Danube water levels 2018 and similar topics - plus tips and info

[G.M.T.]

1 hour ago, Second seating said:

If I am reading Marine Traffic correctly the Uniword S.S Maria Theresa is in Vienna. Any guesses if it will make it to Budapest for its' December 2nd cruise? I leave for Budapest on Thursday!

 

Second seating

[FoxHallFamily]

Greetings!  We are on the AmaCerto cruise from Nuremberg to Vienna departing on 12/1 and just received our alternate itinerary.  Now we start in Passau and cruise to Linz, Melk, Vienna and then Esztergom (with day trips to Budapest and Bratislava added to the end of the trip).  It's sounding pretty good to us but we are wondering how long the bus trips will be from Esztergom to Budapest and then I believe also from there (or maybe we cruise closer?) to Bratislava.  Thanks for any insights from the group! We have really appreciated all of the information available in this discussion!

[Jcat2010]

that's actually not awful    about an hour  better than viking  - vienna to budapest at 4 hrs.

[bubbulz]

1 hour ago, Second seating said:

If I am reading Marine Traffic correctly the Uniword S.S Maria Theresa is in Vienna. Any guesses if it will make it to Budapest for its' December 2nd cruise? I leave for Budapest on Thursday!

 

Second seating

 

Guess we'll know on December 1. 😉

[camping mom]

2 hours ago, FoxHallFamily said:

Greetings!  We are on the AmaCerto cruise from Nuremberg to Vienna departing on 12/1 and just received our alternate itinerary.  Now we start in Passau and cruise to Linz, Melk, Vienna and then Esztergom (with day trips to Budapest and Bratislava added to the end of the trip).  It's sounding pretty good to us but we are wondering how long the bus trips will be from Esztergom to Budapest and then I believe also from there (or maybe we cruise closer?) to Bratislava.  Thanks for any insights from the group! We have really appreciated all of the information available in this discussion!

Thank you so much for reporting on this. We are on AMASonata Dec 16 for same route. We obviously have not heard yet of our changes but it was so helpful to know when you got your update and what your itinerary looks like. Keep us posted as you can. Have an amazing trip!

[Homerody]

On 11/12/2018 at 8:07 AM, Jcat2010 said:

Is it only me having too high expectations ?   We signed up for a river cruise.  We expect to spend time cruising on the rivers, not riding a bus across Europe.   Viking commercials, even the ad at the top of this page, show boats cruising on rivers, not busses driving around Europe.    A short ship swap is one event, totally missing significant parts of the itinerary, like Wachau and Danube Bend and nightime cruise through Budapest, is a totally different thing.  I realize that river levels are a natural phenomenon, but clearly this is no surprise.  It has been happening for months, and yet, at least Viking, has not been very open about the impacts.  They refuse to provide details regarding recent cruise "adjustments", this board is a more accurate source than the cruise line. Seems their strategy is to get you on the boat, then tell you you're screwed.  What happened to the 100% satisfaction guarantee?

Couldn't agree more with you. On all counts!

 

Viking Customer Service is nonexistent - beyond a script of we are not responsible for anything.  Extremely disappointing on so many levels.  

[Deval]

3 hours ago, FoxHallFamily said:

Greetings!  We are on the AmaCerto cruise from Nuremberg to Vienna departing on 12/1 and just received our alternate itinerary.  Now we start in Passau and cruise to Linz, Melk, Vienna and then Esztergom (with day trips to Budapest and Bratislava added to the end of the trip).  It's sounding pretty good to us but we are wondering how long the bus trips will be from Esztergom to Budapest and then I believe also from there (or maybe we cruise closer?) to Bratislava.  Thanks for any insights from the group! We have really appreciated all of the information available in this discussion!

 

So anxious to find out about our cruise.  We’re on AmaLea 12/2 from Budapest to Nuremberg.  As of today my TA hasn’t received anything from Ama about our itinerary changing.  She’s going to call in the morning.  I’m now wondering if our cruise will be the reverse of yours.  We have an 11am flight out of Nuremberg on 12/9, do you think will we have to arrange our own transfer or will Ama have transportation to Nuremberg?

