. Would appreciate hearing of your experience.
I’ve travelled with Uniworld quite a few times and I think they are very good.
They are excellent & have great customer service.
We completed the Viking Romantic Danube on the Atla from Nuremberg to Budapest on May 5. Water level was fine. Boarded in Nuremberg on April 28th and there were no construction issues there. Crew was great! Best of 5 river cruises we’ve taken….first Viking.
Thank you Rhonda! Very helpful.
I went on a Christmas Markets of the Rhine River in December, 2018 with Grand Circle starting on the M/S Melody. Water level on the Rhine was too low for our ship to sail through the gorge, so Grand Circle gave us the optional Heidelberg full day tour including lunch for free while we swapped ships to the Rhapsody. We were bused to some of the markets, but Grand Circle gave us lunch money so we didn’t have to return to the ship until dinner time. I was very happy with the Program Director and Boston Office solution, and they also gave us a credit on a future trip as an apology. All in all a very good solution to the problem. Thanks Grand Circle!
Thanks for sharing this Lynn. Sounds like Grand Circle handled it really well.
I am leaving for my first River Cruise on AMA May 19, 2019 from Passau to Budapest. Hoping for good water levels. ??. It’s a wine cruise so regardless of high or low levels in the river, we plan to enjoy ourselves! ?. Cheers!
We are going on the same cruise at the end of June. Please let us know how your trip goes.
It will be our first river cruise,I am worried about the water level.
You will love AMA. Top notch service and food. We did one of the initial Bordeaux cruises in 2016. We are scheduled to do Melodies of Danube in the fall. Let us know about the water levels and your cruise! Enjoy
I sailed GCT and we sailed two day on The Great River trip. Sat at dock for four days. No ship transfer. Other ship at dock with Viking was making swap. Does anyone know which cruise lines offer ship swap? I don’t want to sit at dock for days again!
We are doing Basil to Amsterdam Viking in 3 weeks. Updated water levels – anyone?
Thank you
We just finished a Viking river cruise from Amsterdam to Basel and water levels were perfect. The weather could have been a little warmer but other than that, the trip was everything we hoped it would be.
What is Grand Circle?
Our Grand Circle cruise last November was cancelled 14 days before it was set to sail. We were told it was due to very low water levels. Grand Circle reimbursed us our cruise costs, air fare and even paid for 2 nights hotel we had booked. They also gave us 1000.00 credit. While disappointed we could not be more pleased with how Grand Circle handled the situation. Bussing and ship swapping are things we would have not been interested in doing. We have rebooked for this November and are leaving next week on a Grand Circle Rhine cruise from Amsterdam. GC provides excellent value and customet service.
We were booked on Grand Circle river cruise Vienna to Amsterdam last July 2018. We were never notified that there was possibility that the water level in the Danube might be too low before leaving and it wasn’t until we were in Vienna that we were informed the cruise was cancelled and a bus trip substituted. We decided to bail out and eventually GC reimbursed all but our airfare to and from Vienna. Since we’d had good luck with GC in the past we are trying again for the river cruise June 18 starting in Amsterdam and have fingers crossed for good water levels. Anyone else booked at that time?
We are doing same trip in August. We will wait and see on the water levels – not too much you can do about it, this far out.
We too were scheduled to depart last August, and Grand Circle called us the day before. We were reimbursed within 48 hours for all of our costs. Giving it the ole College Try for this year!
We have booked a Viking Budapest to Amsterdam cruise for May 2020. From all of you experienced cruisers out there…..should we be concerned about water levels in the month of May? Thanks.
2017 we did that trip on Viking. A couple times getting under a bridge was very close due to rains raising the water level. Otherwise, the trip went well. We were told when we arrived in Amsterdam in a downpour of rain that we did the trip in the best direction. The weather tends to go towards Budapest from Holland. The people about to embark would probably have the rain stay with them a while.
Our friends did an Amsterdam to Budapest trip in June a few years ago with Viking. They had to change ships at Passau with the sister ship travelling in the opposite direction because they couldn’t get under the bridge, due to high water levels.
They said it was no problem, packing their bags in the morning, leaving them in their rooms for the staff to handle. They went on their scheduled excursion and returned to the other ship where they found their luggage in the same numbered room, just had to unpack.
To me it seems to be the luck of the draw……I have my fingers crossed that our postoned trip for December 2019 goes ahead.
Good luck, all seems fine at the moment.
No. Your cruise is too far out to worry about water levels. Start checking levels in the Danube in November if you are concerned. Buy trip insurance! Your cruise company cannot control rainfall or guarantee a full river cruise. River cruising in Europe is one of the riskiest gambles in travel. Very, very safe but how the company deals with trip modifications can very from trip to trip. Good Luck. Leo
We are due to embark on our very first river cruise with Evergreen in September 2019. We are really looking forward to the experience and will take the water level situation as is. It cannot be controlled and will enjoy the experience what ever it is
Am finding these posts very helpful 🙂
We travelled with Scenic River Cruises Oct 2013 from Amsterdam to Budapest and had no trouble at all, the rivers were fine.
We are now about to embark on another Scenic River Cruise departing 12 June 2019 fro Nuremberg to Budapest, so am hopeful the rivers will a gain be fine, sounds like levels may be returninf to being okay?
Any updated information would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you. We’d also like to hear how the water levels are during your June voyage if you wouldn’t mind letting us know. I will email you my info but you can also post here.
Hi Ralph,
We have a Viking Budapest to Amsterdam planned for May 2020. Should we be concerned about water levels in the month of May?
Thanks.
Jim Rose
Not at all – at least not now. Too early to predict, but generally spring should be fine.
We were on the Viking Cruise from Budapest to Nuremberg May 25-June 2. We had some rain the first 3 or 4 days. River levels were high but ok until getting close to Passau, and we were alerted that there might be a need for a ship swap. Fortunately we made it through based on the efforts of a great crew. The cruise was wonderful and hope yours will be too!
We are taking a Viking river cruise Amsterdam-Budapestat at the end of May; how can I find out the river water levels. I understand by the comments, that Viking does not do anything until a couple of days before the trip. Not an encouraging feeling.
Any comments welcome. Thamks
You can’t find out about future water levels. Water levels are subject to change. Right now they’re good, but no one can predict. Insure your trip.
Insurance fine print is scary. Water level insurance is iffy. They won’t cancel the trip when they can offer bussing options so the insurance companies don’t see the trip as cancelled because it is not. Any advice on how to get effective insurance that might actually pay out would be very helpful. Thanks.
Buy insurance with a private company out side the cruise line
We did a cruise with Scenic in Nov 2018. We were unable to continue on the Danube due to low water levels so we were bused to venues and taken to a couple of hotels. Scenic’s insurance refunded us $2800 without any drama at all. Everyone received a refund depending on the value if their original booking. It was still a wonderful experience. We loved it. Good luck with your trip.
We went the reverse of your trip last September and motor coached twice and switched bots once. It was actually quite exciting seeing a back country and only missed 1/2 day and two nights that would have been spent on the boat but we’re at first class hotels in Amsterdam and Budapest. We got $3500 each credit for our “troubles”. We are going to use it on Bucharest to Budapest this Spring. I hope we have a day on the motor coach again. My advice- look at as an adventure and try to do the same thing if there is an option
Our trip in October from Amsterdam to Basel was also interrupted with a switch in ships. We found out just a week or so before our trip but know that it was not the fault of the cruise line. All cruise lines had the same issue. Viking could not have done a better job keeping us entertained during the swap. They booked an entire restaurant for our lunch and it was wonderful. They even booked a small riverboat cruise with lunch included so we could still see the castles in Germany. When we met up with our new ship there was a lady outside with warm fragrant towels to wipe our hands/faces. Inside the ship the crew was ringing bells, cheering and holding up “Welcome Home” signs. It was our first Viking cruise and we were very impressed with every aspect of the trip.
Great story. Thank you!
Thank you for Yr comments.
Hubby & I are booked in with Vikkings, Budapest to Amsterdam in August. Reassuring that Vikkings looked after their passengers in low tide conditions.
My husband and I are also going in August. Very concerned about water levels simply because I don’t do well on buses.
See you there!
Good attitude Don. Thanks for sharing!
If you get that email 2-3 days before departure, I would cancel. We took a Viking cruise in October, 2018 Swiss Alps to Paris and it was terrible. Up early every morning to get on bus, then hours on end to destination, a quick tour then back on bus to docked boat in time for late dinner. Some days as long as 10.5 hours. Repeat next day. Those who paid extra for veranda and balcony rooms, and those who paid for expensive beverage packages were out of luck. Viking would not reimburse them even though there was no time on ship except to eat and sleep. We were totally exhausted and physically sick by the time we got home. Viking reimbursed us $500 of a $10K cruise.
Did you have the trip insurance in order to get that refund?
Booking a European river cruise is like going to a casino and putting all your money on 1 number on the roulette wheel 6 months to a year before they spin the wheel! No one can predict what the water levels will be so don’t worry about it. The major cruise companies deal fairly well with water level issues. A river cruise traveler MUST be flexible and adaptable. I have done 5 cruises in 12 years. 3 had to be modified due to water levels. I repeat. Don’t worry just enjoy your trip ad it evolves.
Anyone have any updated information on the Rhine River water levels between Amsterdam and Basel Switzerland? Our trip is coming up in early April and wanted to know current conditions?
Current conditions are perfect. I’ve spoken with reps in Europe last week.
Thank you for the update!
Following up on the Rhine river cruise we did with Viking April 7-14. The water levels were fantastic as was the cruise. We thoroughly enjoyed the experience! Hope the water levels continue to remain perfect for the year.
Thank you. My husband and I are cruising Viking Amsterdam to Basel June 30-July 9. Hoping we have smooth sailing in the Rhine. We are excited about our first Viking cruise!
We have been on a number of river boat cruises with one cancelled trip this past October due to low rivers. Can we bet that ealier in the year gives us good chance of clear cruising?
What we know is that the rivers are at normal levels now. It’s impossible to predict. But we have reports from our contacts on the ground in Europe and things are good now.
Went thru all comments. All but two referenced Danube, Rhine, etc.
Any comments on spring cruises on the Rhône? More concerned with high water level issues due to rain and snow melt.
Ditto, Chris! High is fine but low scares me. Has the winter snow been enough to replenish the summer drought and low levels of the Rhine?
I am taking the Emerald Christmas Cruise in December 2019 – Budapest to Amsterdam- can anyone tell me if their Christmas Cruises were interrupted by low water levels in December 2018?
I do not know about Emerald and 2018, but my Viking cruise was briefly interrupted during a Christmas Markets cruise a few years ago. There was a bridge that we could not get under but we waited it out and eventually proceeded.
We are on Riviera cruise from Budapest to the Black Sea in 10 days time and I’m wondering how the Danube is on that stretch of the river.
We took an Amawaterways cruise in early November 2017 from Budapest to Vilshofen and had no problems. I realize it’s a year off your requested timeline but thought it may be a data point for you.
Thanks for letting us know too!
We cruised with Viking, Rhine, November -Dec 2018, Christmas Markets Cruise.
The Rhine was very low, we had to transfer ships day two of the cruise.
We also missed 3 city stops and spent a lot of time on buses.
Not ideal. Viking offered a small compensation, but it wasn’t commensurate with the issues that we experienced.
We took a river cruise the end of November 2018 on the Danube and had to transfer twice to another ship due to low water levels. The first time was not a big deal, 45 minute drive but the second time it was a few hours drive. Because of the long drive, most optional excursions were cancelled in Budapest.
What portion of the river were you on and in which direction?
