Viking Ship Embla not leaving from Nuremberg

[H2Otstr]

We lost 2 days on the Elbe because of low water. First and last days were spent in hotels. We were traveling with Grand Circle.

[id est]

I'm sorry but I've looked everywhere and I can't find one other cruiseline that has been effected by any low water at Nuremberg this week. The OP wrote about a sailing for this Sunday that had been effected.

No, it will be affected. Viking Embla is sailing from Nuremberg on August 19th.

[Ozjohnno]

No, it will be affected. Viking Embla is sailing from Nuremberg on August 19th.

 

Excuse me if I'm being obtuse but I thought I indicated this coming Sunday BUT I repeat I've not heard of any other River Cruise company having to cancel because of low water around Nuremberg.

[steamboats]

Steamboats, you are not familiar with the new Viking ships.

 

Don´t worry, I am! But when talking about sitting on the deck I assume they are talking about the sun deck. Otherwise I´d said "sitting on my private balcony".

 

As we say in Franconia: De nada :)

 

:D:D Dial 1 for Franconian :D:D

 

I've not heard of any other River Cruise company having to cancel because of low water around Nuremberg.

 

As there is no low water around Nuremberg. As mentioned by Ingo before the low water is on the Danube river near Straubing. You can see it on this map

 

http://www.nid.bayern.de/abfluss/karten/index.php?gknr=2&wert=&thema=&days=

 

All yellow dots along the Danube river. The canal is controlled by a lock and dam system. There´s no current, no flowing water in the canal and therefore there´s always the same waterlevel. The Danube river does have locks and dams but that part in the Straubing area is still natural river without any locks and dams (they are trying to build one for decades but so far environmentalists were able to stop it).

 

The longships do have a maximum draft of 2.10 m (meaning fully loaded) which is pretty much for a river cruise ship.

 

steamboats

[shoshona2]

Hi steamboats,

 

We're in Bucharest right now and met a Viking tour guide while sightseeing. They had to leave their boat in a port in Bulgaria and bus the people on to Bucharest. He said a barge was stuck in the Danube in Bulgaria due to low water levels. We're on the Tauck Treasures and due to sail to Budapest on Tuesday. Tomorrow, we meet out tour guides and await the info they have. Do you have any info on the situation in Bulgaria? I know you are the maven of news on the rivers in Europe.

 

Sheila

[id est]

Excuse me if I'm being obtuse but I thought I indicated this coming Sunday BUT I repeat I've not heard of any other River Cruise company having to cancel because of low water around Nuremberg.

Oops, sorry. Thought you meant last week.

[Rxgrad98]

Hi Sheila,

 

How are you enjoying Bucharest? Is enough English spoken that you could get by on your own vs. doing guided tours? Hope you're having a wonderful time!

 

Tim

[steamboats]

Hi Sheila,

 

I´ve heard that a German river cruise company has cancelled a cruise out of Oltenita which should have started on Aug 20th. They said that two freight ships had collided.

 

There´s also the news that in Lower Austria a freight ship went aground and the channel is only 30 m wide now which causes troubles to the river traffic til Sunday (but that´s in Austria way upriver).

 

Due to the language barrier I don´t have any other news.

 

steamboats

[paul88]

Our Viking Odin was unable to reach Nuremberg. They're putting us up in a very basic hotel..... we must be up early in the morning so that bags are out the door at 7am, we must check out of the hotel by 8am and they're putting us on a bus from 8am - 5pm tomorrow.......with the age of the crowd on board, they may not survive a long day like that. Absolutely no refund from Viking for the legs of the journey they're not delivering on. Viking presumptiously states that out of goodwill they will reimburse us $250 for the NEXT cruise.....as if that's going to happen. The representatives at the hotel for viking were unable to discuss our compensation and unable/unwilling to make any other options available to us. NEVER will we book with this rotten cruise company again. And we've never seen so many angry passengers in our lives.

The problem for us as passengers is the way in which they're handling the matter.....not that the water level is low. DO NOT CRUISE ON VIKING!!!!!!:(

[Talisker92]

We were stuck at Deisendorf for 2 days due to high water on a Vantage cruse. On one day we were taken by bus to Straubing, which was a fascinating town and saw a stained glass window in the cathedral by Durer.

The next day we were taken to a great outdoor museum. It was extremely interesting and fun.

At least we were on the ship and not stuck in a hotel.

[tassietravellers]

The Viking ship Embla is not sailing from Nuremberg on Sunday. The Viking company is proposing putting everyone in a hotel in Nuremberg Sunday night and then busing the passengers two hours to pick up the boat at another port ( Vilshofen) because the water in Nuremberg is too shallow. If you are paying almost $3000.00 per night to stay on the ship how should you be compensated when a hotel room is not even 10% of that cost? :( So far the Viking company had only offered a cruise credit of $250.00 per person . :( They need to come up with a more individualized plan!!!!!!!!!!? or lose their credibility as a luxury operation.

