Danube water levels 2023 and similar topics - plus tips and info

[notamermaid]

5 minutes ago, Daisi said:

Just had a post in my message board... they are on an Avalon ship, boat can't go between Regensburg & Nuremburg. Trying to get more info.

 

Thanks for the info. I suspected as much although I am surprised it is Regensburg to Nuremberg rather than between Straubing and Vilshofen. Could it be too low for comfort at Regensburg now? Will be interesting to find out more.

 

Just to explain - I think I have not done so this year. It is not readily available in the literature that 290cm at Pfelling gauge is low for river cruise ships. 2018, the year of the disastrous drought, established this figure by looking at the reports coming in from river cruisers and was confirmed in an interview with a spokesperson of the authorities, which I read in German news. Please note that this is a general assessment. The captain of your ship will decide as the authorities in Germany do not issue a ban on river traffic in drought.

 

notamermaid

 

[reeves35]

10 hours ago, Daisi said:

Just had a post in my message board... they are on an Avalon ship, boat can't go between Regensburg & Nuremburg. Trying to get more info.

 

Not sure.  Travelmarvel Vega is currently underway between Regensburg and Nuremberg so some ships are obviously getting through. 

[notamermaid]

3 hours ago, reeves35 said:

Not sure.  Travelmarvel Vega is currently underway between Regensburg and Nuremberg so some ships are obviously getting through. 

As I indicated, I am bit puzzled by mentions of Nuremberg and Regensburg, as the former is on the Canal (not a problem area) and the latter on the Danube (navigation channel deep-ish and controlled by a lock). But I am not familiar with details in the Regensburg municipal district waterways.

 

Pfelling now at 286cm.

 

I see scattered showers on the radar over the Danube valleys and the immediate tributaries so that is at least a relief for nature.

 

By the way, if anyone is wondering how the Moselle is doing (there are a few itineraries going from the Canal and Danube to Trier), it is doing okay. This means that while figures may look low if you see them on a graph or you are concerned by the colour codes going to low water there is no need to be alarmed - almost never - as the navigation channel is deep enough and the authorities maintain a certain water level with the help of the locks.

 

notamermaid

 

Edited June 16, 2023 by notamermaid
added info

[Daisi]

The guy on my chat group says that the Captain said the water was dropping about 1" a day, but dropped 12" in one day the day before. Maybe it has something to do with your funny readings on the gauge notamermaid, and the Captain is being over cautious?  I guess he's the one who has to report to Head Office if there is any trouble, so maybe taking it on the easy side.

[notamermaid]

Thanks for the info Daisi. It really is up and down on the Danube right now, unpredictable to a certain degree depending on where you are. I would say "captain knows best" and there could also be an arrangement with another ship of course. Swapping ships or cutting short a cruise or sailing later or earlier to avoid an anticipated drop or rise - those are all possible scenarios river cruisers need to be prepared for.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Pfelling gauge shows 284cm. More or less stable, albeit a bit too low, today.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Pfelling gauge shows 287cm.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Pfelling gauge at 282cm. Forecast looks more or less stable for today but the trend is definitely for a further slow decline (36 hours). Weather forecast for Bavaria says localized thunderstorms starting during the night, but tomorrow will be a hot and humid day followed by, again, localized thunderstorms. Wednesday all in all a bit cloudier with potentially a bit more rain. Very difficult to tell if that will be really helpful for the river's levels to go up.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Pfelling gauge at 282cm. Mild heat warning for much of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria. The Rhine valley has already seen a bit of rain during the night. Level forecast at Kelheim, that is where the Canal joins the Danube, now showing an uptick in levels. Not much but it is there. This may not be reflected at Pfelling later as we have two locks and and the Regen river (among other parametres/variables) also determining how things will go. Thunderstorms may happen during the night.

 

notamermaid

 

[jmm]

I’ll be sailing the SS Beatrice (Uniworld) from Budapest on June 28th.  I’ve been tracking the ship and it looks like it never made it to Nuremberg on the June 14th Budapest - Nuremberg sailing (It’s been stuck in Passau for the last day or so according to Vessel Finder - the schedule showed that it should be in Nuremberg now and changing over passengers tomorrow (for the 6/21 sailing back to Budapest)).  Anyone on the 6/14 or 6/21 sailings that can further comment?  Thanks!!

