notamermaid

It is raining in the Rhine valley. Will see tomorrow how the river reacts to it. It is calmer than predicted, but there are thunderstorms forecast for the region South of Mainz bordering onto the west bank of the Rhine. Main thunderstorms will hit Bavaria during today. As time progresses, it appears that more and more people are done with caring about the situation, i.e. whoever wants to wear a mask does. I see many people at bus stops still wearing masks, so I think there the regulation still applies (have not checked). For autumn, the "doom and gloom" people in Berlin tell us that measures could be reinstated. By that I mean, if the situation gets worse when we go back indoors after the Summer warmth, they contemplate debating about whether measures should come back. "Leave your options open"-like. People on the ground think it all bit much it seems, want to go about their daily lives and prefer to think about the summer holidays - Germans, world champions of travel . I myself did wear a mask in a meeting on Monday, but other than that I do not anymore. Shops ask me kindly to with a sign, but I do not bother. Remember that the health care sector still has regulations. It feels really good to be able to plan activities spontaneously. I have an invitation to a lecture and can actually presume that event will take place! And on 25/26 June the railway museum in Koblenz has its Summer festival again. What fun! https://dbmuseum.de/en/koblenz I have a tentative invitation to Marburg and plan a boat trip on the Rhine. And I am sure I have few engagements compared to other people! Naturally, river cruise ship spotting with this river maiden is in full swing again. notamermaid

I had forgotten about that. But as you say, the service stands out enough anyway. It would just be nice to have a bit more understanding from the offices as well. Your camera mishap is a great example of what service can be like. I am so impressed. Happy for you that your camera will be home soon and ready to join you again on another trip. notamermaid

Ever seen an Amphicar? I never have in real life, but I have seen the tourist buses that run on both land and water. The Amphicar is actually a model rather than a generic thing, hence the capital letter. It is a car and boat construction made in Germany in the 1960's. A hotel owner on the Moselle is a collector and offers trips! One could have made a more condensed version of this video but it is cool to look at: https://www.dw.com/en/amphicar-an-electric-amphibious-vehicle/av-61991896 This wasn't the first amphibious vehicle in Germany and that is worth a post in its own right I find. But this will at some point go in the Rhine thread as it features the town of Koblenz. Okay, hmm, Koblenz is also on the Moselle, so perhaps two posts it will be . notamermaid

My pleasure. And always great to see posts from familiar names and new "faces" joining in. First of all, we have not had a single problematic day on the Rhine this year yet. It came close, though. By that I mean only as regards docking at a certain landing stage or being a bit slow negotiating the shallows. It needs to be way lower for a river cruise ship not to be able to sail. Leaving 13 June - that is actually the day up to which we have a probability forecast for Kaub. 10 days brings us from 4 June 00.00 hours to 14 June 00.00 hours. As it is probability, there is no figure but a figure range. That most likely figure range is above 150cm. So, fine for sailing. It also means that the least likely figure is still above 100cm. Even if the probability is off and adjusted accordingly, we will still see no official low water. Overall, the level was low for May and is low for June now, which gives me just this slight feeling of unease about July, but I could be wrong if the overall weather pattern over the British Isles and beyond them to the West changes. But for now, let me just give you the current figure: 132cm and wish you a great river cruise. notamermaid

Finally. At least it is confirmed now. I guess the cabins will not be that much different from the Jade, but it would be nice to know, wouldn't it? And a bit of "sorry about that, have an extra drink on us" or similar, would be nice. Hope everything goes well from here and you have a splendid cruise. @CJANDH for you, too. notamermaid

It is puzzling with this one. Usually marinetraffic and vesselfinder agree and have mostly similar areas where the vessels are out of range due to the terrestrial signals not coming through. I agree that a confirmation from a cruiser is needed to help with solving this. notamermaid

This is standard across the lines, but it is apparently now often an e-document put onto your smart phone. I reckon it is similarly paper or electronic with Riviera Travel. Hopefully someone will read your question now. I will add a recent article referring to offers by Riviera Travel that was published by travel weekly on their American website. The company can be booked from the US and perhaps one or two prospective cruisers may consider giving this British company a try: https://www.travelweekly.com/River-Cruising/Riviera-River-Cruises-discounts-Europe-sailings notamermaid

Hmm, will it work? Currently at 311cm, Pfelling is still doing okay. At Pfelling, there is no forecast that reaches more than 48 hours into the future, so we do not know yet when the rain is likely to make the river react with a rise. It has heated up today and the atmosphere is ready to produce thunderstorms tonight or during tomorrow. But now, ready to do some cooking and eating an Austrian delicacy over the weekend? Or alternatively just enjoy watching this short video about "Kaiserschmarrn": https://www.dw.com/en/kaiserschmarrn-an-imperial-dish/av-61561785 notamermaid

Sometimes the website can be a problem. I have put the Liberté into the tracker for you on vesselfinder. There she has been sailing in the last 24 hours, i.e. produced a track: https://www.vesselfinder.com/vessels/EMERALD-LIBERTE-IMO-0-MMSI-248032000 Hopefully, someone who has first hand experience can tell you more. notamermaid

I was so glad to read that it went okay. Looks like the repairs were done quickly as well - presuming the tracking is correct. You just do not want it to be another Viking ship and then it is. One could discuss the relative statistics of the company's incidents at length, which I am not going to do. Fact remains that as regards tragic incidents involving crew and passengers suffering Viking stands out. Sadly. German has a good saying here, which is in the article: "Glück im Unglück". It means here "phew, that could have been much worse". notamermaid