 

We are on the Danube now..in Vienna heading north. Yesterday our CD mentioned that the water levels were low and there could be a chance we couldn't berth in Passauon monday, but we would be bussed back from the next port..not needing to have hotel accommodation tho, she never mentioned anything about Nuremberg.

 

Hope all works out for you :)

[pflorio994]

In no way is the water level VIKINGs fault so stop blaming them. They are doing the best they can considering the circumstances. We hear more about Viking because the other cruise lines are not that active and do not post.

 

It can happen to any and every cruise line

[Viking Cruises]

Our Viking Odin was unable to reach Nuremberg. They're putting us up in a very basic hotel..... we must be up early in the morning so that bags are out the door at 7am, we must check out of the hotel by 8am and they're putting us on a bus from 8am - 5pm tomorrow.......with the age of the crowd on board, they may not survive a long day like that. Absolutely no refund from Viking for the legs of the journey they're not delivering on. Viking presumptiously states that out of goodwill they will reimburse us $250 for the NEXT cruise.....as if that's going to happen. The representatives at the hotel for viking were unable to discuss our compensation and unable/unwilling to make any other options available to us. NEVER will we book with this rotten cruise company again. And we've never seen so many angry passengers in our lives.

The problem for us as passengers is the way in which they're handling the matter.....not that the water level is low. DO NOT CRUISE ON VIKING!!!!!!:(

 

 

Dear paul88,

 

We apologize if you were not pleased with the hotel in Nuremberg. Please understand that it is not an easy task to arrange hotel stays for a ship-full of guests with so little notice and that we did the best we could. That said, we would still appreciate additional feedback on the hotel so that we can take it into consideration should we ever need to arrange for hotel stays in Nuremberg again.

 

The remainder of your post is a bit confusing and concerning to us, as your mention of an all-day trip by motorcoach is not the alternate itinerary that we had arranged. Perhaps there was some miscommunication here? Below please find the changes to your itinerary that should occur:

 

Day 1

City: Nuremberg

Original Itinerary: Embarkation

New Itinerary: Hotel check-in

 

Day 2

City: Nuremberg

Original Itinerary: City Tour; Sail to Regensburg

New Itinerary: City Tour; Motorcoach to Vilshofen (approx. 2 hour drive); Embarkation

 

Day 3

City: Regensberg

Original Itinerary: City Tour; Lunch onboard; Optional Excursion to Weltenburg Abbey; Sail to Passau

New Itinerary: Motorcoach from Vilshofen to Regensburg (approx. 45 min); Lunch onboard; Optional Excursion to Weltenburg Abbey; Sail to Passau

 

After Day 3 your itinerary should be able to return to its original schedule. And as you can see, there are only 2 motorcoach rides planned, neither of which are excessive. We have tried to make adjustments so that no city or excursion was removed from the new itinerary. We understand you are disappointed by these necessary changes, but hope that you end up enjoying your trip overall. Please contact us at TellUs@vikingrivercruises.com if you wish to discuss your concerns or feedback in further detail – we would very much appreciate the opportunity to speak with you.

 

Sincerely,

Viking River Cruises

[Ozjohnno]

In no way is the water level VIKINGs fault so stop blaming them. They are doing the best they can considering the circumstances. We hear more about Viking because the other cruise lines are not that active and do not post.

 

It can happen to any and every cruise line

 

 

It apparently doesn't and it just might be because the new Viking boats have a considerably deeper draft (around 0.5 metres) than their competitors but fail to mention that when they post - thus they can't go where others can. To date no other cruise line has reported any problems with low water around Nuremberg nor have any of their customers.

[steamboats]

Ozjohnno,

 

Again, there is no low water problem around Nuremberg as it´s the canal there. The problem is in the Straubing area where there is no lock and dam system to keep up a navigable channel.

 

2.10 m is the maximum draft of the longships. That doesn´t mean they are always drawing that amount of water. With no passengers (and no baggage) and no ballast water (which is needed to pass the canal) the ship does draw less water.

 

steamboats

[ingo_e]

I'm sorry but I've looked everywhere and I can't find one other cruiseline that has been effected by any low water at Nuremberg this week.

 

Excuse me if I'm being obtuse but I thought I indicated this coming Sunday BUT I repeat I've not heard of any other River Cruise company having to cancel because of low water around Nuremberg.

 

Well, just because it is not on CC / the internet, does not mean that other companies are not affected. At the moment I am on a coach to Kelheim to pick up another group. Already on Tuesday Scenic groups had to swap ships... I would claim the reason why this low water situation becomes so obvious with several Viking cruises are their 7 day cruises. Every 14 days cruise usually has a sister ship doing the reverse itinerary from Amsterdam to Budapest and the low water situation is quite in the middle..

 

Waterlevel at Straubing was up at 154cm yesterday, this morning it was down at 135cm again.