Hi Gary, We booked APT Amsterdam-Budapest cruise for December 2018 which didn’t go ahead as planned due to low water levels in both the Rhine & Danube rivers. We were offered and alternate cruise of The Netherlands & Belgium with a flight to Vienna & bus to Budapest OR Refund OR rebooking for 2019 and 2018 prices.
We chose to rebook for 6 December 2019 and are hoping the water levels won’t be too low two years running.
We couldn’t however cancel any other travel, on insurance (without penalty) as they had offered and alternative.
We chose to travel Amsterdam to Zurich, do a tour of Switzerland with Insight which was magical in the snow, fly to Vienna and train to Budapest. It turned out to be a wonderful trip and we are looking forward to our cruise of the Rhine Valley & train trip to Salzburg 2019.
Hi Gary,
I am currently looking for reviews for an upcoming 2020 river cruise to Africa. I like this site for its objective and balanced view. I ran across another review site that seems to have many reviews about the water level problems in December of 2018, so that may be helpful. In reading the comments, my takeaways are the lack of transparency & communication to passengers before, during and after the cruise. Also, compensation seems lacking when due and not as promised, regardless of travel insurance purchased. Keep in mind that the small number of reviews compared to the large number of travelers means that folks already dissatisfied have found a place to vent. I wouldn’t necessarily throw the baby out with the bathwater, as the saying goes. The cruise lines can’t control the water levels, of course, but they don’t seem to have a good backup plan when things go awry.
We did one cruise on the Danube from Budapest to Vilshofen with Amawaterways in Nov. 2017 and had a fabulous experience; we just returned from the Mekong with Ama, as well. We are now looking at South Africa; not sure if we’ll do a river cruise since they only offer 3 and 4 nights, then the rest is a land package, so we may just do a land package. I’m still looking into customer satisfaction with land tour companies; objective reviews are difficult to find.
Good luck on your trip; the best advice I can offer is research, research, research.
If you choose a land package, I can tell you that a Botswana safari we did with International Expeditions a couple of years ago was the best trip of my life. The camps were beautiful and modern and the morning and evening safari outings were terrific. It’s not as crowded as some other popular areas in Africa so we weren’t trying to view wildlife behind 6 other jeeps. There were only six of us in our group & we were able to spend lots of time with the lions, elephants, leopards etc. It was heaven.
We did a Christmas Market Cruise in November-December 2018 from Budapest to Amsterdam. The ship was unable to make in to Budapest which resulted in going by bus to Vienna and missing four ports of call in Bratislava, and Austria. Our ship was in Regensburg where we boarded on Day 3 and ended up doing two German ports twice. Certainly not ideal but we talked to many people on different cruises that were in the same “boat”.
We did a Christmas river Cruise in Dec 2017 with Avalon. Prague to Vienna No problems with water levels. Loved every minute of the cruise being Australian our first “ cold Christmas. Loved the Christmas markets spent extra 4 days in Budapest wonderful
City. now understand why Gluewein is such a big seller certainly warms you up!! Enjoy
I recently came back from a river cruise very confused as why and how so many of the passengers were left in the dark on cruise the conditions of the river they were on. They had purchased a vacation that had been having multiple ship swaps and countless hours of bussing for multiple cruises prior to theirs this unavoidable. But the the fact that no one told them how routinely this was happening was very avoidable. Past cruises were very vocal about their ship swaps in the same spots
During the cruise it came to light that these particularly low spots had been too low to cruise for a lengthy amount of time leading up to our cruise.
The cruise company we we used confirmed (after the cruise) that they were banking on rain that never materialized and that was why they did not inform passengers earlier.
I have asked the company we cruised with: When they were last able to successfully cruise the low areas we encountered. They avoided answering.
Is this communication with passengers reflective of the river cruise industry as a whole?
What are questions a first time consumer should research or ask in order to find a company that is reputable in the industry.
Or is this relatively standard procedure when it comes to the river cruise industry.
We’re back and it was fabulous. Sailed the Amaserena the entire itinerary from Nuremberg to Budapest. Yay! Super thx Captain Christian.
12/10/18 We are able to sail from Heidelberg to Cologne on Viking. Cruise staff said it’s the first time in 4 months they’ve been able to make it down the river this far. After uncertain initial few days, we are very happy for the rain and no disruption in our Rhine river cruise!
Sailed on Viking from Passau to Budapest on 11/29. There was rain in Vienna (raising the Danube just enough) and our cruise was not interrupted. Our cruise was fabulous from beginning to end.
from Amawaterways…
Update (December 4th, 2018): We are very happy to report that with the recent rainfall in Europe, the water levels on the Rhine and Danube have risen dramatically over the past few days. We anticipate returning to scheduled itineraries for all cruises embarking December 7th onward*.
Heart-felt thanks to all our travel partners and guests for their patience and understanding and our remarkable onboard crews who continued throughout this period of low water to deliver an exceptional vacation experience for our guests.
*to be confirmed: AmaLea Iconic Christmas Markets – embarkation in Nuremberg on December 9th, 2018
That is such a relief to hear!
Does anyone know what month the low water levels became an issue this year on the eastern stretch of the Danube? Trying to plan for next year.
The Danube has been at record lows. It started May/June
When water levels are “low” cruising requires ship swaps . In our case we were on 3 boats.
Earlier in the season some cruises required 4 and 5 ship swaps.
The problem areas to inquire on are: geographically listed ***west going east ***
***same low spots apply but reverse order. I have listed low spots of one was starting in Nuremberg ending in Budapest.
1) ***Ragensburg to Passau.
Straubing to Passau is 3-four hours round trip
Coming from the east: Krems To Passau
2) **Straubing to Ybbs
(Straubing to Ybbs : bus transport)
Approximately 4 hour bus route.
**Vienna to Budapest.
(Bus route taken for this entire stretch of river)
Approximately 4 hour bus route.
Sherri we were on Viking in Early August from Budapest to Amsterdam and we were told we would have 1 ship swap, that happened as did numerous bus drives lasting 5 -6 hours and we missed 4 towns. For 2019, I suggest looking at river levels in the early part of the season due to the high snow falls in Germany. Flooding could present issues too. Good luck!
Thanks for the information
Currently on Danube with Riviera cruises.
Moored in Budapest and going nowhere.
Thanks for sharing! Sorry that you’re docked 🙁
You’re welcome.
Apparently Riviera “had no idea” this might happen. 🙁
#dowebelievethemboysandgirls
We’ve booked the Danube for May of 2019, in ll your wisdom, that can you predict?
We booked Ama Watetways on the Danube in April 2019 🙂 Does anyone out there have good news?
Have been reading all the hassle stories about the low level waterways and cruise problems…wondering if these issues also occurred in the early spring (May) too? We were hoping to book our trip on the Danube, but I definitely DO NOT want to end up on buses!!!!!!!—Thanks for any advice…
Anybody currently sailing with Viking on the Rhine Getaway, Basel to Amsterdam? How are water levels affecting the cruise?
As of yesterday, no interruptions! Happy to report lots of rain and first time the ship can make it through to Cologne.
Contrary to popular belief, ones river cruise WILL be significantly impacted due to extreme water level fluctuations. The main reason people want to spend big bucks on a river cruise is to actually be on the river. If the river cruise ship is significantly impacted either by high or low water levels then buses will be utilized. Bus trips would be my very last choice for a vacation. The river cruise company should significantly reimburse the vacationers for the inconvenience, or notify the vacationers before the trip with money refunded, or applied to a different date. Question, Is this a novel idea??
PS (post script). One of our friends did experience the bus trip nightmare. Actually they did get one day on the river only the cruise ship ran into a bridge with all passengers on board.
I cruised the Danube in early Oct. with Viking, and our trip was impacted by low water, although not as badly as some earlier cruises. And no, your suggestion isn’t a novel one, but it’s certainly not anything you’re going to get from Viking. The only thing they offered was 25% off our NEXT cruise! And although the water level had been an issue since at least August, they waited until 3 days before the cruise to let us know there MIGHT be an impact, and then told us the day before that there would be. Other cruise lines were more timely and generous in how they handled the situation.
We cruised in early August and we were told water levels were an issue in July. All up, lies, deception and bus trips, certainly not a river cruise we were expecting. No reasonable notice or information provided before or after the cruise.
We were schedule on Great Rivers with Grand Circle last August. They called the day before we were leaving and cancelled the trip. We were totally refunded within 48 Hours. Just rebooked for this August ad they were having a great deal of free airfare and free 4 dat extension. Keeping fingers crossed this is a GO. I have a friend in Germany now and they said the rivers are fine
Had you been reading social media pages, you’d have known the mid and late September Viking cruises were canceled altogether. While there were some cabins on Oct/Nov cruises, they wouldn’t even let us change to those. We leave soon for another try at a river cruise.
In a bit of GOOD news, it would appear that AMA is operating scheduled itineraries. I got communication from both my travel agent and an AMA rep. My eDocs were received this morning too. I was told that there is no anticipated change and that my sailing (Dec 14th Nuremburg to Budapest) on the AMASerena is still set to go as per original plan. Hopeful.
What was your actual experience
We have returned. All went perfectly Mike 🙂
Hello! I’m set to leave on the Viking Danube Cruise Dec 8 and just got the email that the course may be disrupted. I am freaking out and am considering canceling- anyone go recently or have any advice? I have travel insurance
See my reply below to Nancy Gibson.
This is a German government river depth guide-You will be bussed more than you will be on the river cruising!
https://www.bafg.de/EN/06_Info_Service/01_WaterLevels/waterlevels_node.html
I did the Danube Waltz cruise on Oct. 9th, and like you, only received notice about this right before leaving. We spent the first night on a different ship, then the next day got bussed 4 hours to Vienna where our boat was, which meant our afternoon excursion in Budapest was canceled. To do our Bratislava tour meant a 1-1/2 hour bus trip. From Vienna our itinerary was as scheduled.
Not sure how the water levels are now, but I can tell you that Viking has not been as good about handling this with regard to compensation and notice as some of the other lines.
I have a question for all those who has the bus replacement due to low waters: what did you do about laundry? We are doing the Christmas Rhine cruise soon and are traveling with our young daughter. I loathe spending excessive money on hotel laundry services (we recently had to pay $100 USD at the Four Seasons!) and after reading all these comments, it doesn’t look like onboard laundry will be an option. I want to pack as light as possible in the event we have to truck our luggage back and forth from bus to hotel but in doing so, it means we need to have laundry facilities somewhere, At least once. Any suggestions would be appreciated!
we, too, travel light. Agree hotel laundry options are very expensive. We just check and the hotel and ask for a local laudromat. Takes about an hour to do ourselves . Good to go
I will be sailing December 14-21 from Budapest to Nuremberg on the Danube for a Christmas cruise. I am getting so nervous. I was never notified by AMA until I went into the booking and saw the low water level notification. I have no idea what to expect. I have been reading horror stories with regard to bussing people, staying at multiple hotels, not even cruising…. Has anybody been redirected? Are you still sailing?
We are booked on the November 30 trip from Budapest to Nuremberg on the AmaViola. We received a “low water level” notification from Ama on November 14, and are awaiting final notification as to which itinerary we’ll be on. According to the letter we received, if they have to alter the itinerary due to water levels, we will sail from Budapest to Vilshofen, with an extra night in Vienna. It does not appear that there will be any ship changes or bussing, other than the transfer from Vilshofen to Nuremberg.
I’ve heard the same thing. My agent called as well and we were told the office was affected given the California wildfires but they will be sending electronic documents.
I am crossing my fingers for more rain. We still have two weeks!
