Scenic Low-Water-Level Schedule Changes/Cancellations

There has been a miracle. Just one day/ night of bus and hotel and we'll be back on the Jasper tomorrow!

I'm so happy for you! I noticed last night that the Jasper was attempting to get through from Regensburg, but then it stopped progress right before Straubing. This morning I took another look, and it appears that the Jasper waited about 10 hours and then made a run for it, and has now passed the low points on the way to Passau or beyond. Last week, one of the crew members on the Opal told us that the Jasper captain was fearless, and if anybody could get through, it would be the Jasper. Apparently that's true.

Enjoy the rest of your cruise!

There has been a miracle. Just one day/ night of bus and hotel and we'll be back on the Jasper tomorrow!

That's terrific that you are moving again. Some advice for those going. If you get stuck and are offered compensation ask about their River Cruise guarantee as well as that should be separate compensation that is claimed through their insurance company. I think I recall seeing that the cruise director previously handed out letters indicating the days that applied. I would suggest you review the insurance on the Scenic website and know your rights when you are on the ship. Their communications when you get home are certainly not better.

Well we boarded Ruby this morning about 11am in Amsterdam. Cabin ready by 11.30, they cleaned the ones for early arrivers first, so kudos for that. Buffet lunch and now to catch up on sleep! Will try & advise on route as we go.

Some people had not been told of ship change until they got here ( and they hadn’t heard of C C! )

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jo-b,

it sounds as if you have already spread the message about us here on CC. :D

Lovely to have the room ready so early, good service indeed. Have a good rest and even better cruise.

notamermaid

Just testing uploading a photo using CC app!

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Currently on Ruby having a talk on upcoming tours. BUT ain’t started with an announcement that we are doing a ship swap with Crystal on 29 September. We are doing a local Rhine cruiser through the gorge.

Caskale it is likely you will be joining Crystal. Whether you stay on her is down to rain!

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Hope all goes well with the swap. We will see how things are when we get there next week. Thanks for the update and hope you are enjoying the cruise.

[emoji106]cruise is super, good mix of people food fabulous and wine flowing! What’s not to like? Oh and the cruising is pretty good too!

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Currently passing Düsseldorf, cold and drizzly but not enough rain to help anyone. We will be in Cologne this afternoon for our walking tour, leaving at 9.30pm for Koblenz where we should be around 9am Saturday for morning tours leaving our bags out, back to Ruby for lunch then on an unnamed river boat for the gorge sailing and then to Crystal. Not too many moans but a surprising number of people who had no idea about the low water levels. Notamermaid your ears should be burning w shave been telling everyone about Cruise Critic and your one woman education mission! not sure where on the Rhine you are but if you see a dumpy Brit in a lime green Mac do come and say hello we would be delighted to buy you a drink or three!

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Got the email today saying we will board the Crystal on the 3rd. Will let us know then what happens

Currently in Koblenz, cases out 8.30am, we go on tour this morning then back here for lunch then off on a river boat down the gorge to Kaub where we get coaches to Crystal. Crystal doing the same thing in reverse other than their bags had to be out earlier! Only 4 people are in different cabins on Crystal. Not heard anyone complaining about the swap. Looks like a better day here than in Cologne but chilly.

I imagine they will wait and see if rain happens for you Caskale if not this is the next best scenario.

And we actually had an email from Scenic yesterday confirming what was happening!

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We are on Basel to Amsterdam on 15th October. Reading this thread with interest and some trepidation. Just looked on the Scenic Current Sailings information and surprised to see that it says no current Rhine Itineraries are affected. Bit of a fib methinks.

We are on Basel to Amsterdam on 15th October. Reading this thread with interest and some trepidation. Just looked on the Scenic Current Sailings information and surprised to see that it says no current Rhine Itineraries are affected. Bit of a fib methinks.

I think rather that it is a lack of time to update the website, with other (more important) things to worry about.

jo-b,

I hope you have enjoyed your last lunch on the Ruby with the small MS Allure tied next to you. Enjoy the castles bathed in sunshine this afternoon. Would like to know which excursion boat you will be on.

Wishing you a smooth transfer to the Crystal.

notamermaid

I think rather that it is a lack of time to update the website, with other (more important) things to worry about.

I respectfully disagree. I think there is nothing more important that to communicate and be transparent to the passengers. The update to the website is from corporate and doesn't take long. Their lack of transparency regarding the late launch of the Eclipse and the bankruptcy of the shipyard was shameful. Communication, even if bad news, goes a long way towards easing the anxiety of passengers and creating loyalty to a brand.

I respectfully disagree. I think there is nothing more important that to communicate and be transparent to the passengers. The update to the website is from corporate and doesn't take long. Their lack of transparency regarding the late launch of the Eclipse and the bankruptcy of the shipyard was shameful. Communication, even if bad news, goes a long way towards easing the anxiety of passengers and creating loyalty to a brand.

Wow, I had no idea that the shipyard had bankrupted. I heard about the delay in the launch of the Eclipse. Can you give us and other Scenic cruisers an update.

I must admit, since this is my first river cruise, I have spent that last two months checking the CC blogs, river levels and Scenic ship locations.

Not sure that I would ever do it again.