[Homerody]

On 11/12/2018 at 4:31 PM, K9pal said:

UPDATE:  Just received notification that a voucher for $500/pp towards a future cruise is on the way.  Happy with that!

Just as an FYI - depending on Viking cruise disrupted - Viking has offered 25% per person for future cruises - even before the cruise started.  And there are reports - that with persistence - 50% of future  future cruises have been given to recent and persistent  Viking cruisers.

[pully8]

People can be positive, upbeat and stoic about these events, but the facts remain.

Perhaps these cruises should not be marketed as Christmas market cruises?

Such a special time of the year for many, it really is a shame on so many levels.    

[Homerody]

22 hours ago, Bedangerous said:

Water level reality.

 

‘’Romantic Danube”

 

Was on the “Romantic Danube” with Viking from 11/11 to 11/18. 

 

Romantic if you like bad airline seats, bus tours, missed ports, and significantly decreased port time due to long bus rides.

 

Paid for Viking air plus drove to an airport 90 minutes away to get the two seats together on the side of a wide body only to find out that we had no reserved seats and got placed in the center section by the bathroom. Called Viking and was told “we do not guarantee seating. In fact although I specified to the Viking plus air representative what seats I wanted and had a letter from Viking with seats assigned we had 4 out of 4 flights without my specified seats. That is the first time I did not make my flight arrangements and the first time we got seated in whatever was available. 

 

I called Viking 6 days prior to the trip to inquire about rescheduling and was told by customer service “you are out of the window to reschedule and the insurance would not cover this as a reason to cancel”. Also Viking does not guarantee water levels.

 

We did three ship swaps and sailed the only stretch of Danube after dark.

 

Lots of fun packing and unpacking. A guide told us the ships have been Stuck at ports since June and August. Stuck was a good word. So the reality is well hidden by Viking until just prior to your trip. 

 

We had several buffet meals on the trip. I wonder if they usually have that many. Probably a convenience on swap days.

 

They offered us a $650 credit for another cruise which I find unacceptably low given the inconvenience.

 

Fact is the water levels are at historic lows and a correction is probably  a long way off. So if you are hoping you will get lucky in the near future it is unlikely and the swaps eat a lot of your voyage and port time so my advice is to cancel/reschedule if you can or go to the cities on your own and stay in a hotel.

 

Viking customer service is lacking but the ads on TV are beautiful

Your experience with Viking mirrors mine.  

 

Viking Customer Service - in my view - stops when they receive your final payment.  They simply don't listen and/or care.  Why should they?  They have a steady stream of customers that are drawn to Viking as moths to a flame.

 

The ads, the brochures, the incessant barrage of "look how good we are"  simply did not measure up to what we experienced on our recent Viking cruise. 

 

I know Viking cannot control the rivers, but many other things are well within their control - including attentive customer service that is responsive to customers.  Wow, there is a concept, huh?

 

And regrading compensation - if one is willing to spend endless hours beating their heads against the Viking wall - they might "generously" offer you a cash refund of 2 or 3 % of cruise fare paid as they void the 25% or 50% future cruise credit.  Now that is a winning strategy that will win loyal customers over...Yeah, right!   

[Homerody]

On 11/25/2018 at 9:35 AM, Jcat2010 said:

two weeks to our embarkation date for Viking River Cruise, Romantic Danube.  On fact is clear, at least for the US arm of Viking.  Their marketing efforts far outstrip their customer service and support.  Between TV commercials and emails, I hear from Viking marketing at least 3 times a week.   In the last year since we booked the trip, we've maybe heard from viking about three times total.   When contacting viking regarding the danube river levels, the initial "handler" says "everything is fine, no changes", it usually takes at least three levels of transfer before you can get to someone who will at least confirm what's obvious from this board - that the river levels will have some impact on the cruise.  No definition of what that impact might be.  in fact, just received the "confirmed itinerary", shows no changes.   I've been told to expect a further communication "sometime" before we board the plane.

