Danube fiasco with Riviera

Our boat, the Robert Burns, reached Regensburg on Saturday 4th August 2018 where we were told by Riviera Cruises that we had to wait a couple of days for the water depth down to Passau to increase. None of us on board put much faith in that happening and we were proved right. On Sunday we were told we would be coached to Vienna on Monday and put up in a hotel for a night so that the lighter boat could then navigate the shallow section of the Danube. As the crew all lined up to see us off, we feared the worst. By the time we reached Vienna our one night stay had become two nights. Worse still, the Robert Burns was on its way back to Cologne. So our 40th wedding anniversary was not spent on the romantic Danube, but in a backwater dock and our much anticipated cruise to Budapest has turned out to be a coach trip. We have been treated like imbeciles with information being trickle fed. Most of our real info has come off the Viking site. At least they are up front with any perceived problems. I won't use Riviera Cruises again.

I don't understand why my comment was removed so I reposting. The update to the following text is that we are still being moved by road in an ad-hoc fashion with our reps booking hotels as we go. We now know we won't be seeing Budapest unless we put up with a 3 hour coach journey in each direction from our current hotel. I didn't sign up for that but I will have to suffer it for the airport journey on Friday morning. I hate coach journeys. :(The following is my original post.

Our boat, the Robert Burns, reached Regensburg on Saturday 4th August 2018 where we were told by Riviera Cruises that we had to wait a couple of days for the water depth down to Passau to increase. None of us on board put much faith in that happening and we were proved right. On Sunday we were told we would be coached to Vienna on Monday and put up in a hotel for a night so that the lighter boat could then navigate the shallow section of the Danube. As the crew all lined up to see us off, we feared the worst. By the time we reached Vienna our one night stay had become two nights. Worse still, the Robert Burns was on its way back to Cologne. So our 40th wedding anniversary was not spent on the romantic Danube, but in a backwater dock and our much anticipated cruise to Budapest has turned out to be a coach trip. We have been treated like imbeciles with information being trickle fed. Most of our real info has come off the Viking site. At least they are up front with any perceived problems. I won't use Riviera Cruises again.

We were on the river last week, but were on Viking. We ran into low water in the same places and were bused between boats and put up in a hotel. Not much the cruise line can do about low water. I thought that Viking did the best they could and most of the people rolled with it.

I'm sure it was very disappointing to spend most of your river cruise on land, but this is something that the cruise lines have no control over and is hard to predict. They were probably hoping for the best too,but you can't just increase the water levels. For our river cruises, we have always been warned prior to booking about the possibility that parts of the trip may not be possible on the river due to water levels. There's only so much the cruise lines can do.

I don't understand why my comment was removed so I reposting. The update to the following text is that we are still being moved by road in an ad-hoc fashion with our reps booking hotels as we go. We now know we won't be seeing Budapest unless we put up with a 3 hour coach journey in each direction from our current hotel. I didn't sign up for that but I will have to suffer it for the airport journey on Friday morning. I hate coach journeys. :(The following is my original post.

Our boat, the Robert Burns, reached Regensburg on Saturday 4th August 2018 where we were told by Riviera Cruises that we had to wait a couple of days for the water depth down to Passau to increase. None of us on board put much faith in that happening and we were proved right. On Sunday we were told we would be coached to Vienna on Monday and put up in a hotel for a night so that the lighter boat could then navigate the shallow section of the Danube. As the crew all lined up to see us off, we feared the worst. By the time we reached Vienna our one night stay had become two nights. Worse still, the Robert Burns was on its way back to Cologne. So our 40th wedding anniversary was not spent on the romantic Danube, but in a backwater dock and our much anticipated cruise to Budapest has turned out to be a coach trip. We have been treated like imbeciles with information being trickle fed. Most of our real info has come off the Viking site. At least they are up front with any perceived problems. I won't use Riviera Cruises again.

Your post wasn't removed; your original post is still here. The thread was simply moved to the proper forum. You posted it in with the roll calls and this is not a roll call. It is that simple.

I understand your need to yell and scream. I'm sure you spent a lot of time planning this vacation and now it is going to hell in a hand-basket. However, no vacation comes with a 100% guarantee, especially those involving ships and water. So, on behalf of your spouse, I would like to suggest that you stop complaining about things you cannot change and start working on making the last few days of their 40th anniversary cruise, the romantic, memorable cruise that you both looked forward to. You owe it to your spouse to turn this into the "best worst vacation ever."

I'm sure it was very disappointing to spend most of your river cruise on land, but this is something that the cruise lines have no control over and is hard to predict. They were probably hoping for the best too,but you can't just increase the water levels. For our river cruises, we have always been warned prior to booking about the possibility that parts of the trip may not be possible on the river due to water levels. There's only so much the cruise lines can do.