Wow, I had no idea that the shipyard had bankrupted. I heard about the delay in the launch of the Eclipse. Can you give us and other Scenic cruisers an update.

I must admit, since this is my first river cruise, I have spent that last two months checking the CC blogs, river levels and Scenic ship locations.

Not sure that I would ever do it again.

I apologize that I don't know how to provide a link. Go back to the Boards page and under Cruise Lines A-O, click on "Other Cruise Lines" and then click on the Scenic Eclipse thread.

On our first Scenic trip in SE Asia the communications were poor but the trip was fabulous and the tour director who was with us most of the trip was incredible. As I previously posted on our Danube cruise earlier this month the communications and follow-up were terrible and the cruise itself not up to Scenic standards. I will post a review once my discussions with Scenic are completed. I am very pleased there are some on this thread that are being provided the service level they should expect and that Scenic can deliver.

We are now aboard Scenic Crystal. Lovely ship, more modern than Ruby staff equally charming. The transfer was OK. We had to leave our bags out at 8.30 and a daisy chain of staff lifted them into the sun deck where at 10am a truck arrived with the Crystals cases and a swap happened. On arrival they were in our cabin. Our Rhine boat was the MV Boppard which was a disappointment. It was full, mainly groups of men on a work outing leaning in the rail in groups chatting smoking and drinking beer. One group even singing loudly. Also outside there was no forward view so it was not the enchanting sail it should have been. We had a beautiful day for it and Viking Gagjon(?) and AMA Regina passed us in the opposite direction just outside Koblenz.

Lovely day in Rudesheim I hope I can upload a photo!

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I apologize that I don't know how to provide a link. Go back to the Boards page and under Cruise Lines A-O, click on "Other Cruise Lines" and then click on the Scenic Eclipse thread.

On our first Scenic trip in SE Asia the communications were poor but the trip was fabulous and the tour director who was with us most of the trip was incredible. As I previously posted on our Danube cruise earlier this month the communications and follow-up were terrible and the cruise itself not up to Scenic standards. I will post a review once my discussions with Scenic are completed. I am very pleased there are some on this thread that are being provided the service level they should expect and that Scenic can deliver.

Thanks for the thread info. I just spent the better part of an hour reading 16 pages of the Scenic Eclipse blog.

I was ready to book a voyage on her last April, however, they would not include a helicopter or submarine trip. I found their sales staff quite unbending, so instead, I booked a Viking Mediterranean cruise for our 50th. anniversary in 2020. I am pleased that I did, however, we still have the Scenic Amber cruise on October 11th. I pray all goes well on that one.

Thanks again, information is power!

I wish we could send you some of the excess moisture we are experiencing on the East coast of the US. It's been a very wet summer and fall here in NJ.

I hope the rain showers recently in Europe will help. We are about to take to the rivers starting in Budapest and ending in Amsterdam with Uniworld. We've done this cruise before, so this time, if we get a chance to experience a swap it should be an interesting adventure.

Scenic Crystal now docked in Mannheim, we all have to be off the ship by 8.15am for tours to Heidelberg from where we will be bussed an hour to Germersheim where the ship will have sailed to. They are calling these two technical stops and warning those not on tour not to get off as the ship will be setting straight off. Also the captain warned that today until midnight there will be a lot of vibration as the water levels are so low the propeller noise is bounced back off the rocky bottom. He assured us we would get to Basel, so looking good for you caskale! Lovely afternoon sailing along the Rhine yesterday, just what we had hoped for the gorge.

There are beginning to be some muttering of discontent now about Scenics lack of communication prior to the cruise. Lots of people had not been advised by email and some would have cancelled had they known as they particularly wanted facilities on Jasper that were not available on Ruby or Crystal. On board staff are excellent everyone is delighted with them in particular our cruise director Cathy who is a tornado of energy and bonhomie.

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jo-b glad to see you are having a great time. The only 2 differences I can see are the small pool and the salt therapy lounge. Not sure what else they could be missing. We fly out this afternoon. Thanks for your updates

Our Scenic Crystal adventure has now ended we got to Basel but even after the gorge which we did on a pleasure boat we had not appreciated the challenges of low water in the rest of the journey. We had an evening in Schloss Rasttat and came back to find provisions being loaded at 10.30pm, the captain advised that this was so we were 17 tons lighter cruising from Rüdesheim where they normally stocked up. But it meant the crew were working late and again in the early morning to reprovision. All credit to the crew and the cruise director Kathy they all worked so hard making changes on the fly and still managing to smile..

Our adventure continued this morning when our taxi arrived at the Merian Hotel in Basel to be told it had changed ownership yesterday and was closed for renovations!! We’d had an email reminding us of the booking yesterday so it came as somewhat of a surprise, we eventually found we had been rebooked into the Hotel next door which is very smart and they found us a room ready by 10am so all good!

Good luck to caskale and companions boarding Crystal today. Kathy will take care of you on your “adventure”

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Watching Scenic Crystal on the ship tracker she seems to be at Breisach and not moving? Anyone on board (caskale??) who can tell us what is happening?

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We left Breisach at 10 pm,will be changing ships tomorrow . Nothing else will change will still get the full Romantic Rhine Mosselle agenda