 

Perhaps Viking could learn that more information is better than less, in terms of customer satisfaction.  I really feel for those who have "trusted" Viking to keep them informed, as they will likely have no back-up plan.

Jcat's statement that Viking's marketing far outstrips their customer service and support is 100% on target. I think the summary of their experience with Viking could be repeated by many in this thread, including me.

 

I can't help but chuckle (in an ironic and sad way) when I think about the ads and compare them to my experience - in particular with the woefully inadequate Viking customer service - and recall the old joke about Bill Gates, Windows demo, and heaven.  

 

I would like to think that Viking will make things right by its customers. But based on my experience to date - I realize that once they have our hard earned cash -  responsive customer support is history and it is damn the customers - full speed ahead....

 

 

 

 

 

 

[mtkprint]

2 hours ago, camping mom said:

Thank you so much for reporting on this. We are on AMASonata Dec 16 for same route. We obviously have not heard yet of our changes but it was so helpful to know when you got your update and what your itinerary looks like. Keep us posted as you can. Have an amazing trip!

 

4 hours ago, FoxHallFamily said:

Greetings!  We are on the AmaCerto cruise from Nuremberg to Vienna departing on 12/1 and just received our alternate itinerary.  Now we start in Passau and cruise to Linz, Melk, Vienna and then Esztergom (with day trips to Budapest and Bratislava added to the end of the trip).  It's sounding pretty good to us but we are wondering how long the bus trips will be from Esztergom to Budapest and then I believe also from there (or maybe we cruise closer?) to Bratislava.  Thanks for any insights from the group! We have really appreciated all of the information available in this discussion!

We are on the AmaCerto cruise from Vienna to Nuremberg on 22 Dec and have not heard what our options are yet. We have a pre cruise night in Vienna and 2 post cruise nights in Prague. We are starting to wonder how many bus trips we are going to have as we booked a 7 day river cruise on a boat not a bus trip. We have absolutely no interest in busing around Europe or any other country let alone at Christmas time. Also appears we are not going to hear anything before we leave Australia as we fly out on 7 Dec and do a 12 day ocean cruise before flying to Vienna to get on the river cruise. As i said in my previous post i hope the wifi is working at sea or we will know absolutely nothing till we get to Heathrow to fly to Vienna?? or wherever. It is good to hear that AMA has finally produced some alternative itineraries for some travellers as we have heard or seen very little from travellers with them on this forum so far. If anyone going the same way as us on an earlier cruise and has received an updated itinerary we would love to know what plans you have been given.

[gnome12]

46 minutes ago, mtkprint said:

 

We are on the AmaCerto cruise from Vienna to Nuremberg on 22 Dec and have not heard what our options are yet. We have a pre cruise night in Vienna and 2 post cruise nights in Prague. We are starting to wonder how many bus trips we are going to have as we booked a 7 day river cruise on a boat not a bus trip. We have absolutely no interest in busing around Europe or any other country let alone at Christmas time. Also appears we are not going to hear anything before we leave Australia as we fly out on 7 Dec and do a 12 day ocean cruise before flying to Vienna to get on the river cruise. As i said in my previous post i hope the wifi is working at sea or we will know absolutely nothing till we get to Heathrow to fly to Vienna?? or wherever. It is good to hear that AMA has finally produced some alternative itineraries for some travellers as we have heard or seen very little from travellers with them on this forum so far. If anyone going the same way as us on an earlier cruise and has received an updated itinerary we would love to know what plans you have been given.

I'm not sure that you can compare a pre-Christmas cruise with one the covers Christmas. Alternatives might be more difficult to arrange when Christmas is in the middle of your cruise.

 

I realize that you are leaving very soon, but Dec 22 is almost 4 weeks away, which is a very long time in terms of rainfall predictions, so they really don't know yet what you will be doing.

 

Anyway, I wish you good travels, and I hope that everything works out satisfactorily.

[Coral]

Went to Regensburg from Passau yesterday.

