Best Time of Year for Viking Grand European

[bcmurray]

What would be the best time of the year to take the 15 day Grand European Tour with Viking?

My schedule is open.  Want to avoid peak crowds.  Want to have best possible water levels for a smooth cruise.

Thanks,

 

[Nippy Sweetie]

We'd all like to know that!

[CDNPolar]

10 hours ago, bcmurray said:

What would be the best time of the year to take the 15 day Grand European Tour with Viking?

My schedule is open.  Want to avoid peak crowds.  Want to have best possible water levels for a smooth cruise.

Thanks,

 

 

Welcome to Cruise Critic @bcmurray

 

Re the water levels, what @Nippy Sweetie said.  To me river cruising can be impacted by water levels at any time of the year.  I personally believe that you have to be mentally prepared that water levels can impact your cruise any month of the year.  

 

What is the best time of the year for the Grand European Tour with Viking?

 

We like to go off season or shoulder season for two reasons - temperature and crowds.

 

If you look at Viking's sailing schedule, you will notice that Viking does not sail this itinerary in December, January, and February.

 

Our thinking is that a lot, not everyone, but a lot of people want to sail in Europe during the warmer months and you will also see prices be higher in the summer months.  For this reason we choose to go in October/November or March/April for a cruise like this.  Viking will fill the ship, but you may not have as many tourists on the ground in general.

 

HOWEVER, we are going on this cruise this year departing November 24th.  We chose this because the Christmas Markets will (should) be open especially as we sail through Germany.  We booked this specifically to see the Christmas Markets.

 

So - going late November - I think the last cruise date that does not interfere with Christmas, we will see great crowds at the Christmas markets for sure, but this could also be as much local residents as tourists.

 

In short - if you are not looking for the Christmas Markets, and you don't mind the cooler temps, then October or March.  This however does not free you from water level challenges.  Whatever is happening with the climate globally, the weather patterns now are more unpredictable than ever.  Your guess on water levels is as good as anyone elses.

2 hours ago, Nippy Sweetie said:

We'd all like to know that!

 

[JJK2008]

Water levels problems occur when water is too high or too low. Mid-summer is right in the middle of the winter snow runoff so we guessed it would be a better chance of being not too high or low. But this is just a guess. We did it mid-June and were fine with the water levels and the days were the longest giving lots of daylight. Great cruise. Enjoy it. 

[Nippy Sweetie]

Drought can be a very big problem too!

[gnome12]

3 hours ago, JJK2008 said:

Mid-summer is right in the middle of the winter snow runoff

No, mid-summer is well past the winter snow runoff, which happens in spring. Lately, mid-summer has been drought, as mentioned by @Nippy Sweetie.

[Nippy Sweetie]

Also in Europe just plain heavy relentless rain! It happens. 

[gnome12]

1 hour ago, Nippy Sweetie said:

Also in Europe just plain heavy relentless rain! It happens. 

That too.

[CDNPolar]

We last travelled in late December which traditionally has been a fairly safe time, but the rains were relentless and the rivers were high and flooding everywhere.  Risk with this of not sailing because water levels too high.

[notamermaid]

Difficult one. Looking for the perfect time... Hmm, it is a long journey through Europe. But there is no great difference of the areas along the way, I mean you do not need to think of the Netherlands differently from Hungary (apart from specific feast days). Two bottlenecks need considering: 1. Kaub on the Rhine for low water. 2. Pfelling on the Danube for low water and Passau on the Danube for high water. Avoiding both high and low and crowds narrows it down a lot. Europe is always a busy place, apart from January and February to early March really. November before the Christmas markets start is a relative low. For water levels: Mid-May to end of June and November to early December. But as others have mentioned, you can be unlucky and hit a year with a more unusual level pattern, like last year in November for example.

 

notamermaid

 

[bcmurray]

Thanks for the insightful comments. We have decided on April-May for a variety of reasons.