Question for those who have sailed the Danube (Budapest to Nuremburg) in Sept.

[Daisi]

We are looking at changing our May 2022 cruise to Sept 2023.  It will run from the 17th of Sept to the 28th, ending in Prague.  I know there is a chance of low water, but that's ok, as the tours of Nuremburg run from Roth, then sail to Nuremburg for disembarking to a bus to Prague.

 

What I am really curious about is 

 

1) is it "rainy" season?  I know to expect rain at some point, but would prefer not to be in heavy rain most of the time, and 

2) are the leaves possibly turning by then?  

 

I can check temps, but we prefer temps between 13C to 20C for touring, as we don't like heat.  Nights are fine, toss on a sweater or jacket, but from what I've seen of temps in the area, they are fairly close to if not a bit warmer than where we are now.

 

Thanks....so much planning, now if only Covid will slow down, we can hopefully enjoy our cruise.

 

P.S....if anyone has done the Blue Danube Discovery with the extensions in Budapest and Prague, it would be great to have your views on what you liked or disliked, however I realise that with Covid, things have changed a lot.

 

Daisi

[sbjornda]

We were on that stretch mid-September in 2015. The weather was fine, though there was low water that disrupted some river traffic. Not really any signs of leaves turning yet. There is less daylight than earlier in the season, but that didn't pose a problem for us.

 

Best wishes,

Sterling

[Daisi]

Thanks @sbjornda, I know low water (or high) is an issue at any time and unpredictable.  We have never minded bus tours, as you still get to see scenic areas, and that's what we like.  Leaf colour is about the same, depends on the weather of course.

 

Glad you found the weather good,  and like you, since we will probably be back on the boat by 6:00 ish most days, there is no problem with it getting darker earlier.

[Shmoo here]

9 hours ago, Daisi said:

I know low water (or high) is an issue at any time and unpredictable. 

 

This is a stranded cargo ship in Duggendorf in August 2015.  Basically "no" water, not "low" water.

[notamermaid]

Thanks for the photo. Scary.

7 hours ago, Shmoo here said:

This is a stranded cargo ship in Duggendorf in August 2015. 

Deggendorf, right? In the notoriously low section between Straubing and Vilshofen. It looked like that on the Rhine in 2018. It shows how the ships actually sail in a navigation channel that is dug out or (almost) naturally deeper than much of the river. Get out of the channel accidentally and you are stranded, potentially for days.

 

I have not sailed in Autumn and have been to the area only briefly in Autumn a long time ago, but

@Daisi as far as I know there is no really rainy season or month (standing out like in a tropical climate) along the German/Austrian Danube, it will depend on then current weather patterns whether you have much rain or not, i.e. more than the norm and unpleasantly so. I have the graph here for Vienna and September has statistically a little less rain than August for example: https://www.wien.gv.at/statistik/lebensraum/tabellen/niederschlag.html

September in 2019 was 62mm, so a bit higher than the average.  To compare: Cologne in September 2019 was 40mm, which was 60% of the statistical average. Overall September appears to be a month with less rain than many other months, but you could strike unlucky. I would say though that September is a great month with less rain statistically than many places you could travel to in Europe - like Hamburg or Manchester (that is where I tend to strike unlucky in August...)

 

What @sbjornda says makes me think that September looks very similar to ours here on the Rhine, I will really consider going to the area in Autumn (before they get the first snow in the lower Alps).

 

Daisi, it is a pity that you are considering changing to 2023 but I fully understand why. Have you got a deadline to meet with your Avalon FCC for postponement, otherwise you could wait a bit with a decision?

 

notamermaid

 

[Daisi]

@Shmoo here, we sailed the Rhine in 2018, fortunately in May, but saw the pics from later that summer.  Things can change rapidly on rivers, who could have predicted that the floods would come this summer.  We will be prepared for bus trips, as long as we get to see the main things we are looking forward to.

 

@notamermaidno real deadline, that I know of unless Canada decides that it's safe to travel.  Avalon will move our trip to 2023 no problem, and we are hoping to wait until later this month for them to release more sailing dates (right now, they only have 3 up).  We are also thinking of moving it to the France tour if necessary, but seeing the Sept one for the Danube open, we thought if weather wasn't overly wet we could try that one.  We are free to travel whenever but I don't think I can ever convince my husband that Europe in the winter isn't Canada. 🙂

 

I am hoping that giving another year, Covid will at least be under control, and hopefully things will be back a bit more towards normal...and that the small towns will be more able to handle a large influx of tourists.

 

[Shmoo here]

4 hours ago, notamermaid said:

Deggendorf, right?

Yeah, sorry, brain not engaged when typing.

[notamermaid]

15 minutes ago, Shmoo here said:

Yeah, sorry, brain not engaged when typing.

Not to worry, just making sure others know where to find it on a Danube river map.

 

notamermaid