Low Waters Divert Danube and Elbe Cruises

[Stratheden]

To all of those river cruisers flying in from the US:

 

Maybe you can just take a gallon or two of water with you...:rolleyes:. I just got the reports that the Upper Mississippi river is facing a major flood (which is expected to be the second highest ever) :(. Those folks there would be happy if you all take a gallon or two and bring it over to the Danube (Elbe or Rhein) river...

 

For all complainers:

 

I´ve been on the Queen of the Mississippi last year in August. My cruise should have been St. Paul to St. Louis (Upper Mississippi River). Only by chance and thanks to good friends whom I wanted to meet up with I received an email on Monday that my boat won´t go to St. Paul but Cincinnati due to low water. My flights were on Thursday. It took us all day to get the official o.k. from the cruise company and organize everything else. We fortunately were able to rebook our connections from Philly to Cincy instead of Minneapolis. Rental car and pre cruise hotel could be cancelled and rebooked with no extra cost. The (independently booked) flights were a bit more than 500 Euros for the three of us (and no one did refund these extra costs). Compensation given onboard was: all tours were for free (but I wouldn´t have booked them as I´ve been there before - but I went on the tours now they were "included"). So my cruise was from Cincinnati to St. Louis (o.k. I didn´t mind about that as I´ve been there before). I was sorry I missed out all my friends on the Upper Mississippi river whom I wanted to meet throughout the cruise. But I was lucky and contacted a friend near Cincy and we had a wonderful day together pre cruise.

 

Please keep all in mind that when you do book a river cruise it´s always depending on the weather. Yes, your cruise might be diverted or turn into a bus trip. The river cruise company is trying to make the best out of the situation they don´t have under control. Of course this can be handled in different ways - some do it better, some do it worse. Legally they don´t owe you any refund, marketing wise it´s a good idea to calm down the passengers by refunding money.

 

We do have the same discussion about "the cruise line knew ahead and should have cancelled" and "my river cruise turned into a bus trip I want compensation" every season on this board. Take the fact that the river is either low or high and might impact your cruise and make the best out of it! And be prepared when you know about the situation ahead! We are happy to give you information about the river levels and traffic conditions. We are also happy to give you information about alternate options (like on the other thread about the Elbe river - try out the steamboats for a trip to Saxonian Switzerland as they might be able to run longer than the river cruise ships).

 

steamboats

 

I want to say a big thank you to Steamboats, Notamermaid, G.M.T, and Ingo_e for all the information they have passed on to us all over the past few weeks. I really have appreciated it. Hopefully you will continue with this info, in what appears to be a dry season.

 

I have to keep praying and dancing for another 77 days. :)

Edited July 1, 2014 by Stratheden

[steamboats]

Or drink a few more Weizen, to help the economy and river levels.:)

 

I don´t drink any beer :D! I´ve been raised in Franconia and therefore I was raised with Franconian wine.:rolleyes:

 

steamboats

[CaroleSS]

I want to say a big thank you to Steamboats, Notamermaid, G.M.T, and Ingo_e for all the information they have passed on to us all over the past few weeks. I really have appreciated it. Hopefully you will continue with this info, in what appears to be a dry season.

 

I will second that! Without folk like them.....we'd be (as we say in the South) "in a world o' hurt!"

[wwinfl91]

Does anyone know if the Viking Longships that do the Amsterdam to Budapest cruises have enough water to complete that trip? I see that some other cruise lines seem to be making the whole transit but haven't seen much on Viking.

 

Thanks

[steamboats]

wwinfl91,

 

This thread started out with Viking as they are the first ones which have to stop due to the deeper draft of the longships.

 

It looks like all ships are running again - currently...

 

steamboats

[pilgrimduke]

It's great news about the river boats running again. This forum has been a great source of information (much more so than Viking).

 

I called Viking this morning about what ship we would be on for our July 7 cruise from Budapest. I was told that it should still be the Aegir. I then checked one of the websites provided in this forum and discovered that ship is in the Rotterdam area and is due in Amsterdam tomorrow, so it's not very likely to show up in Budapest on July 7.

 

I recalled Viking with this news, which was news to the poor customer service person that I was dealing with. (She was pleasant, but obviously was not being given any information that Viking had to have if someone like me can figure it out.) She then guessed that we might be sailing on the Embla. I looked it up and it's destination is Budapest and it appears that it could make it to Budapest by the time we leave.

 

Since we're leaving early and are not using the Viking pre-cruise extension, knowing what ship we're on would be helpful information. I know that things are up in the air and subject to change, but Viking should let their people know when it's not possible for a ship to make a cruise, even if they haven't figured out what the replacement will be. I'm also not impressed with Viking management hanging their people out to dry and not giving them the information that they need to do their job.

