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River Cruise Problems 1n 2026
Has anyone heard from Tauck about Danube River cancellations or modifications because of the low water levels? We're scheduled to be on a cruise in September.
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I have seen several people on the forum discuss that they have had notifications but it appears that it is 2 or so weeks prior to departures. A month is a long time to predict river levels and it doesn't take much for the river levels to rise.
We had our Romantic Capitals June 28th eastbound departure cancelled just 5 days prior to the start. The boat was downriver on the Danube and could not get to Regenburg due to low water level to pickup the Westbound tour before ours, so ours had to be cancelled too. I got a full refund from Tauck. The Westbound tour had already started in Prague when their tour was cancelled "interrupted".
Did Tauck credit you the insurance?
just finished this cruise, July 27. Could not get from Bratislava to Budapest. Tauck bussed us to Buda and put us up at the Al Habtoor. Food was not good. Tauck did a great job getting all of us under the same roof considering there was a Formula One race that weekend. All in all it was a fine trip. However, flying back was a different story. Avoid Frankfort airport if you do not have at least 4 hours between connections. The EES is a joke.
British, I did not have Tauck insurance. I will note that this is the second time I had a tour cancelled by Tauck days before the start and was given a full refund without having Tauck insurance.
I am anxiously awaiting to hear news of my Swiss Alps Rhine River cruise trip that leaves August 3rd…cruise departing August 5th…no changes have been relayed as of yet…but the forecast is quite bleak and on Saturday I was told that the 7/27 departure will be on the MS Inspire which means it will be in Amsterdam on August 5th when we are supposed to board it in Basel??? But they didn’t have a notation that our departure will be on a different ship…I just hope I have info before our flight on Friday July 31st…
I do think if you are leaving that early, it’s a worth a call to Tauck to see if they have even more up to date info. Did you book the extra hotel nights through Tauck? That might complicate things.
We’re on the Aug 21 Romantic Capitals tour and will follow this thread with great interest.
We are on a river cruise at the end of October that begins in Bordeaux
We are on a cruise beginning in Amsterdam 8/9- weather forecasts do not look favorable at this point.
Hello Demcknight - I have been on a Tauck Danube River cruise that was modified due to low water level between Regensburg and Passau. We were bused from the ship that could not proceed due to low water, to a ship down river. Basically we traded ships with another tour going in the opposite direction. We were provided the same cabin, just different ship (same layout), different crew.
It has happened to me twice and the altered itinerary was different each time. I was so surprised Germany "allows" this situation to happen frequently as it hinders cruise ships and cargo ships. I was told that Germany does not fix the problem because a conflict between commercial shipping interests and environmental conservationists.
I don’t understand what you are saying. Surely it’s the river that is the problem and global warming, not a country.
I have been on the Rhine when water levels were too high and all river traffic was halted. If the locks are opened, they can't be closed in that situation. A country can't 'fix' water levels that nature controls.
We were very disappointed that our cruise was canceled from Bucharest to Budapest due to low water. Departure was to have been July 26.We were first given a letter a week out that told us not to worry that Tauck had contingency planning and would adjust accordingly. And then three days before the trip—as we were leaving for the airport—we received a phone call that the trip had been canceled. So really there was no notice. And we had to scramble to cancel what we could and get refunds where we could for anything extra we had booked before or after or for planned “free” time. And we learned that even if we traveled, any reservations for extra hotel nights or air booked through the company would be canceled. You get a refund less the cost of the insurance policy (covered my canceling, not their canceling) unless you rebook another trip in which case the credit includes insurance. Of course the prices have all gone up for next year, so rebooking the same exact tour will cost more because you have to pay the difference. And they have offered nothing in terms of a future upgrade or any other sweetener to make this pill go down without leaving a bad taste.I really thought Tauck as a premium operator would find a workaround. Just canceling at the very last minute really disappointed us.
In case of the Danube River and low water levels between Regensburg and Passau, they can dredge the bottom of the river bed and make a deeper channel for the ships to pass. [I was told that Germany does not fix the problem because a conflict between commercial shipping interests and environmental conservationists.]
Dredging river bottoms scoops up sand, silt, and mud from a waterway. It keeps shipping channels deep enough for boats (shipping interests). However, it can also disturb local fish and plant homes. (environmentalists object).
I am so sorry that happened to you…we are booked in the Swiss Alps Rhine itinerary departing August 3rd…we too received that completely vague and useless letter last week about possible changes…I call every day to see if there are any updates and speak with customer service agents who really can’t provide any info… we leave on Friday the 31st and are very anxious that we will have the same experience you are having or worse get to Zürich and find out is cancelled..I think they need to give more notice…why bother to send that letter if they were just going to cancel…I too thought Tauck would do better for its clients..to me your experience is not acceptable…reading people’s experiences on cruise critic it seems like other lines are finding some contingencies and providing some future credit for their experience which was not what they had expected…very disappointing.
Tauck doesn't have endless resources to absorb massive loses especially after the hit it took during covid. They can't control the water levels or rain. Also consider that it isn't just Tauck involved - its also Scylla the company that owns, maintains and crews the ships. That crew has to be paid whether they are cruising or stuck somewhere.
I understand the frustration after planning a trip for months but it is what it is.
My wife and I depart on 7/30 for Roam’s Prague & Danube tour. We received the “be prepared” letter, but nothing more. We have 3 nights in Prague at the Augustine Hotel, (7/31 is our pre-night) then bus to Passau on 8/3 to meet the MS Savoy and join a Tauck “Blue Danube” tour that travels eastbound to Budapest. My crystal ball, (with help from the AI Gemini app) projects:
Best not to plan summer travel - between water levels, fires, heat and crowds.......................
I doubt dredging solves water deficits caused by heatwaves and lack of rainfall.