notamermaid

Great to hear from you, I was wondering what you two are up to these days. You are not actually saying when you are going. Very soon? Have a great time. What a splendid trip to look forward to. notamermaid

Aah, I see now. Thanks. notamermaid

Sorry, but from a European Union customer standpoint with maximum three months full payment before any river cruise, I fail to see the deal, too. How does only $25 dollar deposit make the river cruise any cheaper? I guess I would need to read the e-mail in full. To me from the little information I have it sounds like empty bait. I will leave it at that. notamermaid

Hmm, I expect the water level at Kaub to be between 40cm and 400cm. I am actually half serious, I have no idea and neither do most people apart from a few weather and hydrology experts that do modelling of weather patterns. But generally speaking, late October is a bit on the low side. As regards a prediction, anything more than what I have just said would be like leaning myself out of the window very far. As regards a tentative forecast, that will be available ten days before your cruise starts. Weather: nights in late October will be chilly, day temperatures without frost, often above 10 Celsius. Rain will vary. The Rhine has a micro climate of not that much precipitation, it will likely be more in the Netherlands than upstream. Perhaps someone who has sailed around that time can give you more impressions. Basel to Amsterdam is the classic route and a great introduction to this part of the world if you have never been there before. But it is enjoyable for repeat cruisers too, of course. Oh, and if you have not joined a roll call yet, you may like to do so. Some people prefer to answer questions more in that private space. notamermaid

It is Tuesday early evening and the level at Kaub has fallen to 104cm. On Saturday a river cruise ship collided with a barge near Speyer. Two people were slightly injured, but after brief medical attention could return to the ship and continue sailing. Damage to the ship was just at the bow above the water line so the ship continued its journey (after a brief inspection). The barge turned sideways to the navigation channel and ran aground on a groyne. It was later freed and could also continue sailing. The cause of the accident is unknown and under investigation. Here is a short video: https://www.swr.de/swraktuell/rheinland-pfalz/ludwigshafen/zusammenstoss-zweier-schiffe-rlp-100.html Due to the sheer fact that police and authorities were informed of the potential number of people needing attention, i.e. the river cruise ship passengers, this initiated a major rescue operation, complete with helicopters. Thankfully, this turned out not to be needed. The second accident happened at the island Niederwerth near Koblenz. A barge (consisting of two parts) got stuck and had to uncouple. Then another ship pulled the barge free. Trying to free the uncoupled part the second ship got stuck, so the freed barge came to the rescue and freed the ship, them in effect helping each other. Problem solved... To which one of the policemen of the police launch said: "Quite a curiosity. Have not seen this in more than twenty years of service." Both Dutch ships suffered no damage and continued on their respective journeys. notamermaid

Not got news from the map (the one above). Let us do the pop-up version once more: For some software reason, the graphics do not show the bar properly, but the orange dot is plain to see. And the level has fallen below what the forecast had suggested. The figures given are "raw data", but even if those figures are adjusted upwards by the authorities, I think it it obvious there is not enough water coming from further upstream. The new forecast suggests now for tomorrow 248cm. I do not recall when the problems in the abysmal year of 2018 started. By August we were definitely talking about ship swaps. I will try and retrieve some data to compare this July to that July then. For now, here is the info from the data sheet page on Pfelling gauge: This means the lowest known water level at Pfelling gauge was 228cm on 23 August 2018. Yes, the authorities adjusted the data around the end of 2018 and put that figure as the new lowest ever recorded. notamermaid

A new forecast for the river levels is published every day, so is there any real change to this: No, this still stands. Friday is now of course coming closer and looking at the figures for that day we see 85cm to 82cm. Saturday I am afraid could see potentially lower figures still, i.e. the downward trend continues. notamermaid

Oops... I took several photos. I seem to remember you were not supposed to photograph the displays in the library, so I did the floor. Do not recall about the other rooms. There was an exhibition and I think I took the photos in there. And in the courtyard. notamermaid