Yes. I feel badly about the fire and concern for the staff and loved ones affected but surely they are able to operate out of an alternate location. It is 11 sleeps until we leave and not a word from AMA.
I hear you. I’m in Cali (about 80 miles North of where the fire was – so got a lot of the smoke here – which is finally washed away with days of welcome rain). We’re sailing Dec 15th (Christmas Markets on the Rhine) on AmaPrima and I’ve yet to receive any update or even final confirmation from Ama. Just emailed my travel agent again. I would have expected to receive something by now – even some sort of final “pre-cruise” package like we get with ocean cruises…
We are due to sail 8th Dec on AmaPrima Basel to Amsterdam we have been told Rhine Gorge
water levels are to low for this trip. Looks like a trip round Holland and Belgium . As the same as last week for the AmaPrima & Amakristina.
@ George – Looks like we’re embarking as you’re disembarking. Is there a sample itinerary for the “trip round Holland and Belgium” you’re referring to? I’ve heard NOTHING from Amawaterways yet! < 2 weeks. Waiting for my travel agent to get back from her own river cruise (Bangkok) and get me some sort of update.
Hi Leslie
Awaiting email Thursday 6th December confirming which route the AmaPrima will be taking we are due to join in Basel Saturday have been given 2 options
1 fly to Basel train to Cologne to join ship .
2 fly to Basel train to Zurich and fly to Amsterdam.
I am following the AmaPrima on Cruise mapper.com and at the moment it is in Cologne .will be able to let know which way it is going tonight when it leaves .
Tuesday 4th
Amaprima in the Rhine Gorge heading for Ruidshiem
Good news
Glad to hear things are moving! Are you seeing other passengers ships (as large as yours) on the Rhine?
Hi Ralph
I’m using an App to track ships on the Rhine as we are joining the AmaPrima on the 8thDec in Basel , but we’re told last week that it would be a different voyage as the Rhine Gorge was suffering from low water,it would appear the rain of the last few days has improved conditions.
Noted a couple Viking Ships have also managed to get through the Gorge. Hope this helps .
George
More Cruise ships heading for the Gorge
At 16:00 Amsterdam bound .
Thanks for the update and enjoy your cruise!
Got my travel docs last night. So far no changes in itinerary. According Weather.com they’re finally getting rain, so…? Just looked at Cruisemapper (great idea, George – why didn’t I think of it!) and AmaPrima is just north of Speyer. Seems to be quite a few ships all up & down the Rhine.
Glad to hear your news ,we have been on the AmaPrima before and have sailed with Ama 4 times previously,they are a great company and look after the clients very well.
Hope you enjoy trip to Europe & the Rhine
Regards
George
Nice to hear from someone (a repeat passenger even!) who’s been on Amaprima. We’ve done several ocean cruises over the years, but this is our first river cruise. Thanks for all the comments. Will watch for your postings on your trip next week. Bon Voyage!
Promising news! Thanks for the update. My travel agent (who was out of the country until yesterday) says she receieved my travel docs from Ama and wants to set a meeting – I assume to communicate any route changes. Hoping to get with her today.
Wednesday update email from AmaWaterways
Confirming trip from Basel to Amsterdam as Rhine Gorge now passable.
Enjoy your trip .
We are doing the AMA cruise the same dates but reverse direction. It is now less than two weeks out and we still have no travel documents. We are getting antsy. But I spoke with my travel agent who has been in communication with AMA. Apparently Nuremburg is the problem and the cruise line may have to use Vilshoven (sp?) instead with an extra night in Vienna. It will mean missing Nuremburg and the holiday market but we are hoping this would be the extent of changes. Remember though Beth, as indicated above, AMA ships require less draft to operate. Fingers crossed.
Beth, I just got communication from AMA that my Dec 14th sailing (Nuremburg to Budapest) is going ahead with no anticipated disruptions as of today.
Excellent!!! I just got my documents yesterday. Very happy
https://www.bafg.de/EN/06_Info_Service/01_WaterLevels/waterlevels_node.html
German river depth guide You will be bussed!
We are scheduled for Viking River Cruise from Passau to Budapest leaving December 5, 2018. Are any ships sailing on the Danube? Thanks.
We are on the same cruise departing Passau on November 30th. I received a notification from Viking today that reads,
“From Vienna on Day 6, you will travel to Bratislava by motorcoach (50 miles) to continue your shore excursion program then return to your ship in Vienna. On the morning of Day 7, we will likely need to disembark the ship in Vienna and travel by motorcoach to Budapest (150 miles). Following your shore excursion program, you will overnight on an identical sister ship for the last night of your itinerary.”
The email goes on to read that we will be given a 25% off voucher for a future cruise.
Hope this helps. Not the worst case and the drives should be beautiful..
Thanks Sheri, it sure could be worse. Enjoy your cruise.
Thanks Sheri,
It sure could be worse. Enjoy your cruise.
This sounds like exactly what happened on my Oct. 9th cruise, just in the opposite direction. Just one caveat–the drive between Vienna and Budapest, which took about 4 hours, was anything but beautiful(I had hoped we’d at least get to see some of the countryside)–it was all on a major highway like any American interstate. Very boring.
Our cruise ended in Budapest uninterrupted and was wonderful. I’m sorry yours was not able to navigate the Danube for the entirety of your cruise.
In October 2018, my husband and I took a Viking river cruise to nowhere. Our cruise ship NEVER left the dock because of low water on the Rhine, and now we are fighting with Viking to be fairly reimbursed. We could not board in Basal, so we were bussed to the next port in Speyer, Germany. We had a veranda view of the embankment for 7 days. Every day, we were led to believe the ship would sail the next day. That day never came. Instead we were bussed through Europe on highways to each port city, then bussed back to our ship in Speyer. Round-trip bus rides got longer each day to ports farther and farther away. Round trips went from 4 hours on a bus to 6, 8, and 10 hours on a freaking bus! Our final destination was Paris. We boarded the bus in the morning and arrived there in time for dinner, which counted as one day in Paris. We tried very hard to make the most of what was to be a trip of a lifetime to celebrate our 40th anniversary, including upgrading to the premium drink package. Truth be told, the experience on the bus was miserable and the experience dealing with Viking in the aftermath is miserable. The blame lies with Viking for withholding the truth about water levels so low that cruising wasn’t possible. Bussing is no substitute when you sign up for a river cruise. Shame on Viking.
Thanks for your feedback. We were scheduled to cruise on Viking from November 28 from Paris to Zurich arrving on December 8th. We received notice from Viking about low water levels about week before our trip. We canceled. To Vikings credit they strongly recommended we take out the insurance – which we did- our claim is currently pending. The young lady we spoke with at Viking understood our reluctance to spend $15K+ for a bus tour of Europe. The down side is we missed seeing a French riot first hand. 🙂
Just wondering–did Viking give you full refund? What about airfare? Were you reimbursed for that if you cancelled? I know they don’t give you the insurance money back. Did you get the insurance through Viking? We are looking at a trip end of October, 2019 from Budapest. Thanks.
Gail
Has anyone an update on the effects of the low water levels? I’m departing Amsterdam to Budapest in a little over 1 week
We are or were doing this trip on December 8th and have been sent alternative arrangements which involve a trip around Holland and Belgium for 11 nights then flying to Vienna and then coaching to Budapest. We are not happy but it is better than nothing. They did say however that they will be watching the water levels in case they get better. We could have waited until next year to do the same for the same price but with no guarantee that next year would be any better we decided to go ahead.
Ann, It sounds as though you were travelling with Ama or APT here in Australia. Did you enjoy your cruise through Holland and Belgium or did they cruise Amsterdam to Budapest as planned. Looks as though others may have. We opted to postpone to December 6, 2019.
We had to make a quick decision as we were given the itinerary on the Friday, making our alternate plans on the Saturday then left Sydney on the Tuesday. In total 1 weeks notice of disruption. No cancellation of cruise, so no cancellation of airfares without penalty. We had a wonderful trip in Switzerland and are looking forward to our cruise later this year.
At the recommendation of “River Cruise Advisor” we chose the Danube for our first river cruise. After reviewing the offerings of the various cruise operators we chose Viking and must say that after all the low river problems we experienced we would again, and already have, booked another Viking cruise! More to follow on that.
The synopsis of low water experiences, and more specifically derogatory comments about Viking, that was emailed the other day certainly did not reflect our feelings towards Viking. We were notified by our travel agent a week plus before the departure that there may be problems due to low water. We subsequently received an email from Viking reflecting the same information. While there was a slight increase in the river level during our cruise it was not enough to prevent water levels from impacting the cruise. That being said, we are glad we continued on with the cruise!
Comments were made in the email about Viking and refunds, which were dramatically different from our experience. Going in the email we received from Viking prior to departure indicated that there would be a 25% credit towards future cruises. Upon return we received another email that upped that credit to 50%.
During the cruise there was some confusion, as would be totally expected under the conditions, but Viking staff went out of their way to accomodate individual needs.
While we would have appreciated normal river levels, we enjoyed the time of our lives on the cruise and certainly glad that we went ahead with our planned vacation and thanks again to Ralph for recommending the Danube for our first cruise.
Your review makes sense and describes what we were thinking might happen. We are doing the Romantic Danube the end of Oct 2019 and were just talking about strategic packing just in case we have to switch ships or stay in hotels. Fingers crossed that we don’t. Thanks for posting this!
At the recommendation of “River Cruise Advisor” we chose the Danube for our first river cruise. After reviewing the offerings of the various cruise operators we chose Viking and must say that after all the low river problems we experienced we would again, and already have, booked another Viking cruise! More to follow on that.
The synopsis of low water experiences, and more specifically derogatory comments about Viking, that was emailed the other day certainly did not reflect our feelings towards Viking. We were notified by our travel agent a week plus before the departure that there may be problems due to low water. We subsequently received an email from Viking reflecting the same information. While there was a slight increase in the river level during our cruise it was not enough to prevent water levels from impacting the cruise. That being said, we are glad we continued on with the cruise!
Comments were made in the email about Viking and refunds, which were dramatically different from our experience. Going in the email we received from Viking prior to departure indicated that there would be a 25% credit towards future cruises. Upon return we received another email that upped that credit to 50%.
During the cruise there was some confusion, as would be totally expected under the conditions, but Viking staff went out of their way to accomodate individual needs.
While we would have appreciated normal river levels, we enjoyed the time of our lives on the cruise and certainly glad that we went ahead with our planned vacation and thanks again to Ralph for recommending the Danube for our first cruise.
Any updates on current conditions on Danube? Scheduled on Viking from Neuremberg to Budapest Dec 8.
We received notification from Crystal Cruise Lines of the low water levels. We are scheduled to leave Amsterdam on November 25, 2018. Instead of canceling the cruise they offered an amended itinerary that is NOT comparable to the original. No longer included: Cologne, Koblenz, Rudesheim (Mechanical Music Museum), Speyer (Heidelberg Castle), Breisach (Black Forest), or Basel (Michelin Star Dining) and (Swiss Chocolate Making).
We understand the river conditions are beyond their control. We chose Crystal to celebrate our one-year anniversary because of their ‘award winning’ customer service. Since the itinerary changed significantly, we asked for a cash refund, which is being denied.
We don’t have the luxury of time to take another cruise in the next two years (and have our money held by Crystal Cruise Lines). It’s hard to believe that consumers have no rights/or protections.
We have trip insurance, but it is also being denied because an alternative NON COMPARABLE itinerary is being offered.
Any advice?
We are also booked on the same itinerary, Tim and hoping the revised tour does go ahead. Celebrating our 25th anniversary and have others trips scheduled after the cruise. Only hoping they do not cancel it, else we will have to create a new itinerary for those 10 days.
