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Black Sea to Budapest
Hi everyone,
I am not sure if this is on another thread, sorry for the duplication if it is, but we are scheduled for this river cruise, officially leaving on Sept 17th. We are of course coming in a day early. I have been following all the other posts about the Danube, but has anyone received any communication from Tauck about this trip, not necessarily our specific time frame?
Thanks heaps!
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We are booked on this as well. I called yesterday and dealt with the most unpleasant person. I know they are probably sick of getting calls, but she was so rude. Insisted that the ships are all sailing and that plenty of rain was possible between now and the 17th, and that I was probably "worrying for nothing."
In reality, our particular river boat is still stuck where it ran aground last week, and the trip that was supposed to end with the Esprit in Bucharest to pick us up has been canceled.
She told me that we could expect no communication before 7 days out, so late next week. Very unfortunate as we fly out that weekend.
I feel like Tauck is in total denial about at least this trip, as the river gauges show that it's completely unpassable down that way. I also am having a hard time imagining there are hotels in Bulgaria and Serbia that would make a bus trip worth it. I know you pay your money and you take your chances, but I think Tauck is being awfully cavalier about this, and we are feeling rather frustrated.
I do understood your frustration, but it is too early. Right here at home, we have had tremendous amounts of rain in the past couple of days and it could happen there and make all the difference. For me, the worry part would be leaving several days early for pre tour things and having to sort that out, not the actual tour because that part is easy to cancel.
Unfortunately, with the state of air travel in the US, especially during hurricane season, flying in at least a couple of days early is a must. If the first flight gets delayed or canceled, it is often more than 24 or 48 hours before another one can be taken.
For me, the frustration is more that I wish there was some transparency around the decision making rubric. You know there must be one. If on day X, the water level at this gauge is Y, we will pivot to this Plan B. And I do think it should be possible to give a rough outline of what Plan B might entail.
I am curious, British, if the rain you are getting was correctly forecast? As most forecasts for the first part of this month in Romania are calling for continued heat and drought, it would be encouraging if one could hope they are wrong.
Yes correct. For Tauck, as situations change they can pivot, so it may be a waste of time to continually inform you of every little change to find it changes again. They are dealing with thousands of people. And even more difficult, as people continue to cancel their vacation, it is even more difficult for them. I have had similar situations that cause uncertainty and worry in the past. I have however learned how Tauck operates in these situations.
I hope those people who have continued with their changed vacations will report back here about how it all turned out.
Syllia is in charge, not Tauck. Rivers are managed by a version of the coast guard. It is heart breaking to plan a trip several months in advance and then. Poof. It goes up in smoke. Please be patient and give Tauck a chance.
I understand the pressures Tauck is under, but I am with Kristine_Lewis1, I fell like they could give us a heads up more than 7 days before the trip of possibilities. Oh well, patience is a virtue of which I am quickly running out of!
Too much in the future is too early, awful I know but weather is weather and you can't predict it too much in advance.
Thank you for posting about this particular itinerary. I am monitoring this from the perspective of a scheduled mid-October departure on the Esprit. If river conditions on the lower Danube remain challenged over the next several weeks, I am hoping there would be communications from Tauck around possible alternatives earlier than 7 days before tour departure. Some of us have requested vacation time from our employers, and if a tour isn’t happening, or if it’s likely to be substantially altered, it would be nice to have a decent amount of notice to enable alternative plans to be made, so that this “time off” isn’t wasted.
I can understand why the amount of notice earlier on in the summer was so short, because at that time the situation was new and fresh - but if the current situation in the Lower Danube continues as is for the next few weeks, why wait until the last minute to provide information regarding alternatives? More notice would signal a good faith effort to address customer concerns as best as possible.