Which makes me wonder if the CC promotion is only sent to US site users. Would a subscriber to a newsletter in the UK get this? I have never received a promotion or things like that from CC. No idea if that is my settings or they just know that I am not in the US/Canada/UK etc. To be honest, I have never thought about this before now. By the way, Viking does not market to German speaking folk. notamermaid

With the river levels being fine on the Elbe (perhaps a little surprisingly), Dresden being at 149cm, let us relax and have a look at another company and ship that also sails the river northwards and the Canals westwards, similarly to Saga UK: https://www.nicko-cruises.de/en/fleet/flussschiffe/ms-thurgau-saxonia nicko cruises charters the Thurgau Saxonia (Thurgau refers to a Swiss company). Note that they also use the ship to sail East and North. An unusual direction with its own appeal. It is important to note that nicko only goes so far in accommodating English-language passengers and I highly recommend checking this before you consider booking. With German language skills, an open mind for new areas hardly sailed and a willingness to forgo the luxury of a 135m ship these I am sure are enjoyable itineraries on a pleasant ship. The locks, canals and depth of the river preventing large ships from sailing, all ships, being it German or English charters, will be similar in size. Basic amenities should be similar, too. notamermaid

Tricky. Most smaller ships of the two deck type probably will not have a second dining area. You may need to look around for those. There are other ships like the River Adagio that will be split level, but not sure which companies have them. CroisiEurope only has ships up to a length of 110m and some two level, but not sure about split level. You could ask this question in its own thread. It it an interesting topic I find. Wonder if someone knows something that will exactly fit what you are looking for. Edit: Daisi's and my answer appeared at the same time. notamermaid

So what can we expect at Pfelling? The tentative forecast for tomorrow shows 266cm as a likely figure, which is official mean low water. Although the level is already low for some river cruise ships, statistically this is not visible yet on the map. Clicking on Pfelling gauge, right now you get this screenshot (enlarged by me): Still on green, which can be deceiving when just looking at the map, but the level on the bar is close to the orange colour when you click on the Pfelling gauge dot to make the info pop up, which I have done here. notamermaid

Firstly: Germans are celebrating like anything and I have been dragged into the fun and organisational work, partly because I had to, partly because I volunteered and on top of that I volunteered to stay longer when I saw the panicked look on my team leader's face when a message popped up on her smartphone saying a colleague was not coming because they may have covid. Which probably means I will get it soon. Oh well... Be prepared for life in Germany that is more or less normal (with a high potential to pick up a virus), but the odd place will still want you to wear a mask indoors (theoretically it is voluntary but they may insist it is their house rule, so in such a case do not argue...). Secondly: it is going to be hot this week quite likely so I need to get some work done that I do not want to do in hot temperatures. I have no air conditioning or plunge pool. When you come, be prepared with hat, sun cream and stamina (or enjoy the ship's air conditioning). This leads to thirdly: Kaub gauge is now at 117cm. Lake Constance is losing water and at Maxau there are clear signs that we can expect the level in the Middle Rhine valley to fall further. There is just not enough water coming from the Upper Rhine valley and the tributaries. Some regions of Germany have had a third less rainfall than what is normal average in June, says the low water report of last week. We can expect Kaub to fall to 100cm on Wednesday and then 90cm on Thursday. Still enough water to float large river cruise ships but the narrow valley gets trickier to navigate. I imagine even more careful and possibly slower sailing around a few shallows and the rocks. Fourthly: two accidents, one near Speyer that was not so pleasant (but not dramatic) and a curious one with a fun twist near Koblenz. Details to follow. And something about a statue in Bonn. notamermaid

Thank you for the info and the photo. Perfectly illustrates the point I was trying to make about the split level design. notamermaid

Pfelling gauge is definitely on the way down (daily fluctuation aside). Falling below 280cm in the early hours of this morning and staying below that figure since then. notamermaid

It has been a busy weekend at work and rest is needed, so I shall be brief. It applies to the Danube. The Main is fine as it is controlled by locks and the navigation channel is deep-ish. The Moselle is equally controlled by locks where the river cruise ships sail and is low but fine as far as I know. As indicated earlier this week would be the case, the level at Kaub on the Rhine has stayed above 100cm, now at 124cm. It certainly has steadily gone done, though, in the last few days and is expected to fall below 100cm on Tuesday. Expect this trend to continue. Things along the river to catch up with, but for now, I will rest my weary head. notamermaid