We are scheduled to leave for Viking from AMS along rhine. Any more recent updates for those that might have traveled last week? Big disruptions?
We were on a Uniworld cruise from AMS to BAS leaving November 5, 2018 and we probably were the only ship that made the complete trip (with a few modifications). All nights were spent on the ship and we sailed through the complete route. Uniworld was fantastic and the week before, they notified us they had switched our ship and crew (Empress to Princess) which had smaller draft but was exactly the same layout. While we did have to sail slower at times which led to earlier embarkation from some ports, and one changed port, all the day tours left and returned to the Princess which at times sailed while we were touring local towns to make up time because of slower speeds. We did get to sail through the Rhine Gorge and see all the castles, even though it was earlier in the day than originally planed. Throughout the cruise we were updated daily on the itinerary. In each town we met people from the other companies who were on bus trips or had ship swaps with days in hotels rather than cruising. This is our seventh river cruise and I learned again why it is so worth it to carefully pick your river cruise company not just by price and brochures. I now know to check on the height and draft of the ship since the water levels can really ruin a great planned trip.
Currently on Danube with Uniworld. Travel has been fine between Budapest and Vienna. Destined for Passau.
Thanks for info Craig. Is your cruise still on schedule to arrive in Passau?
We completed the journey to Passau without schedule disruptions, although I understand at times the water depth was barely passable. Good job by Uniworld.
We are scheduled to cruise Passau to Budapest on December 8 with Uniworld. Do you think we will have any schedule disruptions because of water level?
Any updates on the Douro for next week?
Anybody on this blog that is presently on the Crystal Ravel River Cruise which was scheduled to travel from Vienna to Basel on Oct. 25th
We were scheduled to be on this cruise but after reading about the low water levels etc. we decided to take one of the three options from Crystal to cancel.
This was a tough decision as we were really looking forward to this cruise but we were very pleased with Crystal for stepping up with three different options.
We are curious on how the cruise is going and would like some feedback from anyone that is on this cruise.
Thank You in advance.
Rich
Water level 368 CM in Linz tonight. Cruised from Bratislava to Linz without issue.
Which ship are you on and how far are you going?
This Is disgraceful and disrespectful behaviour by Viking as we paid for a river cruise not a bus drive and they do not advise until two days before we leave then offer very little compensation it’s time to take a class action
Is this site funded/controlled by the cruise lines? Are critical comments being sanitized? Are cruise line employees posting positive comments about their employers?
Hi George, Comments are not being sanitized. Cruise line employees, to my knowledge, have not left any comments. I’m sure you’ve read through the comments. Many are very critical. What are you seeing that makes you question the comments? Our take is that people are very disappointed and voicing their disappointment.
We did have a system malfunction where 30 comments went to spam – not sure why – but your comment was among those. We discovered the issue and have approved all valid comments that went to spam.
I cannot access comments after October 22. Are there any?
October 22 is the last that I see (aside from yours). There have been no comments since then.
The link to the site that purports to show the currently water levels on European rivers http://rivercruiseinfo.com/content/river-levels is apparently worthless as for weeks it has shown that all water levels are fine.
The link to the site showing water levels http://rivercruiseinfo.com/content/river-levels is apparently worthless as for weeks it has been stating that the water levels are fine on all the tracked rivers.
Thank you. I believe you are correct. We’ve amended our post to note that the site appears not to be accurate.
Our river cruise we are to fly out Friday for has “just pulled the plug” because of low water on the Rhine… wished I had found your website before and not been so shocked tonight. Thank you for the information.
Sorry to hear about your cruise. What cruise line were you using. I’m trying to get AMA Waterways to let me cancel my upcoming Rhine river cruise without penalty. So far they won’t even respond.
Anyone have information about Amadeus Silver II? We are scheduled to cruise from Amsterdam to Basel starting October 28.
We were scheduled on Avalon from Amsterdam to Basel Switzerland this weekend November 27thru October 1, 2018. Avalon just cancelled the cruise.
Just returned from a Viking cruise from Amsterdam to Basel that was deviated because of low water levels on the Rhine. The passengers lost about a day and a half from their journey because of packing, unpacking and being bussed to the other ship’s location and a farther bus trip to the port we were to visit. We basically missed the entire Middle Rhine valley with all of the castles. We also missed going to a port because of the change in schedule. According to the crew, there has been no appreciable rain along the Rhine in more than two months and crews have known they were going to deviate. The cruise after ours was going to have to do the same thing. I believe Viking owes us a partial refund. We booked a river cruise, not a bus trip.
Viking River Cruises – Romantic Danube – 8 Days Nuremburg to Budapest.
The cruise started on Sept 7th in Nuremberg on the Main Danube Canal for 80 km before joining the River Danube at Kelheim. Kelheim to Budapest is 750 km on the river, due to the low water levels we actually only travelled 470 km on the river, mostly at night, thereby being unable to see the scenery. We missed over 37% of the River Danube cruising and had to be coached between Straubing and Ybbs to change ships, a distance of 280km, with only approximately 8 hours daylight cruising centred on the Wachau valley. Guided tours were re-arranged causing less free time in Passau, Vienna and Budapest and also missing several on board features included in the brochure.
Notification by Viking a week before departure of ‘possible’ problems due to low water levels and a ‘mid-cruise ship swap’ did not advise the scale of the changes required like missing 37% of the River Danube which I believe should be classified as ‘significant’.
How are the Ama Waterways cruises doing on the Rhine? We will be going from Amsterdam to Basel starting Nov. 17
The cruises on the Rhine from Amsterdam to Basel are cancelled. We set sail from Amsterdam to Basel and had to stop in Cologne from going further because of water levels. Ama Waterways has rerouted us from the Rhine to various waterways and the trip has been amazing. Yes our itinerary was scratched but the one put in place has been magnificent. We have been to Ghent, Antwerp,
Burges, Rotterdam, Ultrech, and Dusseldorf and have has an incredible time. With so many people and a logistic nightmare of scrappi g the 1st tour what Ama waterways has done is short of a miracle. They are an incredible line who have their customers satisfaction truly in mind and have pulled out all the stops to keep us satisfied, informed and happy all along the way on this trip that could have been both a logistical nightmare and real disappointment for everyone. A wonderful time and compensation has been had by all.
Thanks for the info. The week after our scheduled cruise on Ama Waterways (leave Amsterdam Nov. 17) is already scheduled and paid for (leaving from Basel to Paris) so an alternate itinerary is not acceptable to us. We did not pay for a bus cruise. Ama Waterways needs to cancel our cruise and give us a full refund.
I would contact them immediately to have all your concerns answered and how they will be handling this unfortunate set of circumstances..
Thank you for your advice. We booked through Untours which partners with AMA Waterways. I am writing them an e mail right now. I will post updates.
My husband and I were on the same cruise… have you been compensated as promised? We have not.
Yes we have received the letter that states the compensation for the trip. We stayed on the trip all the way to Zurich and they were amazing in all of the remaining cruise from Amsterdam when we returned from Cologne and went through different rivers. I have spoken to friends we met on the trip and they received theirs as well. Did you stay on the ship for the entire trip?
Yes we stayed on the ship all the way back to Amsterdam…After touring Belgium, etc. They truly amazed us by creating a new river cruise overnight. Then AMA flew us to Basel (original cruise destination), put us up in a very nice hotel all paid for by the company. All connections were on time and escorted us all the way to the gate! We really were pleased with the way AMA handled the situation! The cruise director, Alia, could not have been any better!
We will contact them directly to secure compensation..thanks for your help!
Leave 10/28 Sunday on Viking sailing Budapest to Amsterdam. Any updates on the Viking ships; are they making it on the rivers or busing / ship swapping. Cannot get any information out of Viking and they currently have multiple ships sailing this week and next! Any info about the Danubue, Mein and Rhine is much appreciated. thank you!
Rivers are all LOW! CHECK WITH YOUR TOUR GUIDE..We are still on our cruise that was supposed to be on the Rhine but got rerouted after day 2 because of water levels. All lines are affected when it comes to the Rhine and Danube..Good luck..
I’m booked on a Rhine River Cruise with Viking for the end of Nov. I’ve been hearing about the low water levels and people being bused. Since this is my “bucket list” trip, I really don’t want to take a bus tour when I’ve signed up for a river cruise. I filled out 2 different contact forms on the Viking site and have yet to receive a reply. Those of you who have traveled in this region this month ~ how are the levels and how was your trip? Thank you.
I just posted a comment above. My husband and I returned from s Rhine River cruise aboard the Viking ships Kvasir and Idi. We missed seeing several castles along the Middle Rhine, had port stops cancelled or shortened and lost a lot of time on buses and packing/unpacking for ship swaps. The river levels have been low for a while. They are not being honest with their customers.
We received a letter last Monday from Crystal Cruise Lines informing us of the low water levels.We were scheduled to leave on Oct 25th on a river cruise from Vienna to Basel Switzerland.
We were given three different options including cancelling with a full refund.
Unfortunately after much consideration we decided to cancel.
After reading some of the comments here I think we made the right decision.
We were impressed that Crystal contacted us and gave us the options.
Maybe next year we will try again.
That’s impressive on Crystal’s part. Thanks for sharing and hope you get to go when the time is better.
We just came back from an Avalon cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam Sept. 18 to Oct. 5th. We had received notification from Avalon approx a week before departure advising of possible changes and water level problems. However all went very well until we reached Cologne. Avalon handled the changes seamlessly. We bused to Amsterdam for the last two nights in a 5 star hotel, all expenses paid, and compensation of 100% for the last two days. No complaints, would certainly travel with Avalon again, great service, food excellent, spotless ship (The Passion) Cruise director Maria was amazing.
Thanks for sharing Rod. Glad that Avalon handled it well.
We are scheduled on Uniworld November 10 from Budapest to Amsterdam. We cannot do bus tours. Even if it started raining now, would boats be able to navigate?
Although we took none of the cruise lines listed. We took a Rhine River Cruise with Avalon Waterways, between Sept 29th and Oct 6th, 2018, and were informed two days before we docked at Koblenz. They said we may have to trade ships between Rudesheim and Mainz. We had a small layover at Rudeshiem, and a determination would be made. If we had to trade ships, we would have to have our luggage ready by morning. We would be bused to two smaller ferry lines for the trip through the gorge. Fortunately the rain the day before and during the night, was enough to keep from grounding the ship. The Captain said, “We need between 2 to 3 meters from the current level, to safely pass. We will notify everyone by 7 am next morning”. We were notified departing Rudesheim, that the water levels had significantly increased and we would sail through. Our sister ship going northbound was also able to continue through to Amsterdam. I have nothing but admiration for Avalon and the Crew we had on Tranquility II. Nothing was kept secret, and we were always kept in touch by the Cruise Director, and the Captain. They also laid out the night before around 500-530 pm, what was in store for the next days activities. My two cents, in case you’d like to try another river cruise. I would use Avalon again, without question. And yes, regardless of the line or money spent. It is the carriers responsibility to plan and/or make amends.
Yes, I know how to spell Amsterdam 🙂
How are the AmaWaterways cruises doing on the Rhine? We will be going from Amsterday to Basel starting Nov. 17
current Ama trips on Rhine are cancelled. Keep in touch with them!