 

There was mist all day but it was definitely manageable. So glad I didn't cancel this trip.

 

Today is Krems and we have an old town tour and Confection workshop.

 

Having a great time though really need sleep!

[pully8]

mtkprint We are also travelling from Australia next month for an APT/AMA cruise and we share your frustration with the lack of information and no indication from them when to expect a decision. 

We are not on your cruise but have been through the uncertainty before with high water, this event is more prolonged. Fortunately the season is almost over.

As you may know some are not being informed prior to departure, some prior to boarding a plane and some when they reach Europe. There are vague notices on their websites about modifications, last 1 we have seen was dated 20/11.

Did you book Vienna independently or via the cruise operator? Hopefully you will be informed at the latest in Vienna.  

Enjoy the ocean cruise, we are wondering if that may have been a better option given the circumstances, nevertheless we wait, watch and listen.

 

[G.M.T.]

Overnight, we had a sprinkling of powder sugar (well it looked like it) it is not expected to last, in the Danube valley it was foggy and light drizzle. A lot more snow fell on the higher areas of the Alps and Bavarian Forest.

 

The Danube has risen (please no jumping for joy - please read further) but only about 12 cm, I don't think it is enough to make the shallows passable, the river level will soon start to fall (again) as there is no rain / snow predicted for the next 3 days.

 

I now know how the passengers felt when the Titanic was sinking, after yesterdays bad news the dear MiL will be with us for Christmas.

 

I am looking for something like A Cruise Countdown Clock but for MiL instead.

[jtennant2]

On 2/18/2018 at 4:50 PM, notamermaid said:

Hello BarbaraB2,

 

 

It is very difficult to say as there can be great variation from year to year. I am not so familiar with the Danube as I live 500km away and only hear of the worst flooding and drought in the news. Relying on statistics to give you an answer is both "dangerous", i.e. easily leading to misinformation and difficult as statistics are a little tricky to get hold of. One way of getting hold of historical data is by subscribing to websites, one I would use is https://www.wetteronline.de/?gid=DL&pcid=pc_pegel_data&pid=p_pegel_data&sid=StationDiagram where you click on "Mehr Pegeldaten? ... " and become a member. The fee is given. For the time being this is not an option for me. Non-subscribers can get some data on: https://www.wetteronline.de/pegelstaende?gid=BAY This just covers Germany.

 

To show you some historical data and how varied it can be, here is a page on Vienna: https://www.wien.gv.at/statistik/lebensraum/tabellen/donau.html It shows you the year, the highest and the lowest with the dates when it occured in that year. Usually on the Rhine we get the highest in Winter or early Spring and the lowest in Autumn. The Danube is on the other side of the European watershed and does not always show the same pattern. The two greatest flooding incidents happened in June 2013 and August 2002, respectively! From the info on Vienna one can deduct that May actually has fewer incidents of high water (low water is almost impossible) but one also needs to bear in mind that the terrible flood in 2013 started at the end of May further upstream of course. In general though, May is better than April if you want to avoid flooding, data from the Bavarian authorities indicates.

 

 

All this does not really make you much wiser, I know. Closer to the date you will be travelling on please come back to cruisecritic to see what cruisers are reporting (hopefully) from the river. Figures do have a wide range and what looks good on 28 April might not do so on 8 May for example! Flooding can happen within 48 hours in extreme cases, i.e. lots of rain in the catchment area of the Danube combined with warmer temperatures that cause a little snowmelt in the lower Alps. Look at weather websites and if in doubt always check with your river cruise company.

 

Two things are certain. The most problems with low water occur in the section in Germany where the locks do not regulate the flow of water, a port in the area to remember is Vilshofen. There is a notorious bridge in Passau that often causes the first problems for sailing river cruise ships. i.e. can interrupt your journey: https://www.hnd.bayern.de/pegel/donau_bis_passau/passau-10091008/marken? Two important figures here are 630cm when passage for some river cruise ships becomes difficult under the said bridge and 780cm when the authorities stop the entire shipping on the river section they are responsible for.