I think the photo in the link above to the German news article has been updated. It shows a Viking longship and says it is the vessel in question (but no name). I was a bit shocked, it brings back memories of the tragic accident a few years ago at a bridge not too far from this one. And of course there is the recent Viking Aegir incident. There was talk a few years ago of new technology to help at bridges, some kind of electronic device for the headroom problem (for all ships). But I have not followed up on that. notamermaid

Kreuzfahrt Aktuelles says that the 11 June sailing has also been cancelled. New date: 18 June. Not guaranteed. notamermaid

I wasn't gonna say it... Found the oddest track record I have ever seen on marinetraffic with the Gefjon going off at a tangent at Forchheim towards Bonn and reappearing hours later. Ships cannot go across land... notamermaid

Ah, yes. Thank you for reminding me. notamermaid

For a bit of ship spotting and panoramic views of Würzburg: https://webtv.feratel.com/webtv/?design=v4&cam=3068&c1=0 notamermaid

Thanks Daisi. Forchheim is normally only reached on the Grand tour itinerary (usually Amsterdam to Budapest or vice versa) or a Rhine/Main itinerary that goes to Nuremberg. Unfortunately, sailing under (low) bridges during the night is a particular hazard. A known thing to authorities and the river traffic realm. There is no interruption to river traffic. The linked article and others suggest that there is damage to the railway bridge, but I have no info whether the bridge has been reopened yet or not. notamermaid

Lovely. Good to get some Frankfurt tips into the thread. And your itinerary is one of the more unusual ones, so if you feel like giving river cruisers a separate thread with some of your experiences, they can shower you with questions . But first, have fun planning and even more fun sailing. notamermaid

Did I say no news is good news? Unfortunately, news has come in of another ship accident. It again concerns a railway bridge, this one at Forchheim on the Main Danube Canal. During last night, the captain of a river cruise ship did not lower the wheelhouse far enough and caught the bridge. Thankfully, he was unhurt and the passengers also. The ship was steered with the help of the nock to the nearest lock and remains there for damage assessment and repairs. News article from "Fränkischer Tag". The name of the ship has not been disclosed. notamermaid

No news is good news on the Bavarian Danube - as regards river levels. So I will just briefly send you my monthly report. What was May like? Okay to good . The level at Pfelling did not fall below 310cm for the whole month: Light rain is coming to the Danube on Friday and will continue with drizzle over the weekend, so this should help with keeping the level over 300cm. notamermaid

I have just read that the ferry on Lake Constance for example does not accept the ticket. But while the ticket is restricted to transport in Germany, you can on one specific train line go from Bavaria to Salzburg, i.e. cross into Austria, says Deutsche Welle. That could be worth checking if you are in the area on a pre or post cruise trip. It also mentions crossing the border into Belgium from Aachen. Perhaps Luxembourg? Will check that at some point. As I could also go from the Rhine valley up the Moselle and beyond Trier. notamermaid

Kaub gauge has gone down to 137cm, so again a bit too low for tankers and barges from a commercial standpoint. But the weather is not hot and rain is in the air, so the trend is upwards towards the weekend and next week Kaub should reach 150cm again. Lake Constance has not lost any centimetres of note of its level yet. Now, ferries! Crossing the Lake is a bit of a longer journey than on the typical Rhine ferries, as you can imagine. But the ferry Konstanz to Meersburg crosses the smaller part of the Lake and is a fast reasonably large car ferry. It takes 15 minutes. This is also the area where Mainau island is located and the pile dwellings museum. That museum is very special and for me another reason to explore the area some time. This is the ferry: https://www.bodensee.eu/en/what-to-do/travelling-around-lake-constance/boat-trip/scheduled-boat-trips/lake-constance-car-ferry-constance---meersburg_poi2582 and here is a short drone flight to give you an impression what the pile dwellings are about: https://www.dw.com/en/prehistoric-pile-dwellings/av-54103901 notamermaid

That hotel is near Untermainkai close to the Holbeinsteg (bridge). Looks to be Nizza Werft Nr. 1 on the map. Now, that would be much nicer than in the Osthafen. Hope this will be the location in Miss G's documents . notamermaid

Again... I sometimes think life would be better without much of it. Better not talk about our government , but tourists and families travelling on a budget I am sure will benefit from this ticket. Even CNN thinks it it worth an article. Here is one info sheet from a regional public transporter provider, called RMV. They serve the Frankfurt extended area, i.e. Rhine and Main around there: https://www.rmv.de/c/fileadmin/documents/PDFs/_RMV_DE/Fahrkarten/9-Euro/186_22_004_9-Euro-Ticket_Baukasten_OnePager_ENG.pdf notamermaid

Ah, so it can show online when there are exempt trains. Article I read claimed one cannot see it. I think I will roam around a bit more, also because I want to see what use it may be in my neck of the woods for tourists. notamermaid

Oh good . Glad it is helpful. It was interesting that I could not find the info on the US website but through a bit of luck google gave me the Australian website as a search result. May I point you to the thread on the Main? Not that much info on Frankfurt, but I think the photos of the river and Eiserner Steg (bridge) will give you an idea of what not to miss: notamermaid