Danube water levels 2022 and similar topics - plus tips and info

[KOgren]

3 hours ago, travelcommons said:

On the Viking cruise that ended Saturday 08/13, they arranged transportation for 8 of us that needed to end in Regensburg like the original disembarkation port (instead of Passau).  The driver took two of us to a rental car place and the other six of us to the train station by 10:30am.

That would be helpful, thank you for letting us know.

[notamermaid]

13 hours ago, Flight96 said:

Has there been cancelled sailing lately?

Yes. Sailings of a couple of European river cruise lines last week. Could be back to fully operating seeing that the level has risen but it is not guaranteed that all have resumed normal itineraries.

 

13 hours ago, Flight96 said:

Also what is the min water level for these boats. I see the River Princess has a draught of 1.6m (~160cm).

It is not possible to exactly look at it this way. A captain decides whether he can sail his ship safely. General consensus is that river cruise ships can still sail when the level at Pfelling is above 290cm. That means depending on the individual draught and hull design and company policy and captain' s decision a ship will sail below that level. 1.6m is less than some other ships but - see above - there is no guarantee it will sail when another one is not sailing anymore.

 

So, a minimum for a particular ship we or any other person than the captain on the ship cannot determine.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

Quick update. This must be one of the fastest rises I have ever seen at Pfelling since I have been looking at this sort of stuff, i.e. since around 2015. I have often wondered how they manage to have flooding in August that has gone into the all time records. Now I understand that it is possible. Not from the level that Pfelling started with of course, but if you started at the mean water level and then got the sort of rain there was for double the time... Anyway, Pfelling gauge is at 481cm:

 

It is not clear yet if that is the peak but the rise has slowed down in the last few hours. As this is "just" a very strong wave, the level will fall again quickly with Monday seeing figures of below 400cm again. But for now things are looking good at Pfelling. And certainly really good between Vilshofen and Bratislava. The wave has reached Hungary so things should be improving there too.

 

notamermaid

 

[Zonko]

6 hours ago, notamermaid said:

Quick update. This must be one of the fastest rises I have ever seen at Pfelling since I have been looking at this sort of stuff, i.e. since around 2015. I have often wondered how they manage to have flooding in August that has gone into the all time records. Now I understand that it is possible. Not from the level that Pfelling started with of course, but if you started at the mean water level and then got the sort of rain there was for double the time... Anyway, Pfelling gauge is at 481cm:

 

It is not clear yet if that is the peak but the rise has slowed down in the last few hours. As this is "just" a very strong wave, the level will fall again quickly with Monday seeing figures of below 400cm again. But for now things are looking good at Pfelling. And certainly really good between Vilshofen and Bratislava. The wave has reached Hungary so things should be improving there too.

 

notamermaid

 

Is there any way to know whether these higher levels can be sustained? Or, should we expect the river to quickly return to extremely low levels?

[notamermaid]

3 minutes ago, Zonko said:

Is there any way to know whether these higher levels can be sustained? Or, should we expect the river to quickly return to extremely low levels?

Very difficult to know, basically impossible. There is a trend that the hydrologists and meteorologists will know about, they gather tons of information, make computer modelling, etc. What we can reasonably say is that it takes a few days to get back to a low level. It will not be back to 250cm in 48 hours... After the effects of this wave have passed we need more rain to back it up soon. What will be in a month's time is anybody's guess but as September and October are standard low months on the river, it is likely to get low again. How low we will just have to wait and see. I will have a look at the low water report from BAfG (the authorities) to see if they are giving any specific info on the Danube this week. There is an update every week when they deem it necessary, i.e. proper low water, but the focus changes a little from week to week.

 

One thing I am sure about is that I would not book a last minute river cruise on the Danube outside of the ports Passau to Bratislava that leaves any time before 15 October. Too much likelihood of interruptions.

 

notamermaid

 

[mrschiefopd]

We are on the Viking Jarl. We boarded yesterday (Sunday 8/21). As instructed in the email, we went to the Viking dock in Budapest. We were bussed to a town near Komaron where we boarded the Jarl. During the intro presentation last evening the director said the boat received permission to sail to Budapest. We arrived back in Budapest around midnight. It was spectacular seeing Budapest at night. Guests who wanted to take the panoramic tour of Budapest got off at 8:00 am near the Marriott Budapest Viking dock). We stayed on board and will pick up those guests upstream.  Itinerary has no changes as of now. We won’t know about getting to Regensburg for a couple of days yet. 