Our cruise was booked thru Untours. I have requested that our cruise be cancelled without penalty but that we keep the airline reservations. We have a weeks stay in Paris after the cruise. Thus we would do our own trip in Amstersdam and Basel taking the train to Paris. Untours said they will be contacting their AMA rep. A cruise company should never cancel or significantly change a cruise without enough notice that other plans can be made. It is quite common that pre and post cruise plans are in place and are affected by last min. changes.
oh im so glad i found these comments. i go with Saga on a budapest to Vienna cruise on Thursday. i am going On thursday 25th and Saga wont tell us until Tuesday. but i certainly dont want to do a bus trip as i have been really looking forward to a riverboat cruise . if they offer a cancellation i will take it. i quess its not their fault. what a drag!!! i had tickets for an elo concert which i sold as i booked my holiday and now i wont have either .. i never expected a water problem we certainly dont have that in n IRELAND !!!!
Our Riviera cruise from Budapest to Budapest started with really low water levels in Budapest on 5th October. Travelled as far as Linz upstream but downstream the cruise terminated in Bratislava. 3 hour bus journey each way if passengers wanted to visit Budapest and then a further 3 hour journey the next morning at an unearthly hour to catch flights. Spoiled the end of our holiday. Accept others were more seriously affected, but we specifically asked our TA to check with Riviera before we left UK that previous cruise itineraries had been achieved naturally or by bussing, hotel stays or switching ships. Don’t think they were totally honest. We would have liked the opportunity to re book.
We were scheduled to leave Vienna to Basel on Oct.25th on the Crystal Ravel.We received an email from Crystal on Monday giving us three options,one was a reduced cruise of 7 days ,a 14 day cruise back and forth from Vienna to Passau or a cancellation with a complete refund.
After much discussion and reading all these comments(thank you)we decided to unfortunately cancel.
Kind of knocks the wind out of your sails when you are looking forward to getting away but we were happy with Crystal for giving us options.
If anyone is on this cruise would love to hear some comments during or after their cruise.
Thank You
[email protected]
Wee have just finished our 16 day cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam, and we travelled with Gate1, on the Monarch Baroness. We hit very low water levels between Passau and Regensburg on the Danube, so the crew dumped all excess weight, and we sailed slowly through the night, scraping the bottom across sand and rocks occasionally (eek!). We had 10cm of clearance. Our ship was smaller and lighter than the Viking and Scenic ships, so we did see lots of passengers exiting their ships with all their luggage at Passau, presumably to travel by bus.
Then we hit record low levels on the Rhine at Nuremberg. Gate1 transferred us all to a day cruiser ship to continue sailing for about 3 hours (and the day cruiser was large and comfortable, served meals and beverages) and then we transferred to Gate1s sister ship, the Monarch Queen, further up the Rhine. The ships are identical and we went straight into the same cabin numbers we were on the Baroness. From there we completed our cruise to Amsterdam.
We were very impressed by Gate1 efforts not to disrupt our sailing, and they did wonderfully well. We didn’t miss any of our sightseeing tours and slept every night on the ships. Most importantly, we sailed every day.
As far as we know, it is still dry with no substantial rain predicted , so I think as time goes on, I would think you would be better cancelling if you are on Viking or Scenic. We also saw Avalon stranded, and an Emerald ship. Passau is definitely an issue.
You’re happy with Gate 1 in all cases?
Definitely! We think they went over and above to make sure we kept to the scheduled itinerary. And having open bar cocktail nights with the tab picked up by the company to compensate for the small alterations they did have to make was all well received! ?
Hi, I am not cruising until next April on The Rhone River in France on Stella Rosa. Does anybody know anything about average water levels at that time of year on Rhone River?
Rivercruiseinfo.com is a dead site! Do not use it! The water level reports are absolutely wrong!
Was anyone disrupted on an Avalon cruise Amsterdam to Budapest this year in early July? Thinking of next year this time….Di
Any comments on how AMA Waterways did through this difficult, low water level period on the Danube. I know they are supposed to have boats that can navigate through lower levels than their competitors.
The Amaserena from Vilshoven to Budapest could not proceed beyond Vienna. The line did a good job rescheduling and we chose to spend three days in Vienna on the ship. (A great place to be stranded) Bus to Budapest and we ended up hiring a private guide for a tour there. Disappointing, certainly, but I was pleasantly surprised to receive a letter of apology from Ama Waterways with a significant future cruise credit. They handled the situation in a very classy way.
We just finished Budapest-to-Amsterdam on 10 October with Scenic; they told us we were their first boat to successfully make the entire trip since July.
For example, we had to wait an extra day for a “wave” to raise water levels near Passau. With the extra day there, we docked downtown for shore excursions than moved to an industrial dock for the following day, which served as a base-of-operations for shore excursions via bus rather than docking in towns nearer the excursions. The bus excursions were 2 hours of driving time or less, so quite tolerable.
The Rhine Gorge water levels were predicted to rise and did not, so we were within one day of having to switch boats and stay in a hotel in Nuremburg for 3 days as a base-of-operations for excursions while the 2nd boat came upstream to meet us. Scenic was very good about clarifying our options, which included an option to stay on the boat for an extra 3 days without excursions or move to the hotel to continue excursions, both with substantial credit offered for the change in itinerary. At the last minute, the crew decided to hurry the boat downstream to catch another “wave” in the Rhine gorge. I was really impressed by the extra effort that the entire crew went through to avoid having to go to a “plan B” or “plan C.” To lighten the boat for more clearance, they emptied the hot tub and waste tanks, and offloaded diesel and fresh water to just a limited supply, then moved the boat through the low-water section while passengers were away at a shore excursion. Really fantastic effort in my opinion.
Bottom line: Buy trip insurance and be ready to be a flexible traveler. We got lucky and had a trip-of-a-lifetime, but we could have very easily gotten too worried about water levels and used our trip insurance to cancel.
You always have the option of canceling at any time with viking as long as you buy insurance, if you dont buy insurance shame on you.
We bought the insurance. What’s irritating is that we became aware – quite by accident – 2 months prior to our departure date about the low water levels and when I called, the Viking agent completely downplayed the situation and said if water levels remained as they were on the day I called (8/13/18), at most we would be bused around one lock. It later became apparent that was a serious misrepresentation of the water situation at that time. The reason I’m pointing this out is the insurance reimbursement is based on how far out you cancel. Had Viking been forthcoming about the situation, we may have cancelled sooner and received a more favorable reimbursement (percentage of vouchers versus refund). Either way, we are out of pocket the $1,400 cost of the insurance. And have a diminished opinion of Viking.
You must be a shill for the company.
Your comment about reimbursement is absolutely incorrect
Not happening
Viking is the worst.
Booked on an AMA cruise on November 1 from Nuremberg to Luxembourg. Sailing basically on the Main and Moselle Rivers, plus the Rhine Gorge. Any insight into the water conditions on these rivers?
Any word on Emerald Danube cruises upcoming in October?
I am a travel agent and just got word today that my client’s Oct 16-23 Budapest/Passau cruise was cancelled on Emerald. So upsetting.
Thank you for sharing this with us Ginette.
Thanks for the info. I am not on that particular cruise but another one coming up soon. I have not heard anything from Emerald so am assuming that we are good to go on the cruise. I will try to post status once we arrive… still hoping for some river cruising.
We are into the first full day of our 8 day Danube cruise with Emerald. Information has been provided (finally) and we will not cruise the river until the final day, from Regensburg to Nuremberg. Two nights in a hotel in Vienna and the rest of the nights on the ships. But, there will be no cruising between any ports, so the ships have become fairly expensive hotels on the river. Our view isn’t even noteworthy. A refund package based on a number of factors is being offered but won’t really know details until end of trip as everything seems to be dependent upon some form of calculation related to elements of the trip missed. It is all contained in someone’s fine print. At least Emerald has a guarantee.
Still, lots of disappointed people… understanding that there is no control over river levels, it is a continuing refrain from most cruises that communication is the biggest issue. I still have not received any form of official notification from Emerald other than what I have received today on the boat. They have 2 email addresses, a phone number, street address (which they require up front in order to be able to “communicate”. Not sure if anyone has had better luck with other companies, but even with Emerald there is variation… some people received hard copy, mail delivered letters before departure. Some received email and many, like me, received nothing. What is the criteria for selection in this regard? Did I not spend enough on my cruise?
Next word on our October Danube Cruise with Emerald… left the tour when given the opportunity for a “full” refund. Chose not to do bus tours. “Full” refund = less than 1/3 of the amount paid for the trip. Refund is for the “cruise portion” only. Still waiting to hear why we never received notification of river levels prior to arriving on the ship while some others did. Still waiting to find out the criteria used for deciding on the refund amount. Not expecting anything in the way of communications since this has been the sore point throughout the whole experience. Be prepared at any point to lose your trip and much of your money. Trip insurance notwithstanding.
Our group of 22 cruised on Viking August 4 Romantic Danube, Nuremberg to Budapest, and were only told by email the afternoon before our flight that water levels on Danube were low and we ‘may’ have to be bused to Passau to our Viking ship docked there instead. It was so disappointing since we talked so many friends and family into coming. We were bused many hours BACKWARDS to Regensberg and Nuremberg and then found we could not cruise to Budapest either–another long bus ride! Then a long early morning bus ride to Budapest airport for flight home. Our cruise was only two days, and our ports were in ugly industrial areas with so many ships docked there. We all had paid extra for french balconies, but because ships were stacked up by six across, we looked directly into other ships bedrooms, a few inches away! A complete waste of money. We hoped Viking would at least compensate for part of the balcony cost–but they said all they could do is give us 25% off a FUTURE cruise. We were so disappointed, we realize they cant help the low water levels but we could have been notified ahead of time or even an apology from Viking. We called customer service when we returned and lady was actually rude over phone. We have a different opinion of Viking.
Paying extra for balconies is always iffy because all ships at some point will be stacked in the docking areas where that balcony will look into another ship. That happens no matter the water levels.
We are leaving Sept 28th for a Viking River Cruise from Basel to Amsterdam and were informed that there are low water levels on the Rhine and that we are starting out on a different ship and will do a ship swap, they said 1 or 2 inches of water could make a difference, I look at it as an adventure and am sure Viking will do everything they can to make the trip enjoyable!!
How was the trip? Love your positive attitude!
The River Rhine being a perennial river with a catchment of 185,00 sq. km is usually very predictable. The Rhine’s two largest tributaries, The River Moselle and Main have been completely harnessed and in general do not cause much trouble.
Extreme rainfall however in the entire Rhine catchment area over an extended (continuous) period of time could cause some flooding with occasional extremes such as August 2002 and June 2013 when the river cruise industry was disrupted for a few weeks. Flooding in the Rhine catchment mainly takes place during winter and early spring.
The Danube Catchment being 800,000 sq. km is a bit more unpredictable and it is not completely harnessed by man. Plans to construct a number of barrages and accompanying locks have existed for a couple of decades to solve shipping challenges have gone down the drain after several lawsuits from the green parties who recently won.
On average, small parts of the Danube cannot be navigated 60 days a year (mainly in winter months of January and February), this can be easily solved by just waiting behind a bridge during high water or at a ford during low water until you can sail through, sometimes a few hours, sometimes a day and that’s it. Nothing to worry about.
The River Elbe has always been a very challenging river and notorious for low water and the industry has had some interesting challenges, therefore special ships equipped with paddle wheels have been built and are successful.
Due to extreme heat throughout Europe this spring and summer we have had quite some challenges in the RMD Region (Rhine, Main, Danube and their tributaries). unforeseen and worse than the summer of 2003, when we had some challenges as well.
Not a drop of rain throughout the RMD region for several months caused extreme low water on the Danube with not only the usual fords, becoming rather shallow, but also at unusual sections. This has created unexpected situations, thus given some serious headaches to the industry and its customers.
