Experienced River Cruisers is this stuff normal?

A few months ago we decided that we wanted to get away from the crowded ocean cruises so I booked two cruises. One is in Nov. on Uniworld and one is next year on Vantage, however, all I seem to read is flooding, flooding, with worker lock strikes thrown in for good measure. I realize that anything can happen, but for those frequent river cruisers my question is " Is all this flooding the norm or a freak event" . We have had a missed Baltic cruise because of a freak hail storm at the NJ airport but nothing as frequent as described here.

in 10 river cruises over same amt.of yrs.have NEVER had this occur.So have no problem booking another one for next yr.Of course, things happen but am NOT worrying about it .Give it a try and HOPE for the best.:)

I'm on the other end of the scale. 1 very expensive, once in a lifetime Cruise and it turned into a Bus Tour (mostly) due to extreme flooding. Even though I was a very well treated refugee, it was still expensive.

I've got a significant credit towards another cruise from the company, but may not be in a position to use it.

On the other hand, if you cruise frequently anyway, you would have no trouble using the "Credit" you would likely receive from a seriously busted cruise.

I suppose there are risks in both types. On the Ocean, you may float around with no power, water , food or toilets for a few days. Very rare, but quite an ordeal.

On a River, you get off the boat and take a bus to a hotel. Happens more frequently, but not as bad a trip.

I have only been on 2 river cruises, both during the month of September, and have not yet had any issues with water levels, strikes etc. I do know that river levels can fluctuate daily and from month to month depending upon mostly Mother Nature, so for me, I do take that risk into account. Of course, one hopes for the best outcome, I.e. your cruise goes as planned, however, you must also be prepared for those risks beyond the control of the cruise company. This year has been particularly bad for not only passengers, but for the,cruise lines as well. There is also a lot more press(good and bad) about the cruise lines and the cruises since river cruising has become more popular and therefore under more scrutiny. Now having said that, I leave in 2 weeks for my 3 rd cruise and am watching the water levels even though there is absolutely nothing I can do about them. What will be will be. C'est la vie as the French would say.

A few months ago we decided that we wanted to get away from the crowded ocean cruises so I booked two cruises. One is in Nov. on Uniworld and one is next year on Vantage, however, all I seem to read is flooding, flooding, with worker lock strikes thrown in for good measure. I realize that anything can happen, but for those frequent river cruisers my question is " Is all this flooding the norm or a freak event" . We have had a missed Baltic cruise because of a freak hail storm at the NJ airport but nothing as frequent as described here.

I've taken 5 river cruises: Castles on the Rhine in late Aug; Egypt and Jordan in Feb.; Tulips and Windmills in April; Costa Rica in Jan. and Russia in Aug. and have never run into anything like the weather they've had this year. Granted the worst flooding is usually in the Spring when the thaw happens but this year has been unusual everywhere. I'm on Vantage cruise next year in June....which one are you booked on?

Things can go wrong on any vacation. I have been concerned about folks new to river cruising worrying a little too much about things that probably won't happen due to the stories on the forum.

I have taken 3 cruises and there were no problems on any.

I've taken 5 river cruises: Castles on the Rhine in late Aug; Egypt and Jordan in Feb.; Tulips and Windmills in April; Costa Rica in Jan. and Russia in Aug. and have never run into anything like the weather they've had this year. Granted the worst flooding is usually in the Spring when the thaw happens but this year has been unusual everywhere. I'm on Vantage cruise next year in June....which one are you booked on?

We are on the Danube Holiday on the River Splendor in Dec..Also on Uniworld Castle on Rhine in a couple of months.

Things can go wrong on any vacation. I have been concerned about folks new to river cruising worrying a little too much about things that probably won't happen due to the stories on the forum.

 

We only did the one (and it will be the last river cruise!)

Full story here:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1892421

we have done 6 river cruises and have not suffered as some have described.

of course there can be irritations and issues around quality assurance. we have wondered if unlike the 1st trip in 2009, staffing quality/training might have slipped? once we have pointed out errors they are quickly attended to. for example cleanliness is important to us, on the cruise, in april we found a used soap and soap dish, and 1 of the bathrobes had yellow staining around the neck. not acceptable to us. we pointed it out and it was fixed.

some of the table service was less polished, but staff do work hard. we noticed for some language was an issue, incorrect meals delivered.

there is a gap quite often with travel between the fantasy/dream and the reality. as we travel more and often pay premium prices, our expectations can be high and that is not unresonable.

fortunately there is a lot of choice and fortunately travellers are willing to tell others their stories to help people chose.

We only did the one (and it will be the last river cruise!)

QUOTE]

 

I feel bad for what Marty went through but I think his horrific vacation experience can be blamed on HOW the tour company (Scenic) treated him in a difficult situation.

 

As to river cruising, IMHO, the vast majority of people who take this type of vacation LOVE it.

 

We have been on two of them with Tauck and experienced problems with low water on our trip from BUD/AMS.

 

Tauck did a fabulous job in handling a difficult situation and we did NOT have it turn into a bus tour and barely missed a beat while other river cruise lines were disembarking passengers and leaving them to their own devices.

 

As I've said before, all of the river cruises are OK (some better than others...food, etc.) but some are exceptional.

 

Because of the potential problems with weather (high water...low water, etc.) the important thing is how you are treated by the tour company during difficult times...not just when things are fine and no one is experiencing problems.

We only did the one (and it will be the last river cruise!)

QUOTE]

 

I feel bad for what Marty went through but I think his horrific vacation experience can be blamed on HOW the tour company (Scenic) treated him in a difficult situation.

 

As to river cruising, IMHO, the vast majority of people who take this type of vacation LOVE it.

 

We have been on two of them with Tauck and experienced problems with low water on our trip from BUD/AMS.

 

Tauck did a fabulous job in handling a difficult situation and we did NOT have it turn into a bus tour and barely missed a beat while other river cruise lines were disembarking passengers and leaving them to their own devices.

 

As I've said before, all of the river cruises are OK (some better than others...food, etc.) but some are exceptional.

 

Because of the potential problems with weather (high water...low water, etc.) the important thing is how you are treated by the tour company during difficult times...not just when things are fine and no one is experiencing problems.

 

Just curious...what mode of travel did Tauck provide, if low water levels prevented your Riverboat from cruising. How did you your itinerary proceed with barely a missed beat?

We were asked to pack our things and leave the luggage in our suite.

We then took the scheduled tour for the day and were then returned to their sister boat instead of the boat we were on. When we returned our luggage was awaiting us in our room (identical layout to the boat we disembarked) and we proceeded with the rest of the cruise as planned.

We were kept fully informed of the low water problems from the day we started the trip and were offered, our choice, to disembark if we so chose and we would receive assistance from Tauck representatives if we wanted to do so.

It was my understanding that no one chose that option and all did choose to stay with the trip...with no one that I heard expressing regret that they stayed on the boat for the trip!

We are on the Danube Holiday on the River Splendor in Dec..Also on Uniworld Castle on Rhine in a couple of months.

haven't done a holiday cruise yet...too many kids coming home for the Holidays:)....we're on Gateway to the Black Sea in June on one of the new ships. Castles oh the Rhine remains one of my favorite trips......it's just beautiful.