Cruise disruptions in France

[rove312]

With the stories about protests in France, I generally understand that there could be minor disruptions for travelers, and that not much would be completely shut down.  My wife has reports from her sister-in-law on Uniworld's Burgundy & Provence, Arles to Lyon cruise ending this weekend that a lock wasn't operating--I think due to a strike, but I'm not sure-- and the SS Catherine generally didn't cruise: most of the time passengers were bused and booked in hotels.  CruiseMapper shows the ship near the starting point in Avignon rather than the end point of Lyon as scheduled.

 

We have an upcoming cruise on Uniworld's Brilliant Bordeaux: am I correct in seeing that its route doesn't have locks?  As I've followed their first cruise of the season this past week on CruiseMapper, it appeared that it skipped the Pauillac stop.  If indeed I read it correctly, I don't know if it had anything to do with protests, or perhaps something to do with getting under the Pont de Pierre in Bordeaux, which needs to be done at low tide times, and maybe it needed to happen at a time that didn't allow them to spend adequate time at Pauillac.

[steamboats]

I read from passengers of the A-Rosa ship there that they couldn´t go through the lock due to a strike. So your SIL was correct.

 

Sorry, can´t help you with the Bordeaux cruise.

 

steamboats

[Canal archive]

It’s not the depth of water under the Napoleon bridge it’s the way the tides react with the many arches it causes swirling that changes directions the Captains need special and quite precise training for this navigation if yours at the time didn’t have that extra piece of paper then the passage was a no go. When we were on Scenic Diamond one of our captains was on a few days off and he returned to navigate us through. Mind you he looked so young most of the guys on board thought he should have still been at university.

[notamermaid]

7 hours ago, rove312 said:

We have an upcoming cruise on Uniworld's Brilliant Bordeaux: am I correct in seeing that its route doesn't have locks?

Needed to check this on the map. No locks. Have a look on the map, I have blow it up quite a bit:

It would show a small arrow like near Toulouse if there was lock.

 

For fun with maps, including this one called inland waterway routes: https://unece.org/maps-0

 

Have a great cruise.

 

notamermaid

 

Edited April 9, 2023 by notamermaid
wrong word

[pontac]

There are no locks on the Bordeaux cruise area.

 

I was told that the usual docking area in Pauillac is out of use currently - I don't know for how long, I was told this on my cruise in August. Ships are mooring at Fort Medoc, just a bit up-river.

 

Fort Medoc is an old castle, but not one with stone ramparts and there was a fair with sheepdog trials when we were there, but it's in countryside, not a town with restaurants and shops like Pauillac. 

[Canal archive]

Pauillac dock is being worked on so that it can be used for the really large ocean cruisers. Evidently it takes two hours at the moment to transport tourists to Bordeaux and the powers that be want tourists to be able to visit there and wineries with ease. So glad I’ve done that cruise sounds like it could get over peopled.

Edited April 9, 2023 by Canal archive

[rove312]

Thanks, and now I see that all along our itinerary is showing the day 3 stop as Cussac Fort Médoc; it's CruiseMapper that still shows the Pauillac stop on the schedule.