Record-low River Levels Are Disrupting European Cruises—Here’s What Travelers Should Know

This summer's dog days have been especially cruel to portions of eastern Europe with unprecedented heat waves and lack of rain causing some of the continent's iconic rivers to plummet to record levels, wreaking havoc on cruises operating in the region.

Ports of call along the Danube, Main, and Rhine rivers have all been impacted. The water levels have gotten so low, artifacts like ancient woolly mammoth bones and historic shipwrecks have been uncovered in the sandy riverbeds, Smithsonian Magazine reported . And one cruise ship even ran aground in Bulgaria late last month.

Cruise operators have been trying to salvage sailings, but that doesn't mean there won't be changes along the way. Chris Gray Faust, the CEO of cruise planning site Cruise Critic , experienced water woes first-hand on a Danube sail with Uniworld last month.

"I've been on 40 river cruises , and this is the first time this happened to me," Faust said. Her ship cruised the Danube as far as it could before skipping three ports, adding an unscheduled stop in the small town of Linz, Austria , and offering passengers bus rides to the cities they'd missed.

Ground transportation and itinerary changes are a couple of tools cruise lines utilize when rivers are low. Some passengers might also encounter ship swaps and hotel stays. But experts who spoke with Travel + Leisure agreed: the thing that hasn't changed is customer care onboard.

"Uniworld had great service," Faust said. "The crew, the hotel directors and the captain, they all want to sail. It's not like they're trying to do this to to ruin your trip."

Many leading cruise lines have issued online statements addressing current river levels, including Viking Cruises , AmaWaterways , and Uniworld . Each acknowledged the situation may necessitate itinerary changes, adding they are reaching out to customers or their travel advisors directly to communicate those adjustments.

Uniworld told T+L that when changes are necessary, they are often value-added, with "new destinations and special experiences, including experiences typically reserved for limited-edition programs."

However, some passengers aren't finding out how they're affected until right before their scheduled departure.

Pixie Vacations co-owner Lisa Griswold planned to start her AmaWaterways cruise in Budapest . Four days before her flight, she learned via email she'd instead be bussed to Vienna to embark. There were other complications, too. 

"We also skipped Bratislava so that was a little disappointing," she told T+L. "We didn't see Slovakia at all."

No one can control the weather, but travelers can take steps to ensure their river cruise investment. Consider booking during shoulder season , when the weather is cooler and water levels tend to be higher. For those who must go in the summer, a different region, such as Scandinavia or the Baltics, might be a better bet.

Ultimately, cruise lines aren't liable for weather-related changes in an itinerary, as stated in the contract of carriage every passenger agrees to upon booking. If travelers have mobility issues or wish to avoid a bus, they should consider purchasing Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) travel insurance to make sure they're not out a stack of cash should plans shift.

Finally, if passengers opt to move ahead with their holiday, they should pack their patience and sense of adventure.

"I fully believe that even when there are hiccups, great memories can be made," said Emma Guse , an advisor with Travelmation . "Most of my clients have been flexible, and this situation has created a new type of trip for them. In a sense, they're getting both land and sea."

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