 

Please note that I always refer to the Danube downstream to Budapest at the most, I have no data or experience for the area past Budapest towards the Black Sea.

 

Hope this helps a little.

 

notamermaid

On November 25, 2018 we got off the Viking Jarl, Atla, and Bragi on a 7 day Romantic Danube cruise. The first 4 nights were on the Jarl, 2 nights on the Atla, and 1 night on the Bragi. Many passengers never unpacked their suitcases. We were bused 75 minutes to Passau and the same on the return. There wasn't any town to walk to where we were parked on the Danube, near Straubing. We should have cruised the Wachau Valley and seen the Gottweig Abbey during the day but we arrived at the Abbey at 6:00 pm after a total of 5 hours on the bus. And at the same time some passengers were on the ship cruising the Valley at dusk and later. No possibility of doing both. The next day we were bused to our next port Vienna. We arrived in Vienna at 1:30, ate lunch and got on a bus tour. The following day were the optional excursions. However, many lost an excursion because of all the time we spent on buses and excursions needed to be condensed. After 2 nights on the Atla, we were bused 3.5 hours to Budapest. The water levels in Budapest are the lowest ever. Some Viking ships are stranded here and serve as a 1 night hotel for the other Viking ships that can't cruise between Vienna and Budapest. We have no control over mother nature but I wish Viking would have alerted us in advance of the strong possibility of more daytime hours on busses than daytime hours of cruising on the Danube. Our expectations would have changed and we would have known what to expect. This was our first river cruise and sadly, our last.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[pully8]

Thank you for sharing your experience which sounded terrible. I hope you get the opportunity to do another river cruise because yours was far from the norm. 

 

 

 

[notamermaid]

jtennant2,

 

I do not fully grasp why you are quoting me, but I can read your frustration between the lines. Reading through my post again I know that I had to be vague and just could not be more accurate. I mentioned statistics and I can only say that this year defied previous long-term statistics. They will have to be re-written. But this year also still stands out as exceptional. The climate change people tell us to expect more of this but the next few years will show if that is really the case.

 

I can understand that the experience with Viking is not what you where looking for. You have taken your first river cruise at the extremest drought on the rivers in Germany ever recorded. I am sorry to read that your conclusion is not to try one again. Certainty on the river hardly exists. The best river sections are the ones controlled by locks. But flooding is always possible to some extent at certain times of the year, like I said in my post you quoted. You are almost always stuck with a certain risk that brochures and adverts are keen not to show. This year many, many cruises have fallen short of the glossy mag experience suggested. Partly due to logistics but more just plain drought.

 

Unfortunately, it also leaves passengers with a loss of money that can be substantial depending on where you travelled from. Or in the very least it has people thinking they have lost valuable holiday experience that should be put into a financial figure. I believe this is something that should be re-thought after this year. Many communication problems and odd itinerary arrangements when a cancellation would have been more appropriate (IMHO) have lead me to think that more re-imbursement should happen rather than a future cruise voucher.

 

For people like you a "second-try" voucher seems cynical. I know you would be happier with a money-back arrangement. Under German law this would be a given and I am grateful that such consumer protection (more consumer understanding in this case) exists in m country.

 

It would be nice if you gave the rivers another chance, but I know you would be struggling.

 

Where ever your future trips will take you, safe travels.

 

notamermaid

 

 

 

[Jcat2010]

So,  here's the question for those of us in the US.  Who knows of a skilled lawyer?   Yes, this is weather, but not sudden, or unforeseen.   The question is should Viking, and other companies, who do this everyday, have been able to foresee that there would be interruptions?   If the people on this board can see it coming?    The conditions have existed for months, and there is no magical unicorn that will fly over the river and raise the river levels suddenly.  Spring, maybe.

 

We all purchased a "cruise", on a " vessel". It's not a cruise when the vessel is stopped for days.  A bus is not a vessel.

Just my opinion

[G.M.T.]

Some good news at last.