I adore the library in Melk Abbey and took a photo of the underfloor heating grills (I am weird). An amazing place and the Wachau valley is certainly beautiful. I am sure you will enjoy it. notamermaid

Pfelling gauge has been steadily below 290cm since late last night and is currently at 280cm. We know from the entries in @StartrainDD's highly recommended live blog that this is too low for ease of sailing for Viking's 135m ships. It will be now or soon be similar for other ships of that length - that is if the level falls further in the shallow stretch between Straubing and Vilshofen. After today's low temperatures and potential rain (not much) in the Danube valley tomorrow, it is forecast to get hot next week. No further rain for a few days. notamermaid

I seriously do not understand why Viking is so quiet about this, or rather why this is not mentioned the day before and then briefly pointed out at dinner. Cannot be difficult I would say. You and the Eistla made it to Deggendorf, i.e. through the shallow stretch and that was a bit of a logistical manoeuvre for sure. You are through! But that is not good and I do not recall anybody mentioning this in detail on cruisecritic before. At least better timing could on two occasions have been achieved, from the sound of it. I mean, we all use smartphones and satnavs... Have not been to the castle, but Passau should be a pleasant place. The organ in the Cathedral is magnificent and there is a café nearby that I enjoyed much: https://greindl-passau.de/blogs/cafes-werkstatten/cafe-stephans-dom notamermaid

I feared as much. And, yes, judging from what past cruisers have said here on cruisecritic, it is typical for (North-American, etc.) cruise lines not to mention this straight out or at least clearly visible in brochures. I have found that German ones tend to better at saying this. Not sure about CroisiEurope, but they have many smaller ships, i.e. two cabin levels rather than three. I actually learnt from a CroisiEurope captain that it is best to avoid the three cabin level ships if you are unhappy about the sundeck issue, as they are too high for the Main to keep the sundeck open. I am not sure if he meant all those, but it sounded to me as if it is very widespread practice among the three cabin level ships to keep the sundeck railings down a lot, because there are so many bridges. Perhaps it is all those ships, very likely he at least meant the vast majority. The split-level three cabin level ships are better for this it seems as the sundeck may be closed but there is a different design of lounge space. For more info, see here from post #4: https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2670259-the-river-main-infos-and-river-cruising-experiences/#comment-57658624 notamermaid

Pfelling gauge fluctuating at a slightly lower level than yesterday. Current figure is 288cm. notamermaid

Yes, I have been thinking of you while writing the river levels in the Danube thread. So, It is tight then for the Eistla (as it is for a few other 135m ships). Hope it works out. notamermaid

There clearly was not enough rain to have a real impact in the shallow section of the river. Data from further upstream does not look promising. Pfelling is now fluctuating around the 290cm mark. Annoyingly, it looks as if there will be rain in Southern Bavaria away from where it matters in the Danube valley and it will rain around Salzburg this weekend, says the forecast. That at least is good for Austria. notamermaid

Thank you for the photos. Hah, you have giving me another topic to talk about, I should have warned you. I think I have actually not mentioned the railway tunnels in that aspect. At least I cannot remember doing so in the last three years. Apart from the somber connections, I find they fit well into the landscape. Talking of war and deception. I leave you with a topic for the weekend that I am not sure all US folks know about. It also involves crossing the Rhine so fits into this thread. There was the Ghost Army which I myself have learnt about only very recently. They were non-combat soldiers employed to deceive German troops and and those in command about what the (mostly US) Allies were doing. It worked. They even used inflatable tanks! https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-the-ghost-army-of-wwii-used-art-to-deceive-the-***-180980336/ notamermaid

Some info on the international take and covid cases: https://www.travelweekly.com/Cruise-Travel/Cruise-lines-Covid-protocols-ease?ct=river Not going as far as Arosa does, it seems to imply. notamermaid