[2onboardagain]

Ozjohnno,

 

Again, there is no low water problem around Nuremberg as it´s the canal there. The problem is in the Straubing area where there is no lock and dam system to keep up a navigable channel.

 

2.10 m is the maximum draft of the longships. That doesn´t mean they are always drawing that amount of water. With no passengers (and no baggage) and no ballast water (which is needed to pass the canal) the ship does draw less water.

 

steamboats

 

Hi Steamboats, You obviously know about river boats and I hope you can answer a question. I seem to recall reading somewhere on these threads that the river boats can take on enough ballast water to put the aquarium class windows "under water". Is that really true?

[LHT28]

Hi Steamboats, You obviously know about river boats and I hope you can answer a question. I seem to recall reading somewhere on these threads that the river boats can take on enough ballast water to put the aquarium class windows "under water". Is that really true?

Not Steamboats but I would think that would be unlikely unless the ship is sinking

[steamboats]

Hi Steamboats, You obviously know about river boats and I hope you can answer a question. I seem to recall reading somewhere on these threads that the river boats can take on enough ballast water to put the aquarium class windows "under water". Is that really true?

 

Actually it is sort of true. For the canal the ships take on ballast water because they are too high for the bridges there.

 

But it´s only part of the window which is under water. I´ve been on the Belvedere last December (used to be the Avalon Poetry) on the lowest deck and my window was partly under water on the canal part of the cruise. Hope you can see it on my attached pic.

 

steamboats

[rundent]

Believe me the porthole was 1/2 underwater at times and quite noisy too. Couldn't get me down in the bilges again.

[steamboats]

BTW there was an extra plastic screen in front of the window on the outside to protect the window from any kind of objects which might be able to break it.

 

steamboats

[2onboardagain]

BTW there was an extra plastic screen in front of the window on the outside to protect the window from any kind of objects which might be able to break it.

 

steamboats

 

Thank you steamboats, I knew you would have the answer!

[celebrationtiger]

The Viking ship Embla is not sailing from Nuremberg on Sunday. The Viking company is proposing putting everyone in a hotel in Nuremberg Sunday night and then busing the passengers two hours to pick up the boat at another port ( Vilshofen) because the water in Nuremberg is too shallow. If you are paying almost $3000.00 per night to stay on the ship how should you be compensated when a hotel room is not even 10% of that cost? :( So far the Viking company had only offered a cruise credit of $250.00 per person . :( They need to come up with a more individualized plan!!!!!!!!!!? or lose their credibility as a luxury operation.

 

Dear celebrationtiger,

 

We understand your disappointment with the need for an itinerary change. Unfortunately, the water level now being too low for Viking Embla to reach Nuremberg is beyond our control. We contacted our Customer Relations team on your behalf and understand that they have been in contact with you today a few times and are currently looking into some of your additional concerns not listed here. We hope it was expressed to you that our intent is for our guests to still visit each city and take each tour, as promised. We believe that you have a great trip ahead of you and hope the minimal changes to the itinerary will not be as unpleasant as you might anticipate.

 

If you have any other concerns or questions, or if you would like to speak with Customer Relations again, we ask that you contact us at TellUs@vikingrivercruises.com.

 

 

 

 

While we cannot speak for any other river cruise lines, we did everything possible to make sure that we informed our guests as soon as possible. There is also the fact that we do have many more ships on the river, and therefore more guests on Cruise Critic.

 

 

 

Sincerely,

Viking River Cruises

 

 

 

 

 

Thank you all for your comments and advice. We are now on the new ship Embla. Viking has been gracious and responsive and we were able to board the ship on the day scheduled. The problem is with the Danube not the canal..The Embla ship manager Michael has been a gracious host and our dinner was delicious. Our expensive suite on this new boat is not nearly as large as a similarly priced suite on an ocean going liner of a similar price, but it is much larger than the standard suite on a river boat. Viking has designed this suite in superb manner, with ample space for everything including double sinks in the bathroom. The living room has a full view of half the aft deck..about 16 feet and is a delight.

 

We were greeted with champagne and canapes including lobster which were excellent. Everything is spanking new and beautifully done. Dinner on the outside deck was as romantic and beautiful as any I can remember.

 

Viking is clearly working on becoming a luxury river cruise line even if it was not that in the past. They have 14 new boats just this year. This one is a gem.

[LHT28]

Thank you all for your comments and advice. We are now on the new ship Embla. Viking has been gracious and responsive and we were able to board the ship on the day scheduled.

 

So did you board in Nuremberg or were you bussed to another meeting area to board?

[franski]

Thank you all for your comments and advice. We are now on the new ship Embla. Viking has been gracious and responsive and we were able to board the ship on the day scheduled.

 

Viking is clearly working on becoming a luxury river cruise line even if it was not that in the past. They have 14 new boats just this year. This one is a gem.

 

Thank you for taking the time to post and provide an update...

 

Fran