[pilgrimduke]

I'm really confused now. I recieved a phone call from Viking concerning the location of the Aegir which, as I posted earlier, I tracked to the Rotterdam area, thus making it very unlikely that it would be in Budapest for the July 7 sailing. The Viking rep told me (and plus points for calling back) that my information was wrong and the ship was in the Regensburg area and would make it to Budapest in time for the July 7 cruise. From looking at the itinerary that would be possible if it was around Regensburg, but I from checking the marine traffic website it has just crossed into Germany. That seems to be a few days too long (6 days with the standard Grand European itinerary) to make it to Budapest by Monday, but I've been wrong before and perhaps there's something that I'm missing.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Pilgrimduke - Back on post #125 on this thread, wwinfl91 pasted the Viking website update of June 22 covering sailings from June 22-30, which included this information:

 

June 30 - Grand European Tour (Amsterdam to Budapest) and European Sojourn (Amsterdam to Bucharest) aboard Viking Embla –

This cruise will begin on sister ship Viking Aegir

(Longship, built 2013).

 

So if Aegir left Amsterdam on June 30 -- doing a regular cruise itinerary, not deadheading -- I don't see how it could already be in Regensburg. The schedule goes to Kinderjik on Day 2, which would be today -- and fits your information that the ship is in the Rotterdam vicinity.

 

Viking is not currently showing any update information on their website except for the July 1 and 5 sailings of Alsvin, Bragi, Idi and Kvasir -- and as far as I was able to learn they never explained how they were going to get all the ships on that June 22 update back on schedule.

Edited July 1, 2014 by Host Jazzbeau

[pilgrimduke]

Host Jazzbeau, thanks. I knew that I had seen something about the Viking Aegir being in Amsterdam at a date that would make it physically impossible (or at least very difficult) to be in Budapest when we're due to meet it.

 

I'm not worried about there being a ship--I'm just curious which one, especially since I will be traveling with others who have mistakenly placed some trust in me to figure things out. It's more of a game at this time, though if my interpretation of the marine traffic website is correct (and I do appreciate your validation) I'm scratching my head about the information not being available to the poor customer service folks, especially since they did publish the swap earlier.

[purduemom1]

Pilgrim Duke, I can feel your frustration especially since you are the "team leader" and will be away from home just prior to boarding. Perhaps Viiking can contact you via email if you will have web access prior to boarding. Otherwise, you could contact the Viking desk at the hotel they use pre cruise. However, it really should not be up to you to do the leg work.

[pilgrimduke]

purduemom1, Viking has said that they'll email me and based on an earlier posting, I believe that the Viking desk will be at the Marriott, which I was told was the case by Viking, though I'm not sure how correct that is. Fortunately, our hotel is nearby and I can easily stroll over.

[Viking Cruises]

purduemom1, Viking has said that they'll email me and based on an earlier posting, I believe that the Viking desk will be at the Marriott, which I was told was the case by Viking, though I'm not sure how correct that is. Fortunately, our hotel is nearby and I can easily stroll over.

 

Dear pilgrimduke,

 

Please accept our sincerest apologies for the apparent miscommunication on our end. Our Customer Relations team has the most up-to-date information regarding your sailing, and you can expect to receive an e-mail from them within the next few hours. Thank you for your patience. We look forward to welcoming you aboard!

 

Best,

Viking Cruises

[wwinfl91]

wwinfl91,

 

This thread started out with Viking as they are the first ones which have to stop due to the deeper draft of the longships.

 

It looks like all ships are running again - currently...

 

steamboats

 

Thanks for the reply. It was interesting the other posts that followed about what Viking is telling people.

 

Hopefully Germany and I guess Austria will get sufficient rain in the next few weeks to make our July 22 cruise possible.

 

Have a great next cruise.

[wwinfl91]

Still looking for posts for people on Viking ships on the Amsterdam to Budapest or the reverse cruise who can tell me if they have been able to stay on one ship for the whole cruise with no long bus trip or hotel stay.

 

Thanks

[nana541]

Still looking for posts for people on Viking ships on the Amsterdam to Budapest or the reverse cruise who can tell me if they have been able to stay on one ship for the whole cruise with no long bus trip or hotel stay.

 

Thanks

 

 

I think it's still to early... The ships just started moving again.

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums

[wwinfl91]

Thanks for the reply. The 10 day forecast for Passau says there is supposed to be rain 5 of the 10 days. That is hopefully.

 

Have a great next cruise.

[ural guy]

We are on the Viking Jarl, on the Ams to Budapest run, approaching Passau. Luckily no busses for us, we got just enough rain to make it through.

I think that only the people heading from Budapest to Ams had issues.

 

It has been a great trip for us, no complaints.

[Worldcrzr]

We are on the Viking Jarl, on the Ams to Budapest run, approaching Passau. Luckily no busses for us, we got just enough rain to make it through.

I think that only the people heading from Budapest to Ams had issues.

 

It has been a great trip for us, no complaints.

 

We are on the Viking Kvasir where we will be docking in Cologne this morning. Last night we had a conversation with the captain and he said we won't know if there is a problem until we get to Regensburg. Many passengers did not know there was a problem even after they received the email changing ships from the Viking Idi to the Viking Kvasir.

 

We are on the 5th sailing of the Viking Kvasir. So far, this has been a five star cruise. Pleasant and attentive crew going the extra step to make our cruise wonderful. Our room steward makes up our cabin the minute we leave for breakfast and always greets us by our names. Food for all meals has been excellent and the wine flows freely at dinner and is very good.