 

I was tracking the River Duchess yesterday on her way to Deggendorf, where she arrived late afternoon yesterday. Just has another look at the tracking site, expecting it to be on its way to Passau, but no she went upstream towards Straubing, she is already past Pfelling. The River Duchess is a 110m ship, don't know if she is running empty, the captain certainly judge it right.

 

Waiting in Straubing are two Viking ships, Lif and Var, both 135m ships, don't know what they are upto?

 

Just seen, upstream from Vilshofen heading towards Deggendorf and Straubing are 4 ships, Emily Bronte 135m, Amelia 135m, Joy 135m, Amadeus Brilliant 110m, all with destinations shown as Starubing or Regensburg.

 

Keep your fingers crossed, that they can make it through the shallows.

Edited November 27, 2018 by G.M.T.

[Jcat2010]

2 hours ago, jtennant2 said:

On November 25, 2018 we got off the Viking Jarl, Atla, and Bragi on a 7 day Romantic Danube cruise. The first 4 nights were on the Jarl, 2 nights on the Atla, and 1 night on the Bragi. Many passengers never unpacked their suitcases. We were bused 75 minutes to Passau and the same on the return. There wasn't any town to walk to where we were parked on the Danube, near Straubing. We should have cruised the Wachau Valley and seen the Gottweig Abbey during the day but we arrived at the Abbey at 6:00 pm after a total of 5 hours on the bus. And at the same time some passengers were on the ship cruising the Valley at dusk and later. No possibility of doing both. The next day we were bused to our next port Vienna. We arrived in Vienna at 1:30, ate lunch and got on a bus tour. The following day were the optional excursions. However, many lost an excursion because of all the time we spent on buses and excursions needed to be condensed. After 2 nights on the Atla, we were bused 3.5 hours to Budapest. The water levels in Budapest are the lowest ever. Some Viking ships are stranded here and serve as a 1 night hotel for the other Viking ships that can't cruise between Vienna and Budapest. We have no control over mother nature but I wish Viking would have alerted us in advance of the strong possibility of more daytime hours on busses than daytime hours of cruising on the Danube. Our expectations would have changed and we would have known what to expect. This was our first river cruise and sadly, our last.

 

 

Jtennant2 -  I've also heard that the meals were "cut" or buffet only, on the hotel ships?  Can you confirm?

 

 

 

 

 

[G.M.T.]

13 minutes ago, Jcat2010 said:

The conditions have existed for months, and there is no magical unicorn that will fly over the river and raise the river levels suddenly.  Spring, maybe.

 

There are certainly Unicorns (Einhorn) on the Danube (Donau):

 

[Jcat2010]

GMT. Also note that the Viking Var, and Lif, have been stationary for some time.  The Egil has joined them (coming down from Nuremberg/Regensburg. If the Egil stays at Straining, and is joined by the Jarl, then I would assume that their cruise has ended- as others have noted, 4 days cruising.  Then on to the busses.   If they move east, that's maybe a good sign; but as you say, they could be moving empty.

[notamermaid]

12 minutes ago, G.M.T. said:

Some good news at last.

 

I was tracking the River Duchess yesterday on her way to Deggendorf, where she arrived late afternoon yesterday. Just has another look at the tracking site, expecting it to be on its way to Passau, but no she went upstream towards Straubing, she is already past Pfelling. The River Duchess is a 110m ship, don't know if she is running empty, the captain certainly judge it right.

 

Waiting in Straubing are two Viking ships, Lif and Var, both 135m ships, don't know what they are upto?

 

Just seen, upstream from Vilshofen heading towards Deggendorf and Straubing are 4 ships, Emily Bronte 135m, Amelia 135m, Joy 135m, Amadeus Brilliant 110m, all with destinations shown as Starubing or Regensburg.

 

Keep your fingers crossed, that they can make it through the shallows.

Exciting news. Please keep watching that for our anxious cruisers. But I need not say that, I know you will.

 

Have a great time at the Christmas market, when ever you go, with or without snow.

 

notamermaid