Edited June 20, 2023 by jmm
Date fix

[ikesyd]

3 hours ago, jmm said:

I’ll be sailing the SS Beatrice (Uniworld) from Budapest on June 28th.  I’ve been tracking the ship and it looks like it never made it to Nuremberg on the June 14th Budapest - Nuremberg sailing (It’s been stuck in Passau for the last day or so according to Vessel Finder - the schedule showed that it should be in Nuremberg now and changing over passengers tomorrow (for the 6/21 sailing back to Budapest)).  Anyone on the 6/14 or 6/21 sailings that can further comment?  Thanks!!

I’ve bee tracking Avalon Envision and it too appears not to have made it to Nuremberg as scheduled on the 20th. Looks like it stopped at Vilshofen for the turn around itinerary back to Budapest. We are scheduled to sail on 17 October - fingers crossed. 

[Daisi]

On Sunday, I was in contact with someone on the Envision. Their cruise was to end in Regensburg. They were stopped at Passau, and were taking busses to Regensburg for the tours on Monday. Those who were going to be leaving from Nuremburg were to be bussed there after the tours. The remaining passengers going on to Prague were to be bussed from Passau.  They were given monies for lunch (and dinner for those going to Nuremburg) and also, to make up, everyone was given the tour to Saltzburg. Those who had paid for the tour were being re-imbursed. He didn't say, but I would assume that Avalon was also putting passengers up in a hotel in Nuremburg as they would be flying out probably on the Tuesday. He sounded very happy with how things were handled. 

 

Maybe now the waters have risen enough that they managed to get the ship to Nuremburg for picking up the next tour.  Glad to hear that Avalon is still stepping up to the ball when things go wrong, especially since I have my tour with them on the Danube in Sept!

Edited June 20, 2023 by Daisi

[ikesyd]

29 minutes ago, Daisi said:

On Sunday, I was in contact with someone on the Envision. Their cruise was to end in Regensburg. They were stopped at Passau, and were taking busses to Regensburg for the tours on Monday. Those who were going to be leaving from Nuremburg were to be bussed there after the tours. The remaining passengers going on to Prague were to be bussed from Passau.  They were given monies for lunch (and dinner for those going to Nuremburg) and also, to make up, everyone was given the tour to Saltzburg. Those who had paid for the tour were being re-imbursed. He didn't say, but I would assume that Avalon was also putting passengers up in a hotel in Nuremburg as they would be flying out probably on the Tuesday. He sounded very happy with how things were handled. 

 

Maybe now the waters have risen enough that they managed to get the ship to Nuremburg for picking up the next tour.  Glad to hear that Avalon is still stepping up to the ball when things go wrong, especially since I have my tour with them on the Danube in Sept!

Great update! As usual it appears that Avalon have looked after their passengers despite the challenges. We are going to be travelling from Budapest to Vilshofen. From there we plan on taking a long train journey to Rostock to continue our adventure. 

[jmm]

Thanks so much for the feedback and updates!  Looks like low water is going to be something we will have to deal with!  So little snow in the Alps this past winter is going to mean low rivers all summer.....unless continual rain!

[notamermaid]

Pfelling gauge at 280cm, up from 278cm earlier. Still fluctuating at too low a level. Band of rain with thunderstorms forming, now running through Germany Northwest to Southeast, having reached Bavaria and moving through towards the Czech Republic.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

4 hours ago, Rwpenner said:

How are the water levels so far for 2023? We will be there August 1, 2023.

 

Welcome to Cruisecritic. All in all, a bit on the low side in Germany, meaning in the possible range looking at long-term data, both Rhine and Danube have seen lower levels with less flooding than what one may consider expected.

 

If you are new to river cruising or would like a few more tips may I recommend the pinned threads by our host jazzbeau to you? A great compilation of info.

 

Have a great cruise.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Pfelling gauge is at 279cm. A slight up in the forecast is suggested, a return to 290cm? Looks doubtful still, but there looks to be a reaction to the rain coming.