 

We're going now for our German language lesson. More to follow. We are still doing the rain dance but have bright, sunny skies.

[wwinfl91]

Thanks for the posts from the Viking ships on the Amsterdam to Budapest or reverse routes. Please keep posting and we will keep hoping for rain. We are scheduled to leave from Budapest on July 26 and are hoping for the best.

 

Have a great next cruise.

[btlover]

We are on day 4 of the Viking Idi Budapest to Amsterdam cruise. I must concur with Worldcrzr. So far the trip has been excellent.

 

The Prague pre-trip was certainly worth doing. Prague at night is beautiful and safe to walk around in. The Viking desk at the Prague Hilton was well staffed and open most daylight hours; David recommended one great restaurant after another for us.

 

The Idi is a beautiful ship. The staff seems to be devoted to making our European cruise the best it can be. The food is actually better than expected, and while the rooms are not huge, we have managed to find a place for everything and the space is turning out to be quite adequate.

 

Like Worldcrzr we have been told that the plan to switch ships with the Kvasir or not is still unclear, depending on water levels. We had one night of rain leaving Budapest and have enjoyed beautiful weather all but one day in Prague, with possible thunderstorms tomorrow in Melk.

 

So we are loving the cruise so far, enjoying the time spent with new friends we have made and we will see what happens further up river!

[Worldcrzr]

We celebrated the 4th of July aboard the Viking Kvasir. We have had smooth sailing and spent the night and most of the morning going through the locks between Koblenz and Miltenberg, Germany. So far we have had sunny days but today it looks like we might get some rain.

 

Last night was a big Fourth of July celebration and although there are other nationalities on board, it was an all American day complete with BBQ ribs, hot dogs and hamburgers if we wanted them. The Star Spangle Banner was played and red, white and blue sparkling wine drinks were served along with delicious appetizers before dinner. Two cakes decorated with our flag were on the table for any who wanted cake. The chef went out of his way to make our day of celebration as nice as he could.

 

The 4th was also my husband's birthday. The staff made it special for him. Our cabin was completely decorated with a Happy Birthday sign, balloons, and a three layer towel cake tied with colorful ribbons and a card signed by the housekeeping staff. At dinner, everyone sang Happy Birthday, the chef presented him with his own birthday cake and the Hotel Manager personally invited him for a Cognac after dinner. There were two others celebrating their birthday, but only my husband was invited to share a drink. He lived in Germany for many years and the Hotel Manager wanted to talk about the days when my husband lived in Germany while serving in the US Air Force. All in all, Viking made the Fourth of July very special for us.

 

Right now, we are sitting waiting to enter a lock. While waiting, the crew is walking along side the ship cleaning windows. They take every opportunity to make sure the ship sparkles.

 

We do not know if it is going to rain today. We are waiting anxiously to see if the Viking Idi is able to go from Passau to Regensburg without any trouble. We reach Regensburg on Wednesday, 7-9-14 and may encounter different river levels. I'm sure ships are going through but I'm not sure about any Viking ships being able to make the link.

Edited July 5, 2014 by Worldcrzr

[2BSailin]

Worldcrzr: Thank you for your updates and we look forward to hearing about your progress. Sounds like a wonderful trip so far! :)

 

Ukalady: We are on the same cruise as you are, would you keep us updated as to what you hear about our ship? This will not only be our first river cruise but we will be celebrating our 40th anniversary so would love to have everything go well. Looking forward to it!

[wwinfl91]

Worldcrzr,

 

Any info on your passage from Regensberg to Passau. We are scheduled for a July 26 cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam and have been concerned about our cruise ending up a bus trip.

 

If anyone has heard anything about how the the Viking Longships are doing I would appreciate info.

 

Thanks and have a great next cruise.

[Carol From California]

Worldcrzr,

 

Any info on your passage from Regensberg to Passau. We are scheduled for a July 26 cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam and have been concerned about our cruise ending up a bus trip.

 

If anyone has heard anything about how the the Viking Longships are doing I would appreciate info.

 

Thanks and have a great next cruise.

 

Viking seems to be updating the upcoming cruises that have changes on their website: http://www.vikingrivercruises.com/my-trip/about-my-cruise/current-sailings.html It does not go up to July 26. So far it looks like it's just a change of ships as opposed to a bus trip.

[Worldcrzr]

Worldcrzr,

 

Any info on your passage from Regensberg to Passau. We are scheduled for a July 26 cruise from Budapest to Amsterdam and have been concerned about our cruise ending up a bus trip.

 

If anyone has heard anything about how the the Viking Longships are doing I would appreciate info.

 

Thanks and have a great next cruise.

 

We are arriving in Hamburg this morning on the Viking Kvasir. Yesterday we were told that we won't know if we can go from Regensberg to Passau until we get there. We are keeping our fingers crossed and doing the rain dance. We have a great crew and would hate to lose them. The Viking Idi has gone missing so we are wondering if she is being held in Passau for our arrival in case the water is too low to sail.