[bluestocking7]

@mrschiefopd  Thank you for the update.  It's encouraging that your ship was able to get into Budapest.

[notamermaid]

3 hours ago, mrschiefopd said:

We were bussed to a town near Komaron where we boarded the Jarl. During the intro presentation last evening the director said the boat received permission to sail to Budapest.

Great. The level at Budapest had started going up nicely during yesterday.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

3 hours ago, mrschiefopd said:

Itinerary has no changes as of now. We won’t know about getting to Regensburg for a couple of days yet. 

That makes sense. Better to wait and see what happens. Although I would say for now it looks promising.

 

A day to day approach is best, I wrote:

21 hours ago, notamermaid said:

It is not clear yet if that is the peak but the rise has slowed down in the last few hours. As this is "just" a very strong wave, the level will fall again quickly with Monday seeing figures of below 400cm again.

Yes, it turns out that when I posted it was the peak, the level has gone down to 412cm. A fast fall below 380cm is inevitable as no rain is backing this wave up. We will see the decline into Wednesday, I dare say the level should be okay till lunchtime that day, but as no long term estimate is published on "elwis" by the authorities, anything after that is guess work. Actually not quite as we can look at the Niedrigwasserbericht with some general info, I am referring to

15 hours ago, notamermaid said:

I will have a look at the low water report from BAfG (the authorities) to see if they are giving any specific info on the Danube this week. There is an update every week when they deem it necessary, i.e. proper low water, but the focus changes a little from week to week.

It is not saying too much about the Danube this week and they have published no specific graph, but the general message is that all rivers in Germany (and beyond) are suffering from low water and will continue to do so as the overall weather and general river pattern is for low in Autumn. On most rivers, not all, this is exacerbated by low rainfall in Spring. It applies to the Danube and the Rhine.

 

Back to my assessment. While the Rhine is suffering more from drought right now as the recent rain was more plentiful in the Danube basin than in the Rhine basin, the Danube will struggle more to sustain the level needed for river cruise ships after this wave than the Rhine will if it does not rain. Very tight between the rivers, if you want to see it as a kind of competition, but the Rhine at least for a few days, may well have the upper hand by a few centimetres. We will know more how the two rivers react to lack of rain by Wednesday. Please note that the wave on the Rhine is still ongoing in the difficult and low stretches while on the Danube it is now in Austria and further downstream, therefore soon leaving the stretches that we tend to focus on for the sheer volume of river traffic. Benefitting Budapest now and for several days, the wave will leave my "realm of focus" soon and go into my "uncharted territory". I am sure the wave will do nature a lot of good all the way to the Black Sea  and, as always, we would love to hear your comments and experiences from the area beyond Budapest.

 

notamermaid

 

[CPT Trips]

Interesting item about low waters https://www.morningbrew.com/daily/stories/2022/08/21/drying-rivers-reveal-historical-treasures?utm_campaign=mb&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_source=morning_brew&mid=619a8ca4659878ca12b1f572eb8d3ea4

[UDChE89]

1 hour ago, CPT Trips said:

Interesting item about low waters https://www.morningbrew.com/daily/stories/2022/08/21/drying-rivers-reveal-historical-treasures?utm_campaign=mb&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_source=morning_brew&mid=619a8ca4659878ca12b1f572eb8d3ea4

Wonder if I’ll see those ships on my cruise that goes all the way down to Donji Milanovac that leaves tomorrow.

[Haste Ye Back]

Whats the current situation with water levels on the Danube?

[UDChE89]

As noted in another thread, I witnessed the Amadeus Star depart Passau this evening in the direction of Vienna.

[podsnel]

Hey all from Ama Viola in Weissenkirchen!!! WOW a LOT of letters for a great place!! 
 

HAS BEEN RAINING FOR DAYS. 
 

All of our tour guides (local people) all saying  WE ARE GREAT the rain has worked!! 😃 Crew says looks good for Budapest! 
 