 

13 hours ago, ikesyd said:

Great update! As usual it appears that Avalon have looked after their passengers despite the challenges. We are going to be travelling from Budapest to Vilshofen. From there we plan on taking a long train journey to Rostock to continue our adventure. 

I agree, sounds good.

 

Have a great time in the Northeast of my country.

 

For those new to the topic of the Danube and low water (in Germany): Vilshofen is considered the last port without the low water problems, looking upstream. A lock helps to keep the level up. From there you pass Pfelling gauge and sail on to Straubing, where we consider the low water problems to end, but it appears that Regensburg is sometimes the last port that those coming from the Canal sail to, avoiding sailing on to Straubing and turning. Not sure why, a lack of space at Straubing or logistics/supply/amenities?

 

If you are interested in such details, perhaps your ship crew may be happy to answer such questions.

 

notamermaid

 

 

[Daisi]

New reports from our Envision Chat. The passenger boarded in Vilshofen. Avalon has given them free excursions to make up for missing what they did.

 

Hoping the rain is a good sign, at least enough to keep sailing.

[rcaruso]

2 hours ago, Daisi said:

New reports from our Envision Chat. The passenger boarded in Vilshofen. Avalon has given them free excursions to make up for missing what they did.

 

Hoping the rain is a good sign, at least enough to keep sailing.

On Cruise Mapper I see a Viking ship tied up in Vilshofen.  No reports yet of ship swaps.

[KathyK13]

On 6/16/2023 at 5:36 AM, notamermaid said:

As I indicated, I am bit puzzled by mentions of Nuremberg and Regensburg, as the former is on the Canal (not a problem area) and the latter on the Danube (navigation channel deep-ish and controlled by a lock). But I am not familiar with details in the Regensburg municipal district waterways.

 

Pfelling now at 286cm.

 

I see scattered showers on the radar over the Danube valleys and the immediate tributaries so that is at least a relief for nature.

 

By the way, if anyone is wondering how the Moselle is doing (there are a few itineraries going from the Canal and Danube to Trier), it is doing okay. This means that while figures may look low if you see them on a graph or you are concerned by the colour codes going to low water there is no need to be alarmed - almost never - as the navigation channel is deep enough and the authorities maintain a certain water level with the help of the locks.

 

notamermaid

 

On our December 2022 cruise from Vienna to Nuremburg our ship stayed in Regensburg.  Our CD said that while they could probably make it through, water levels were forecasted to drop over the next 2 days.  They were concerned that the next cruise starting in Nuremburg wouldn't be able to progress.  So we were bussed to Nuremburg for our planned excursions there, and they gave each person 30 euros for lunch.  Then they gave us several options for disembarking.  Some people stayed at hotels in Nuremburg rather than return to the ship, some were bussed, and some took the train from Regensburg.  Avalon covered the cost of all transportation changes.  Our poor CD was up all night making arrangements!  We were supposed to take the train to Munich from Nuremberg but chose to take the train from Regensburg instead.  Avalon paid for our train tickets as well as the cab to the train station.  Our excursions weren't affected and we were very happy with Avalon's handling of the situation.

[Daisi]

I'm seeing Avalon Impression down at Roth, pretty sure it was in Nuremburg last night. Envision is in Passeau, so hopefully things are looking up.

 

@KathyK13, Avalon seems to have the ability to work well on the fly so to speak, really makes me glad we sail with them.

[notamermaid]

Soon after I posted earlier, the level at Pfelling started rising steadily and is running well above what the forecast had suggested earlier today for this evening. I have the sneaky feeling they have let more water get through the lock and dam system than what is standard. Just my guess. Anyway, the result: 301cm. Now that is a nice figure to end the day with.

 

notamermaid

 

[rcaruso]

I see two Viking ships on Cruise Mapper sailing through that area, that's why!

[vino100]

Thanks for all the info. 
I do have a question. Does the Danube between Budapest and Passau ever get too low to sail? 

[rcaruso]

13 minutes ago, vino100 said:

Thanks for all the info. 
I do have a question. Does the Danube between Budapest and Passau ever get too low to sail? 

;I've experienced it when it was low between Bratislava and Budapest.  Our ship was quickly moved to Komaron on the Hungarian side to make sure we could get out of Budapest, otherwise I have not experienced any other low spots till past Passau.