A single ship swap with a one or two day disruption of the program is not a big deal, because on other itineraries a swap is a necessity when changing rivers. Thanks to the Main-Danube-Canal the Rhine and Danube Catchments have been connected since September 1992.
The local water and shipping authorities display actual water levels at different sections and also do forecasts, but these have become rather unreliable, as they continuously have to correct them this year.
Water after rain travels in “waves through” the river and this can be observed when checking the important water level gauges. It is a question of a few hours, sometimes 24 or more that the level is high enough to sail through. The Danube can at times rise/fall 3 or more metres in 24 hours.
Now we have had a lot of rain in the catchment for the past weeks, which saturated the land again and extra rain will now be able to find its way to the river feeding a lot of shallow sections again. Nevertheless if rain doesn’t come the wave is gone again after 72 hours, a rather complicated situation to predict.
The most challenging stretch of the Danube is between Regensburg and Passau where a natural part of the river is only fed by 3 sizeable rivers, The Altmühl joining the Danube as part of the Main-Danube-canal, The Naab, just before the Danube reaches Regensburg and the Isar, just past Deggendorf.
The river was forecasted to be navigable for a few days, last week, but then a correction took place to this week, which is communicated by the authorities last minute…
That’s it for now.
I hope it helps you understand that the industry and all cruise lines are doing their utmost best to properly inform you about the situation on the rivers.
This problem caused by nature is very expensive for the cruise lines as well. Let’s hope we can sing in the rain again, this fall.
Just found this article Roland. We have read many comments from Viking travelers who are finding it very difficult, being bussed instead of cruising. This article is such an interesting explanation of the concept of river levels. As you know, we were on the last ship Jewel to get through the low water and left Amsterdam on 25th June 2018 just managing to scrape through to Budapest. I can understand passengers being upset at their trip being disrupted but the vagrancies of nature run riot with the best laid plans of tour directors. If you go on a river cruise, you have to be aware of the problems which may arise through no fault of the company. This year was exceptional throughout Europe with such dry weather causing havoc not only to the travel industry but with the commercial traffic, whose livelihood depends on the rivers. I hope people who have had their trip disrupted manage to read your article and thus can appreciate the problems that the cruise companies have had to contend with this year.
Anybody have any current knowledge of Danube water levels?? We are leaving on our Viking Cruise next week. I’ve called Viking and though somewhat evasive, they say there has been some rain and they do not expect any disruptions at this point. I’m wondering how true this is?!
Liz, I called twice and it was not until I challenged the second Viking person given the reviews I was reading AND posted such on the Viking facebook that they called me. The person was honest and did reflect what I had been reading. I would be very surprised if there are not disruptions. There is a section of the river that the boats CURRENTLY have not been able to go on. They have done some swapping of boats and they have been doing some busing to a port or two. What is not true is to simply say their itinerary is being kept because it leaves out the changes. We are going anyway (Oct. 6 from Nuremberg) and are ready to embrace the change. If I had not received that call I would have been very upset but now I am prepared.
Hi David!,
I had the exact same experience! After leaving a message on Facebook, I was contacted by Viking and given very honest and exact information. Just today we talk to someone else that told us, as of right now, things look good for no disruptions. My fingers are crossed!! See you soon!!
got the viking email today listing all the ways our trip could be disrupted. From missed ports to boat swaps and busing. wow they are bad on pr! Their web site says little, the reality is probably a boat swap asnd some busing. going anyway but they risk us using another company in the future due to such behavior.
Nice to have been prepared. Emerald did not send me anything but some on our cruise did receive notification. What I don’t understand is the levels of communication and variation in those levels based upon either some unknown criteria, overworked agents, or simple dis/misorgranization. We are at beginning of our tour and trying hard not to be too disappointed, but some preparatory information would have helped ease the initial let down.
We are meant to be sailing Bucharest to Budapest with Viking on 18th Oct. Viking’s web site is saying everything is OK, but has antbody sailed this section of the Daube recently?
We are still on our Budapest to Amsterdam “cruise”—on a bus from Rudesheim to Amsterdam. We have had numerous bus trips in lieu of sailing, a transfer from one ship to another, parts of cruise cancelled. It appears the Danube isn’t passable after Rudesheim.
Rudescheim is on The Rhine ( still equally disappointing )
We just returned from Budapest yesterday. The Danube is extreme low and we did not see any river boats cruising. We were on an Avalon cruise and had to be bused from Vienna to Budapest.
Maggie were you on Avalon’s Vista ?
If so did you receive any apology or compensation?
We traveled on Vista and lost half our River cruise travel which was really disappointing but I have only positive comments re the ships crew and staff as they were excellent.
Too bad Management do not treat disappointed passengers with more respect and apologize and also voluntarily extend some form of compensation.
These trips are not cheap and when you add Air fares they are darned Expensive
Dave
Sounds like the government. “One part of me says this, another side of me says that” The worst decision is no decision.
We had a 15-day river cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam that was supposed to leave on August 4, 2018 on Emerald Waterways. Because of the low water levels on the Danube we stayed in the hotel an extra day and then were bussed to Bratislava. We spent three nights on the river boat and were not able to get past Passau. Emerald told us we could not continue from there and gave us the options of flying home, continuing on route by bus, or making our own arrangements. Because of our travel plans we opted to continue by bus. We stayed in three different cities along our original route and then bussed most of the other sites. It was quite a disappointment but I was more displeased with the lack of information and planning exhibited by Emerald. They are promising a partial refund of $175 for the days we weren’t on the boat and a $500 credit on a future cruise.
We have booked a Seine river cruise for Sept. 3-19, 2019, Paris to Normandy w/3nights Venice and 3 nights Rome on Avalon. Does anyone recommend “cancel for any reason” insurance? We’ve been reading a lot about water levels affecting river cruises, and must decide soon which level of insurance to purchase. It’s our first river cruise, and has been on our “bucket list” for years; as many have said in these posts, we aren’t looking for a bus trip. Any insight would be much appreciated!
We sailed on Viking from BUD to Nuremberg, theoretically departing on 8/24. Low water levels on Danube forced ships to not pass between BUD and Vienna. Viking put us up in an excellent hotel on the Buda side for the first night instead of the ship. The next morning we proceeded with BUD excursions, then everyone rendezvoused for lunch on a riverboat restaurant, after which we were bussed to the ship approximately halfway to Vienna. Next 3 days were as scheduled. Night before we arrived in Passau an announcement was made that Passau was as far as the ship could proceed. Coaches were provided for shuttles to/from remaining cruise stops. Viking additionally added a day trip to Linz, which was a significantly shorter ride than was Nuremberg. Our post cruise plans prompted us and a bus load of other guests to leave the ship a night early to eliminate some bus travel. Again, Viking put us up in a first class hotel in Nuremberg, arranged for all meals and provided a crew person to stay there also to ensure everyone was well taken care of.
Bottom line observations:
-God controls the rain and there is nothing that Viking or any other ship companies can do to increase the river levels.
-Viking did absolutely everything in their power to ensure guests still could enjoy a memorable Danube cruise. I cannot say enough for the professionalism of Viking River Cruise personnel. Oh, by the way, everything about our cruise, ambiance of the boat, cleanliness of the boat, quality of the dining, housekeeping, staff’s desire to meet everyone’s personnel needs, and finally the Bavarian accordion and guitar combo during the “German food dinner” playing Tina Turner’s Rolling on the River, made our cruise an exceptionally memorable experience.
-We were notified a week or so prior to the cruise about low water levels and the potential impact upon our cruise, along with a commitment to providing a 25% credit for the cost of the cruise that’s could be applied to future river or ocean cruises.
-Upon return home a follow up communication from Viking apologized for the disruption and increased the credit to 50%.
-Suppose we could have explored utulizing our trip insurance to cancel the trip, but glad we didn’t.
Lastly, we want to thank Ralph Grizzle for recommending the Danube to us for our first river cruise and also for recommending Cruise Specialists. They did a great job!
Hi Ralph, in Poland now. As I have told you before and I am now repeating this to your listeners, we got caught in this mess a few years ago. We had another trip down the Elbe from Prague to Potsdam, which was canceled by Nicko Cruises because of low water levels. Instead, they offered us a trip on the Havel and Oder from Potsdam to Stralsrund. If we had refused, they would have mailed us all our money back that we had paid them for the trip. The German government insists that they take out insurance to cover this kind of problem and the problem is solved for the customer. Don’t plan on this with an American company. We decided to go and had a great time. They gave us the identical places on board that we had paid for, met some great people, Americans and Germans.
This year was a hot one in Europe — in the 90s in Europe during the month of July so it was pretty obvious with the lack of rain and high temps, parts of some rivers would be having low water levels.
We did do Crosi-Europe on the same trip I just described to your listeners in August of this year. The weather was a little cooler and there weren’t any water problems north of Berlin and into the Baltic. Another great trip with wonderful food and nice table mates.
Karen
We were scheduled to do two cruises with Uniworld. The first was in Bordeaux, plenty of water in the French rivers. The second was scheduled for Aug 19, from Budapest to Bucharest. Two days before end of our first cruise, we got a message from our travel agent that the second cruise, which was to be our last due to my husband’s health issues was cancelled. Had booked a suite on the SS Beatrice, the ship we took on our first cruise. Since we were in France, we eventually took one of the options they offered.
However, first I must say that this is when you rely on your travel agent to fight for you. She did, and we ended up in Provence on the Catherine. There were no suites available, but Uniworld offered us two level 1 cabins. We though this was fair. They also refunded our hotel stay in Budapest, 3 nights.
I never thought the eastern Danube would have low water issues, and I don’t think Uniworld did either as they waited until the last minute to cancel. We are also getting a discount on a future cruise.
This is when your company shows its true colors. Uniworld has always done the right thing by us. We could also have chosen a full refund, but since we were there, we decided to choose an alternative.
It really messed up our flights, but I always get travel insurance. this time my travel agent suggested adding an Allianz flight insurance policy and I am glad I did.
Put these on the ships Facebook page and demand a refund for the bus part. You did not sign up for a greyhound bus trip. It gets results! I did and it works.
We were scheduled in two days (Sept 23) to pick up the Crystal Bach riverboat in Mainz Germany. Now pick up port has changed to Andernach. Info of changes thereafter are not forthcoming. Does anyone have further info on the Rhine situation, going north?
I would also like to know the water levels of Rhine and Misel rivers. Cruising in a week. Thanks!
We are due to travel on the Danube, Budapest to Budapest via Esztergom, Bratislava, Vienna, Melk, Durnstein starting 5th October. Having read some of the horror stories I emailed TA today to ask whether our cruise might be impacted. Was told current cruises were being completed to itinerary and only one cruise had been cancelled on 6th Sept. Can this be true? They didn’t say whether anyone had to change ship or be bussed between destinations to achieve the itinerary, so if there is anyone out there who has completed our cruise on a ship in the last week or so or can give updated info on the water levels I would be grateful.
Well, we are supposed to sail Amsterdam to Budapest on 9/22. This is a once in a lifetime for us, my birthday and our 40th Anniversary. We are spending a great deal of money on a suite and air to celebrate. Contacting Viking gave no answer. They had a “volume” of questions. I have no idea what’s going to happen. We leave tomorrow 9/21. It’s wait and see, I guess!
how did everything end up?? we go next week on Oct 1
Has anyone taken the Grand Circle cruise down the Rhine recently?
I would like to know also. Leaving in two weeks
I’m concerned about my cruise on the Danube from October 1 thru 7, 2018. Based on comments about bussing instead of cruising and the inconvenience of it I’m considering canceling. I have insurance to cancel for any reason and wondering if any of you have information about getting full refund by using it.