While it's true that cruise lines have no control over high/low water levels, some do a much better job at dealing with the situation. I read a post recently by someone on an Avalon cruise. They were able to swap boats, with Avalon providing free extra excursions and meals in between. Having so many ships on the river, Viking is usually able to provide ship swaps. I read somewhere that AMA ships are sometimes able to make it through low water when others couldn't. Maybe a lighter boat or lower draft?

Not much the cruise line can do about low water.

That is very true, but how they deal with it is key.

RiverDan- If I read correctly, the cruise line was going to take you on a day trip to Budapest from Vienna, return to Vienna, and then have to return to Budapest to fly out? No option to just stay the night in Budapest?

That would drive me nuts also.

Peregrina is much more adult than I, and the advice is sound. 40 years, congrats! :)

Whenever you do anything that is dependent on the weather (ski vacation, camping, hiking, beach vacation, cruise, etc) there is a chance that things will not go as planned. We all want ideal weather when we vacation, but unfortunately that isn't likely to happen. We have to deal with the hand we are dealt the best we can. While it may not seem like it now, far worse things could have happened. Had a friend that fell while on a Viking cruise and ended up spending it on the ship after a stay in the hospital because she cracked her knee cap.

Yes, some companies deal with difficult conditions better than others. Apparently not every company is set up to swap ships when the rivers no longer become navigable. I didn't even know this was an option. Maybe this is something people considering a river cruise need to ask the cruise line(s) they are considering prior to booking. It has to be difficult for the cruise lines to suddenly have to find buses and hotel rooms for everyone when there are mulitple ships stuck in the same condition. At least with this type of delay alternate arrangements were made, even if they weren't to your liking. Try being caught in a weather-related situation with the airlines and you will be on your own for alternate arrangements and on your own dime.

Just try to enjoy your few remaining days.

This is a post I made in 2016 regarding problems with river cruising! I will be going on my 8th cruise with Uniworld this December.

I also count a line's reputation for how they handle high and low water situations as important. And I don't consider that to be subjective.

It is not always just high or low water issues! On a Christmas market cruise with Uniworld in Dec. 2014 there was a broken lock, we had to board in Passau instead of Nuremberg. Spent one night in Nuremberg hotel (nice) meal was ok not as good as Uniworld's food. A few bus trips with a very generous lunch money! No really did not like the bus trips but we had great sausage at the markets. At the end of a excellent cruise we were given a $500. each credit toward another cruise!!!! I will be going on my sixth cruise with Uniworld in August.

Second seating

I totally understand the OPs reaction to the disappointment. We are booked from Amsterdam to Basel in October 2019 for our 35th Wedding Anniversary. While I do know that there is a chance of this happening, I would still be very upset.

I really think that the cruise lines need to give people who really, really hate bus trips the opportunity of cancelling the trip with a full refund. There is no doubt that river cruising is an extremely expensive type of holiday and simply replacing the cruise with a bus and hotels is simply not good enough.

I would much rather get my money back and then do my own thing in Europe, using trains and hotels of my own choice. A bus tour can be purchased for around 10% of the cost of a river cruise, so it is not a suitable replacement.

I totally understand the OPs reaction to the disappointment. We are booked from Amsterdam to Basel in October 2019 for our 35th Wedding Anniversary. While I do know that there is a chance of this happening, I would still be very upset.

 

I really think that the cruise lines need to give people who really, really hate bus trips the opportunity of cancelling the trip with a full refund. There is no doubt that river cruising is an extremely expensive type of holiday and simply replacing the cruise with a bus and hotels is simply not good enough.

 

I would much rather get my money back and then do my own thing in Europe, using trains and hotels of my own choice. A bus tour can be purchased for around 10% of the cost of a river

 

cruise, so it is not a suitable replacement.

How would they stay in business if the cruise lines refunded the money every time they had an issue with water or locks? The water can change to high or low at any time which increases your odds of a bus trip. It's best to do research which months are best to go to decrease your odds of a bus trip but it can still happen! If you go in the months of Aug, Sept, Oct you increase your odds of low water. We went last October with Viking on the Danube and had clear sailing

all the way through. We came close to not being able to see the Wachau Valley due to low water but were able to make it. I personally wouldn't go on a river cruise if I hated bus trips.

OP- I feel for you - it sounds incredibly disappointing, all the time and money spent and you get something that is quite less than what you expected.. It sounds like they didn't handle it very well or even have a plan B.

Based on what the other posters are saying, how this comes with the territory of a river cruise, you would think the cruise lines would be much more adept at handling and communicating the changes. I mean if you are saying paying passengers have to go with the flow, the cruise lines should actually have contingency plans in place it allow that to facilitate it. A 6 hour round trip coach journey sounds horrible, especially if you paid for a premium cabin on the ship. Hardly like for like comparison.

