Monday 10 June 2013

River cruises affected by flooding

Heavy rains and flooding in Central Europe last week has resulted in river cruise lines altering and cancelling cruises in the area.

AmaWaterways

The cruise line has not cancelled any sailings with most cruises operating as scheduled, while some itineraries have been altered slightly.

One June 6, guests embarked the Amadolce on the line’s Magnificent Europe schedule on the Rhine River. The sailing is continuing as scheduled.
 
The Enchanting Rhine itinerary which embarked on June 7 began with one night’s hotel stay in Amsterdam, with a sightseeing tour of the city on June 8 before transferring to Cologne. Guests will embark the Amacello in Cologne and continue their cruise on schedule.
 
Guest travelling on the Melodies of the Danube will begin their cruise with one night at the Hilton Westend in Budapest on June before transferring to an alternate ship, the AmaBella for the remainder of the cruise.  

Guests sailing on the Blue Danube Discovery itinerary had excursions planned to Salzburg, Vienna, Durnstein and Melk. Further updates will be posted on June 10.

Guests embarking on the Legendary Danube itinerary on June 12 will check-in as planned in Prague on June 9, and embark the ship in or near Nuremberg depending on water levels.
 
 For the Blue Danube Discovery itinerary, embarking June 11, guests checked-in as scheduled on Sunday June 9 at the Sofitel Hotel in Budapest for their pre-cruise extension. For guests without a pre-cruise extension in Budapest, the Tuesday June 11 meeting point will be at the Sofitel Budapest. There are three meeting times: 10hoo, 14h30 and 17h30. All guests will then be transferred to Bratislava for one night at the Sheraton Bratislava. On Wednesday June 12, the itinerary will continue with a hotel stay in Vienna. Further updates will be posted on June 10. 

Uniworld River Cruises

Uniworld Boutique River Cruise Collection has cancelled the June 7 cruise of River Ambassador and the June 9 sailing of River Beatrice. Impacted passengers will receive a full refund and a future cruise credit of $500. Uniworld has also cancelled the June 16 sailing of the River Empress. Passengers were encouraged to rebook another date but were also being given the option of a full refund. They will also be compensated with a $500 per person future cruise credit. 

The flooding also caused Uniworld to either alter the itinerary or cancel the remainder of several cruises that were in progress. Passengers with cruises cancelled mid-sailing will also receive a full refund and future cruise credit. They can elect to remain onboard while the line helps them make arrangements to return home. 

For more details refer to http://www.uniworldcruises.co.za/important-notice

Scenic Cruises:

For a list of affected cruises visit: http://us.scenictours.com/new-page-284/

Avalon Waterways has cancelled the following cruises:

Legendary Danube (June 2); Blue Danube Discovery and Jewels of Central Europe (both June 7); Magnificent Europe (June 8 and 9) and Austrian Highlights & Bavaria (June 10), an 18-day Grand Danube cruise from Bucharest to Prague leaving Saturday (June 8) and a 13-day Blue Danube Discovery from Budapest to Prague (June 13).

Affected passengers are being contacted, and will receive full refunds and discount vouchers for a future cruise, as well as refunds on airfare booked through Avalon and change fees for independent air arrangements. 

Other Avalon sailings have had alternations, such as transferring passengers to different ships on the other side of the Main-Danube canal or doing a partial sailing combined with hotel stays. These passengers are receiving some compensation, commensurate with the number of cruising days affected. In nearly all cases to date, passengers are able to visit the destinations and attractions outlined in the original itineraries.

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