My wife and I are scheduled for Amd to Bp on Oct 12. It is becoming increasingly obvious there will be changed itinerary, ship swaps, bus travel in lieu of cruising, hotel stays, and other disruptions that will very likely spoil our 12 days of cruising. It has also become obvious that Viking is not stepping up and fully informing us and other passengers of the known low water levels, and probable “variations” they know we will be facing. A river cruise that becomes a bus tour is not just a variation, it’s fraud. It’s time for Viking to guarantee a full, uninterrupted cruise, or issue full refunds.
Totally agree with you. Ours is really not a pleasant experience with several last minutes surprise arrangements. Viking on this business should have known, well prepared and communicate with the clients. Viking’s reputation is damaged.
Totally agree with you. Ours is really not a pleasant experience with several last minutes surprise arrangements. Viking on this business should have known, well prepared and communicate with the clients. Viking’s reputation is damaged.
Any info to share on your cruise? I leave 10/28 and am trying to decide if we should cancel now? Please post any info on busing or ship swapping.. thank you, Mary
We leave on 10/23. In the same boat. I would rather cancel than have my river cruise trip of a lifetime turn into a bus tour with bag lunches and smelly toilets.
Hi Gretchen, Are you on Viking Grand European tour. Bdp to Amsterdam?
I Agree . im waiting till Saga offer a refund but i will miss out on my flight to Heathrow from Belfast. but i supose the weather isnt their fault. what a shame.did you cancel
We were on the same scheduled cruise. We called office day before flying halfway around the world and demanded specific updated info. We were told 5 of 8 days on motorcoaches and hotels vs 8 days on the ship. We had reserved one of the two suite staterooms at the back of the boat and cancelled the trip. Maybe next year if the river is up.
We leave on 10/27 from Nuremberg. Afraid it is turning into a bus tour. NOT GOOD. I’m 6’-5” tall and don’t fit in a bus!!! Has anyone demanded a refund from Viking? I know the contract is solid on there part but this is ridiculous. I wish an attorney would respond.
Ours was in early August and Viking were decent from start to finish. Itinerary changes, buses, ship swap and drip feeding of information to keep people fooled all through the cruise. The funny thing was, so many people were so gullible until they realised we would be missing the last 2 stops and being bused to Amsterdam.
I have a question for all those who has the bus replacement due to low waters: what did you do about laundry? We are doing the Christmas Rhine cruise soon and are traveling with our young daughter. I loathe spending excessive money on hotel laundry services (we recently had to pay $100 USD at the Four Seasons!) and after reading all these comments, it doesn’t look like onboard laundry will be an option. I want to pack as light as possible in the event we have to truck our luggage back and forth from bus to hotel but in doing so, it means we need to have laundry facilities somewhere, At least once. Any suggestions would be appreciated!
Tell us what has happened!
I just returned from a cruise from bud to buc, yes the itinerary was changed and we didn’t get to constanta, but the cruise company was accomodating, the shorter cruise was nice and hotel substitutes were great. Hotel rooms are larger than cabins. Grand Circle is to be commended
Hi! What did you do about your laundry needs?
We were booked on Amsterdam to Budapest leaving on October 30 after contacting on many occasions prior to our departure from Australia they eventually a credit for a future cruise but have failed to cover the loss our flights from Budapest to London and the hotel in Budapest we had other flights and car hire and accomodation which we could not Council
Viking knew of problems as far back July August
How about the Rhine? Any recent experiences? Booked in about 2 weeks … Amsterdam to Basel … Thanks!
We did the Rhine & Moselle River Cruise (Avalon) June 23rd to July 5th and the Rivers (especially the Rhine) were rather high. We barely got under a couple of bridges.
Hi James… which Rhine and Moselle cruise did you do on Avalon. We are hoping to book a similar trip Jun 2020 for our 50th anniversary. It’s a once in a lifetime for us, and concerned that we could end up on a bus. Can you give a few detains to your trip? Did you enjoy it?
Has anyone travelled on a Scenic Rhine cruise recently? We had planned a 15 day cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest departing 17 Sep. I have not been contacted by the company or my agent. Thanks
We are booked to cruise Budapest to Amsterdam with Scenic towards the end of September. So far no word from Scenic re possible changes, but I am concerned that we may be on a road trip and not a river cruise.
Hello Kate.
Just finished Cruise with Scenic .. finished 3rd September. Changed boats twice . Was bussed two day between boats .. missed the Rhine gorge and other sections. Made most commitments re castles and city visits but had a lot ofbussing and this led to short free time in a lot of places. Scenic staff try hard to keep to itineraries but the river being low caused problems.
The main complaint with all travellers is that the companies have known well in advance that the levels are impassable in some area but do not let you know until you arrive that there may be problems. They extracted a lot of money from customers but are reluctant to cancel even when they know in advance. Compensation is laughable. Great trip if all goes to plan but don’t expect the companies to compensate.
Due to cruise with Viking on 2nd September Budapest to Nuremburg. Contacted Viking several times to voice my dismay at possible coach travel in place of boat. Viking are not willing to discuss and commit possible options and time is now running which I feel is just not good enough as we have paid river cruise price and not a coach tour price.
Does anyone know what options Crystal Cruises has made through the September 17th cruise on the grand European from Amsterdam to Budapest?
We will be cursing the Elbe in Sept. Anyone cruise that river lately?
CroisiEurope or Viking?
CroisiEurope every time.
We are leaving for a pre-cruise trip to Prague on 8/29. Viking sent me an email on Friday 8/24. I spoke to my AAA travel agent and she said if we cancel, our insurance won’t pay anything. I agree with everyone else…a bus tour isn’t a river cruise!!!
I’m booked along with 4 family with Viking Budapest to Amsterdam Oct 1 2018. One family member is 88. Does anyone know it this trip is still worth it and how many days of cruising is now a bus ride ?
Hi Harold, we booked on this cruise also. I have been concerned also. I have been checking the weather each day and there has been some rain. Viking has an update on their web page to say they expect business as usual in a couple of weeks.
hi
we are also on the same cruise. There is a web page that indicates water levels for all rivers in Europe. All levels look at this time to be normal. The concern we have is are we getting factual info from Viking or are they waiting until it is too late to notify passengers?? We did not sign up for a bus tour and quite frankly this “bait and switch” is not good business for a reputable company like Viking.
Any updates???
Ken-Have you gotten any updates. We’re on Viking Danube Waltz Cruise on October 14, but we are leaving for pre-cruise on October 9th. Any updates would be appreciated.
Catherine..I am a travel agent and just got word today that my client’s Budapest/Passau cruise was cancelled Oct 16 – 23 on Emerald Waterways
We start our cruise on Sept 1-Nuremberg to Budapest.
I know Viking has no control over water levels, but they do have control over cancelling instead of putting customers through hellish bus trips when they looked forward to the river cruise of a lifetime. I am actually dreading going, but what choice do we have?
We will be on the same trip with you.l Very concerned about what they are actually going to give us.
We are also very concerned. Don’t know what to expect when we get there. Certainly don’t relish the thought of being bussed! Really puts a damper on preparing for the trip. ?
Rosemary, how is your cruise so far? Water levels disrupting, or not? Thanks, Ralph
Rosanne. I am scheduled for the return trip Budapest to Nuremberg the week after your trip. Please let me know what you experience.Not that I can do anything about my trip at this point.
I will try to keep you posted.
We are going on the same cruise next week with Viking. Please let us know how it is progressing. We would be most appreciative.
Roseanne, how is your cruise so far? Water levels disrupting, or not? Thanks, Ralph
Booked on the Avalon Budapest to Nuremberg cruise August 10 through 17. Received word that Danube was closed at Budapest and above Passau at about 10pm the night before departing to Budapest. Bused from Budapest to Karamov, cruised to Passau. Bused from Passau to Regensburg and then to Nuremberg. Cruise part was okay. Avalon knew river was closed but waited until very last minute to inform customers. Avalon cannot control the river conditions but should inform customers with sufficient lead time to make reasonable decisions.
Had a similar experience with an Avalon cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam (WBA 0907) starting Sep 8th. The first 7 days of the cruise were superb- great cabin, great meals, everything as promised and expected. Then on day 8 we were abruptly told to pack up and abandon ship as the cruise had now become a bus tour because the water level was too low to continue. The problem with this was that Avalon must have known that there was a better than 95% chance of the cruise being abandoned as there had been no rain in the region since April, and several previous cruises had been cancelled or curtailed. They shoud have informed us of this strong possibility BEFORE embarking us in Budapest and given us the opportunity of bailing out at that stage, with a full refund, which we would have taken. Terminating the cruise at Vilshoven, a dot on the map, made it impossible for us to make alternative arrangements, so most of us had to stay with the bus tour.Then followed 7 days of hell- hours spent on buses stuck on the autobahn, accommodated in third-rate hotels, in some cases bare floorboards, minimal furniture (one easy chair in a double bedroom), single beds pushed together which we had to make up ourselves, no tea or coffee faciities) queuing in dining rooms as in a worker’s canteen for almost inedible food, and in four towns given a few Euros and told to make our own lunch arrangements. What a contrast with the sit-down meal service on the ship, with wine with every meal and tea or coffee whenever we wanted it. To compensate for this fiasco, Avalon made the generous offer of a 50% refund for every night we were off the ship, and a 10% discount on any future Avalon cruise we might take in the next 2 years (interesting to know how many of our fellow passengers will take that up!) The moral of this is if anyone is considering a European cruise with Avalon, make sure you enquire BEFORE EMBARKING whether they guarantee the cruise will be completed, and if this is not forthcoming, don’t go, otherwise you could end up doing a third-rate bus tour with one of Avalon’s partners such as Cosmos.
We just got back from a Vantage 15 day river cruise from Mainz to Budapest. We only got to cruise 3 days and got bussed the rest. Not a good experience at all. This was a C – bus trip instead of a A grade river cruise. No word yet on compensation. We boarded the ship and did not move for 3 days then only on the Main canal. No Rhine or Danube at all.
We were due to fly out to Budapest on 17/08/2018 to join our cruise ship,but we were informed the day before it had been cancelled !! The full amount of our holiday was refunded back into our account within a day.Just had to send a request for our prepaid airport car parking.We could go in October but I am not going to risk it !!
June, please share which line you were on. Thanks.
Hi, we were travelling with Riviera Travel .
Our Budapest to Black Sea Riviera cruise 30th August was cancelled less than 24 hours before check in time, by phone call. On a web site re river levels, we have since read that they knew on 22nd August that river was in a very low water state. It would have been better if they had put us on cancellation standby, at that time, but, it was a massive shock. All bags packed ready to go next morning. Compensation received, full refund, but, special 15 day holiday for husbands 70th…..gone, we know they can’t help depth of river, it’s the short notice that’s not good. Keep telling ourselves that our group of 4 are all ok, worse things happen but, very disappointed .
We were also booked on that same cruise. We were actually on our way to overnight in London when the call came through! With a full refund plus expenses including baggage man and £500 off two shorter river cruises already booked with them, we feel Riviera dealt very fairly and promptly with us. Our concern is – did the fact that our original boat Oscar Wilde which was moved from Budapest to go up river a few days before, then being replaced by Thomas Hardy – the boat which was listed to be used on the September 2nd departure have a bearing on this? Was there a problem finding another boat for the September 2nd departure resulting in our cruise being the sacrificial lamb? Other companies were actually sailing on that stretch at the time of our departure. I accept we will never know!
At least you got a full refund and didn’t fly to Budapest
.