I totally understand the OPs reaction to the disappointment. We are booked from Amsterdam to Basel in October 2019 for our 35th Wedding Anniversary. While I do know that there is a chance of this happening, I would still be very upset.

 

I really think that the cruise lines need to give people who really, really hate bus trips the opportunity of cancelling the trip with a full refund. There is no doubt that river cruising is an extremely expensive type of holiday and simply replacing the cruise with a bus and hotels is simply not good enough.

 

I would much rather get my money back and then do my own thing in Europe, using trains and hotels of my own choice. A bus tour can be purchased for around 10% of the cost of a river cruise, so it is not a suitable replacement.[/quote

 

If you feel that having any part of your cruise turned into bus trips, buy cancel for any reason insurance. Then you could get your money back and DIY your trip.

i have never heard of cancel for any reason insurance. Is this an american thing? we have travel insurance, it covers up to £5000 but it is for illness etc. i have googled it for uk but haven't seen anything from a reputable website anyway.

i have never heard of cancel for any reason insurance. Is this an american thing? we have travel insurance, it covers up to £5000 but it is for illness etc. i have googled it for uk but haven't seen anything from a reputable website anyway.

We purchased it for both of our river cruises. It's expensive, but gives us peace of mind. I'm not sure if it's only available in the US.

I'm also not sure how it would work to "cancel for any reason" once the cruise has already started. Guess that's something to clarify if you're looking at that type of insurance and if one reason you're interested would be leaving a river cruise in progress....

UK will probably get it soon, we are usually a few years behind north america. Interesting idea tho.

I'm also not sure how it would work to "cancel for any reason" once the cruise has already started. Guess that's something to clarify if you're looking at that type of insurance and if one reason you're interested would be leaving a river cruise in progress....

I believe that once you start the trip, it is not trip cancellation but trip interruption and therefore you won't be covered if you decide to go home. Read the fine print in the explanation of benefits or ask the insurer but be absolutely clear about what is covered and what isn't before you make any decisions to voluntarily leave your cruise. Honestly, I would rather be 100% wrong than to have people leaving in the middle of trips because they aren't happy only to find they aren't covered when they assumed they were.

I'm also not sure how it would work to "cancel for any reason" once the cruise has already started. Guess that's something to clarify if you're looking at that type of insurance and if one reason you're interested would be leaving a river cruise in progre....

We chose to buy this insurance because a lot can happen when planning a trip nearly a year out. It gives me peace of mind! I wouldn't expect it to cover interrupting a trip in progress unless it were for medical reasons. But if we were able to find out even a few days in advance that sailing would be impacted by low or high water we would keep our flight, cancel the cruise, and travel DIY.

The policy I have for our November sailing is through USAA, and does have 100% coverage for travel interruption. In the policy documents, the reasons for this coverage to kick in are that you were involved in a traffic accident, mugged, sick, military leave canceled...nothing that I could see that would indicate that you could bail 1/2 through a trip because you were now on a bus tour.

Cancellation on the passengers part seems to have to be invoked before departure, and since ours is a cheaper policy, it's not 'cancel for any reason'.

I'm sure that you can pay a lot more money than we did, but I wouldn't think you could make a claim based on a river cruise turning into a bus tour.

UK will probably get it soon, we are usually a few years behind north america. Interesting idea tho.

You really don't want the UK to follow the USA in regard to travel insurance, the UK policies are already much better in terms of the coverage they offer for the cost.

SNIP

 

I would much rather get my money back and then do my own thing in Europe, using trains and hotels of my own choice. A bus tour can be purchased for around 10% of the cost of a river cruise, so it is not a suitable replacement.

I think you vastly underestimate the cost of an escorted bus trip of a comparable duration, with hotels of similar quality, and three meals a day.

I think you vastly underestimate the cost of an escorted bus trip of a comparable duration, with hotels of similar quality, and three meals a day.

I thought the same thing, CPT-- A $3000pp river cruise CANNOT be replaced by a bus trip for only $300 pp (that's 10%!)

Regardless of the costs river cruise/bus trips, they are very different experiences. Even if you chose a quality operator like Tauck which may use excellent hotels and food.

We have had the high/low water issues and other interruptions on European river cruises over the years. Its how the operator deals with the issues at the time that is important to us.

As to costings, our river cruise is over $6000 each, not including flights. Possibly 10% was an exaggeration, but I cannot believe a one week bus tour is anything like that.

The point is I am paying for a river cruise NOT a bus tour, so if the cruise company can't provide what I paid for I am sure I should be entitled to a refund. In fact a couple of years ago there was a class action against Scenic on this very subject, which Scenic lost. I believe they have appealed but haven't heard what's happened next.

As for the insurance mentioned, I cannot find anything like that available in Australia. Our insurances only allow for cancellation due to illness or death of the travellers or close family members.