Berths

[SOShrink]

I have brought this issue up elsewhere but I thought it would make an interesting discussion. Who decides where a ship will dock? In this age of advanced travel information and engineering, why is it so hard for a cruise line to be able to know well in advance where it will be docking? Why does Viking get to dock closer to the Eiffel Tower than Uniworld, for example? Why does Uniworld have to dock in 3 different locations in Venice (only one of which is conveniently located near Pizza San Marco)? I'm sorry but there is no reason that a small river vessel has to dock at the cruise ship terminal (Marittima). The beauty of river cruising for me has always been the ability to be docked in town if the river goes there (not always the case as in Nuremberg and Vienna, etc.). If it's a matter of cost, I'd rather pay more for convenient docking than all-inclusive alcohol). I know this a naïve question that may even upset seriously experienced cruisers, but I can't imagine after all these years that the system has not improved. I am not complaining and will continue to river cruise every year and travel into town no matter where we dock, but I am trying to improve our understanding of how it works.

[Host Jazzbeau]

If you haven't seen it, view the Mighty Cruise Ships episode on the Azamara Journey. Coming in to one port in Asia the very experienced Azamara Captain is forced to take on a young harbor pilot who gives him very bad advice (which he ignores); he has some choice words to the camera about the situation. The point is that neither ship captains nor cruise lines have much say in most ports. There are a few places in Europe where Viking seems to have built their own docks, but otherwise all cruise ships have to dock wherever the local harbormaster tells them -- and they aren't told until the last minute.

[CPT Trips]

Did Viking build their own docks or are there just advertising signs. I also noticed some for other lines in some towns. Our Grand Circle boat berthed at some locations with the sign of another line.

[Host Jazzbeau]

Did Viking build their own docks or are there just advertising signs. I also noticed some for other lines in some towns. Our Grand Circle boat berthed at some locations with the sign of another line.

 

You might be right. Maybe one of our German residents can clarify.

[G.M.T.]

I do not know anywhere along the Danube where a cruise line have built there own dock / berth. I believe that some small towns have agreements to give preferential treatment to certain lines. Private docks would be a very restrictive practice and not very benefical to towns with such berthing arrangements. The growth of river cruising is exploding, Passau had in 1992 181 boat visits with 17,000 passengers, 2014 it was well over 2000 with 250,000 passengers and there is no end in sight.

 

In Passau the boats know long in advance (weeks) where to dock:

 

https://www.stadtwerke-passau.de/hafen/liegeplatzeinteilung.html

[Hoyaheel]

Captains might "know" in advance where they are supposed to dock, but last minute changes do occur. If one boat doesn't get through the lock at the scheduled time, and maybe a barge or two get ahead of them and the boat is delayed a couple hours, maybe another boat is given that pre-arranged space. We had to change towns completely on our cruise in December due to some traffic issues.

 

The lock issue is one that ocean cruises do NOT have to deal with (except, you know, Panama Canal;) ) - traffic is very different on rivers than with large ocean vessels and I think things are much more fluid as a result. C'est la vie.

[steamboats]

Viking has their own docks along the Rhine river (and I assume they´ve paid quite a bit for them).

 

On the Danube river the city port masters do decide where a ship is docking. Sometimes an assigned dock can change last minute (one reason can be weather related).

 

In Venice it mainly depends on how many ships are in port. The river cruise ships can dock anywhere in all three locations in Venice (due to their size). So in some cases they have to move. As for the Stazione Marittma location I assume that this one is for turnover days. This one and San Basilio you can access with vehicles (either for passenger transport or for loading supplies). Rive Sette Martiri is not accessible by vehicles and used by river cruise ships only.

 

steamboats

[tiegs]

We usually travel with Vantage, on our last river trip in July last year I spoke with the Captain about how docks are assigned in the various towns along the river.

 

He told me that each town has a dock master, and the dock master decides where each boat will dock. At the start of the season cruise companies tell each town along the river when they will visit and how long the will be in need of a dock.

 

 

That being said on the day of arrival the dock master has the final say where each boat will dock due to last minute changes due to delays and water levels and other weather and mechanical situations.

 

On the Vantage boats we have traveled on, we have docked on many docks that said Viking and other river cruise lines.

 

The bottom line is that even with a yearly master plan often times things change at the last minute.

[SOShrink]

Steamboats, you bring up a good point about docking in Venice. They probably can't dock all three of their nights in Venice at the more desirable Riva Sette Martiri because they need access to vehicles (busses, deliveries, etc.) at least some of the time. As far as harbor, port or dock masters go, I hope they berth us based on availability, weather, delays, schedule and things like that rather than being in a bad mood, getting into arguments with the captain or "favoring" one cruise line over another. I, for one, will be bringing champagne and gifts to bestow upon my dock master and pilot! Please, if you happen to be a harbor pilot by profession, I am just joking and trying to have some fun with this issue. As Hoyaheel says: "c'est la vie"!

[Hydrokitty]

We usually travel with Vantage, on our last river trip in July last year I spoke with the Captain about how docks are assigned in the various towns along the river.

 

He told me that each town has a dock master, and the dock master decides where each boat will dock. At the start of the season cruise companies tell each town along the river when they will visit and how long the will be in need of a dock.

 

 

That being said on the day of arrival the dock master has the final say where each boat will dock due to last minute changes due to delays and water levels and other weather and mechanical situations.

 

On the Vantage boats we have traveled on, we have docked on many docks that said Viking and other river cruise lines.

 

The bottom line is that even with a yearly master plan often times things change at the last minute.

 

And that is exactly how it happens!! Every river port everywhere has a harbor master, or similar person, who is in charge of where every ship docks, when it docks and when it leaves. In the ocean ports they also require a harbor pilot to board the ship and guide it into port and while this harbor pilot is on board, HE is captain of the vessel. This is to prevent accidents because the harbor pilot will be aware of any changes in the port conditions. When the river boats are "rafted" it is the harbor master who controls who is rafted with whom and it's usually based upon departure time. Of course, they try to accommodate the large tourist vessels as much as they can because the small towns they live and work in depend upon the tourists for much of their budget.