Hi June, we were due to join ship 30/08/18 Phone call..cancelled less than 24 hours before flight. We were still trying to find out when our refund would be in our accounts nothing in after a week, ridiculous…. two couples… Took over a week, by bank transfer, ridiculous, we were worried they had gone into administration, was over £12,000 for the four of us. It was paid in after a week. They knew a good week before it was cancelled that rivers were low. We needed refund back in bank to rebook a holiday. Low river levels not their fault, but……could have put us on a pre warning…. Thank goodness we were at home, not in a hotel waiting for flight or on Euro train.
We sail on Friday 24 August, vilshofen to Budapest, has anyone got up to date info on water levels please?
I was on Viking…Budapest to Amsterdam 8-4 to 8-19…
We were on 3 boats and last day in a hotel ?
Hi Martin, how was your cruise? Water levels disrupted, or not? Thanks, Ralph
anyone have information on disruptions to last weeks romantic Danube cruise
We have just had our cruise from Budapest to Cologne curtailed just north of Passau and we have been flown home. The Danube between Passau and Regensburg was too shallow for our ship. It was supposed to be a two week cruise and we only cruised for 6 days.
Did you get re-reimbursed, we are scheduled for Amsterdam to Budapest 8/21
We have been told we will get compensation but we have no idea how much at the moment.
We were on the same Cruise & apparently we will receive 75% refund, Which we feel is Fair,
Sandra, was this the Charles Dickens? If so who told you about the 75% compensation?
Sandra, what cruise line were you on?
I am currently on a cruise from Amsterdam to Budapest using the Travelmarvel ships. We have been lucky in that we have been able to swap ships from the Diamond to the Jewel. As there is no water near Nuremberg (not sure of the exact place) we had a 4 hour bus trip to pass the region near here that had in fact no water. Crew have told us this is the fourth time they have had to change ships to continue their cruises.
Some more expensive cruise lines are busing instead of cruising at least half of the way.
All the best, happy cruising not busing.
Ross
We are traveling Viking October 12 leaving from Budapest to Nuremberg and received information that Budapest has closed its port, people are being bused for the whole trip. Has anyone received credits if cruising the river is not possible?
Did Viking provide the information? What sources? Anything about the Rhine water levels?
Information received from the Facebook page VIKING RIVER & OCEAN CRUISES FRIENDS.
Great FB page! Lots of current information. Thanks Carol.
We are booked Budapest to Amsterdam Sep 14 to Sep 28. We will be in Budapest a few days prior to sailing date. We have tried to get information from Viking about disruption to cruises but no information is being shared. Will try the FB page but would welcome advice as to what we should do. Tripnof a lifetime is not a bus tour!
I am on the same tour you are and I am seriously considering cancelling. Viking is saying things are getting better but from the reviews even if they know you will end up in a bus tour they are not telling people prior to departure. Please share any information you receive. Thanks [email protected]
We were just cancelled. Crystal Cruise Bud to Amsterdam leaving Aug 16, 2018. Bummer.
Just got through the same cruise with the aid of a ship change and following buses . Crew excellent but does not make up for a holiday of a life time gone terribly wrong. Surely Scenic new of the low snow melt coming via Switzerland. Money via satisfaction ie the usual component for profit at any cost….
Which line were you on ?
Hi Bill did you get notification from Crystal prior to your departure and if so how much t
Lead time did they give you?
We were notified on the 7th for the cruise that was to begin on the 16th. In our case we did our own flight arrangements and were already in Europe when we were notified.
I am hearing the water levels are down in some stretches of our Viking cruise Amsterdam to Budapest, October 12, 2018 that may result in a cancellation or changed itinerary. Can you advise?
We just did Viking Bud to Ams, arriving in Ams on Aug 5. Had a ship change half way through and only lost the final Saturday to bus trips. Another heat wave on its way, they needed to position their ships along Rhine & Danube so they aren’t all stuck at one end. Hopefully by Oct levels will be much better.
I talked to someone at Viking and pressed her for information about river water levels for the past week. She admitted to interruptions due to low water levels. Since we still had a month to go before our cruise we cancelled and got a 50% refund.
I sure wish I had known about your website BEFORE our “river cruise” of this month. First half was great; second half was all by bus and I would give it a C- grade!
Fran,
I am scheduled to sail he danube from Budapest to Amsterdam in a week. which cruise were you on?
was the second part of the cruise all bus and no ship??
Have you gone on your cruise yet? We go in two weeks. Are we going to be bused most of the way?
My friend went on Viking in August from Passau to Budapest for 6 hrs on the bus and change hotels every day. Awful
Fran, we are scheduled on a Viking cruise beginning Aug 22nd. Were you contacted by your cruise line before the cruise began about the change in plans? And did your cruise line offer any sort of compensation for the second half bus tour? We are trying to decide if we want to cancel at this point…..
Just got off Viking Amsterdam to Budapest, more bus trip than river cruise. Changed boats & spent 2 nights in hotel. Viking tried to accommodate however, we paid for a river, not bus, trip. Received email 5 days prior to sail that we might have change. Too late to cancel, and they offered discount of 25% on next cruise, not good enough. PSV
Oh my!we go on danube from budapest to nuremburg oct 19 so i am wondering just how much notice viking will give us if they have to cancel OR do they spring silly bus tours at the 11th hour just to avoid refunding the tour. It will requre a lot of precipitation to renew parts of Danube.
If they are at all like all of the other companies, you won’t hear a word until the last minute… or in our case, never. We go on to the cruise ship and that was the first we heard. We are stuck in Budapest right now and all up and down the river, every company is bussing and hotelling with a few nights spent on the ship, but no cruising. The Danube is really low. If you can get out now, DO IT! I would have a week ago if only I had been alerted.
We were scheduled on the Viking Skadi Grand European Budapest to Amsterdam 10/5/18 through 10/20/18. First time cruisers, celebrating our 40th anniversary. We cancelled 10/3/18 (fortunately we had trip insurance but still took a $1,400 hit even with that) and after reading your post, I’m glad we did. The first of August was when we first heard about the low water levels (on a friends Facebook post) and so we called Viking on 8/13 and the rep seriously downplayed the situation. Then when we got the email from Viking two days before our scheduled departure telling us we were likely to be bused, we called and Viking was willing to do absolutely nothing for us. We agonized another day before cancelling. I agree that the water levels are beyond their control but Viking has otherwise handled the situation quite poorly.
We are scheduled for the same trip next October and I am getting this early! I wondered if you could share with me what trip insurance you had. I can’t find any language in any of the policies I have looked at so any info would be much appreciated.
Our travel agent set it up through http://www.tripmate.com It’s not cheap – $719 per person – but it covered cancel-for-any-reason. Hope that helps!
Thank you Diana. We are looking at this company to include in a broader piece about insurance. Appreciate you bringing it to our attention.
Hi Todd, I am booked on Viking Grand European departing Budapest 10/28 to Amsterdam – 15 days… called Viking they said it’s raining and ships are cruising. True or False – Are you being bused from city to city or ship swapping? thanks for any input…
Wondering what to do / I did buy trip insurance!
thanks, Mary
I am on a cruise right now. The Rhine is at record low levels. Cancel if you can
False. No rain anywhere and none in the forecast. No ships were sailing and everyone we met at the airport today indicated the same. They got from Amsterdam to Regensberg and then all busing to Budapest. Lots of disappointment on the rivers this year. Maybe a rain miracle will happen but not looking good.
Adding to what I said before, the weather forecast in the Danube river basin has some rain starting next week. Good luck in your decision making. I hope you get better information that will help with your decision making than we got. Companies have been sued successfully for not providing relevant info in a timely manner.
Hi todd.. Any further update? Are you being bussed or ship swapping.. Budapest to Passau are ships
cruising? We leave in 10 days…Budapest to Amsterdam ?
We left the tour. They were bussing from Budapest to Vienna, two nights in hotel then bus to Regensburg. Ship swap there but still no sailing. Ship as hotel and then bussing to destinations then back to ship. Yuck. That’s why we left.
Thank you for the update! WOW what a disappointment!!
We were set to leave tomorrow 10/20 for pre-trip to Prague before sailing on the Viking Danube Waltz. I was aware of the drought situation on the Danube and have been following it. I contacted Costco Travel a few weeks ago for them to check the status with Viking and was advised that “all was well.” We were then notified by Viking on 10/16 that the itinerary was going to be “modified’ with ship swaps / potential hotels / bus trips. After several phone calls to Costco Travel and much online research (including finding this blog!) we opted to cancel. We are fortunate to have ‘cancel for any reason’ trip insurance. Yes we will be out the premium, but it is far worth it rather than having our luxury river cruise that we have planned for the past 2 years turn into a bus / hotel trip and not a cruise at all. On a side note, we hired a private guide for the post-trip in Budapest and she informed me that we made a very “wise decision” to cancel. Her husband drives buses for the cruise companies and they he is having to go past Vienna to pick up passengers to bring back to Budapest!
Yes. A wise decision indeed. Good for you. It is a tough choice but you can now plan to cruise another day. I guess the bus companies can be happy this year.
Would you mind telling me from what company did you purchase your travel insurance?
Hello Martha. We have the TripMate insurance policy we purchased at the time we booked our trip with Costco / Viking. It doesn’t guarantee we will get our money back, but it will be either that or a voucher for another cruise to be used within a year. We submitted the claim on Friday and are awaiting a response. Was a fairly easy process – mostly done online.
We are scheduled for the same trip next October and I am getting nervous already ! I wonder if you could share with me what trip insurance you had. I can’t find any language that would cover this in any of the policies I have looked at so any info would be much appreciated.
In my opinion Viking has been horrible about truthfully communicating the situation to customers. I saw another recent post that said a ship hasn’t sailed out of Budapest in 3 months. I’ll bet someone at Viking made a calculated decision that it would be better to downplay the situation rather than be truthful with customers. I see customers of other cruise lines saying they were offered a full refund for a future cruise. Now that would be a cruise line I’d consider for future business.
Our friends are on that cruise now heading south to Budapest and our on their 2nd ship swap in Germany.
Just returned from a 14 day Grand Circle Cruise, (Great Rivers of Europe) Vienna to Amsterdam. We had 2 nights delay and were given accommodations at the Hotel Regina in Vienna with 3 great program directors on the front end with a short bus trip to Regensburg where we boarded the MS Harmony on the 2nd day of schedule. We cruised 10 days to Frankfort visiting the quaint towns along the way as planned. . We had a great local day trip on the Rhine to see the castles in the area of lowest water to navigate. We experienced wonderful service from the ships crew and our 3 very professional program directors. The longest bus trip was from Frankfort to Amsterdam (about 4 Hours). Where we stayed at the Hilton Doubletree in the heart of Amsterdam. Grand Circle really made our trip worth while even with the two low water areas. Take your next River Cruise with Grand Circle. You won’t be disappointed!!!
Charlene Walker
Midway Utah
How was river between Passau GE to Budapest?
Hello I am booked leaving Amsterdam to Budapest Aug 31 Viking I just sent email to Viking about cancelling Did they offer you anything else in compensation
M
We just had a nightmare Viking cruise Budapest to Amsterdam. It included sailing on THREE different boats, wasting cruise time on buses to the next boat, horrible flight arrangements to cruise and then not being “in the system” at the airport on the way home. That was both in Amsterdam and Atlanta. If not for some very nice and professional airline employees, we’d still be trying to find our way home. The final straw was receiving an email today from Viking. They say they will give us 50% off our next cruise…. AS IF we would book another. And by the way, we booked this cruise during the half off sale. In other words, they are giving us NOTHING. They keep our $20,000 and we did not get what we paid for.