Happy travels to all, to an incredible vacation-

[bluestocking7]

@podsnel  Music to my ears.  May it stay that way until our Ms Joy cruise starts next week.

 

Enjoy your cruise!

[notamermaid]

18 hours ago, Haste Ye Back said:

Whats the current situation with water levels on the Danube?

see my post #434

 

Pfelling gauge has fallen, but not as fast as one may fear. Now at 377cm. That means it is just below the mean water level. Still looking pleasant, as expected and noted in a post of mine above, a rapid decline to extreme lows does not happen. The forecast is looking spot on today as regards how the river is reacting, so I reckon the estimate further into Wednesday should come close as well. A fall to 330cm we can expect, but looking (and guessing) at Thursday we may see 320cm. That is still good but makes us wonder how well the level can be sustained going into the weekend and next week.

 

No rain of note anywhere in the German Danube basin, weather forecast says rain in Passau today, i.e. coming from the East, which is good for Austria and the Danube downstream, but is useless for Pfelling gauge. Significant rain to sustain the level and hopefully make the river in Germany rise is forecast for Saturday.

 

notamermaid

 

[schagpal]

Hey everyone. Got this 8 hours ago from Emerald in regards to upcoming Saturday Budapest departure. Looks good.

 

After an extended dry period, Europe has recently experienced rain along the main waterways, resulting in the Rhine, Main and Danube rivers being sailable on all stretches. Your cruise is expected to operate as per your original schedule. Weather forecasts for the coming weeks look promising and pleasant weather is expected for guests to explore Europe onboard Emerald

[ras5952]

16 hours ago, podsnel said:

Hey all from Ama Viola in Weissenkirchen!!! WOW a LOT of letters for a great place!! 
 

HAS BEEN RAINING FOR DAYS. 
 

All of our tour guides (local people) all saying  WE ARE GREAT the rain has worked!! 😃 Crew says looks good for Budapest! 
 

Happy travels to all, to an incredible vacation-

 

[ras5952]

Hope you are enjoying your cruise. How do you like the ship?

[Croooser]

8 hours ago, schagpal said:

Hey everyone. Got this 8 hours ago from Emerald in regards to upcoming Saturday Budapest departure. Looks good.

 

After an extended dry period, Europe has recently experienced rain along the main waterways, resulting in the Rhine, Main and Danube rivers being sailable on all stretches. Your cruise is expected to operate as per your original schedule. Weather forecasts for the coming weeks look promising and pleasant weather is expected for guests to explore Europe onboard Emerald

Curious how things are going on Emerald - are they fully staffed and operating up to standard? Any indication that they are struggling with any operational issues?

 

Thanks

[notamermaid]

Brief update only today: Pfelling gauge at 328cm, a bit lower than the forecast suggested for this lunchtime.

 

Tomorrow and Friday will be more interesting to look at to see what may be happening over the weekend.

 

Budapest gauge reached the peak early this morning and is now showing signs of going on the downward slope. Seeing that it is still double what it was 48 hours ago, this should not worry too much.

 

notamermaid

 

[notamermaid]

According to a regional news report Danube rive traffic was halted overnight at Vilshofen. From around 10pm last night till 8.30am this morning. A barge got stranded on a gravel bank during a docking manoeuvre and partly stood in the navigation channel therefore the authorities prohibited ships from sailing past. Traffic has resumed but the ship is still there awaiting being towed free.

 

A closure like this can cause delays also for river cruise ships, depending on traffic, especially going through locks.

 

notamermaid

 

[gentlemancruiser]

hopefully this forecast will relieve some of the low water.

[CPT Trips]

Weather forecast gone wrong. 
 

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/heads-hungary-weather-service-fired-wrong-forecast-88730687

[CarolGS]

8 hours ago, CPT Trips said:

Weather forecast gone wrong. 
 

https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/heads-hungary-weather-service-fired-wrong-forecast-88730687

Quite the scandal! I  guess nothing and no one is beyond the reach of politics. But lucky me....the fireworks have been rescheduled for this weekend when we'll be in Budepest prior to our Danube cruise.  I wonder if our hotel has a rooftop bar!