The illusion of spending a summer vacation sailing along the Danube River, resting in a cabin with privileged views, or enjoying the breeze on the deck has been shattered for a group of Spaniards due to the high temperatures and drought affecting Europe. At least 120 passengers who had booked a river cruise with the company TUI to sail along the continent’s second largest river have had to make much of the journey by bus due to the low levels of the Danube. “What was supposed to be a peaceful cruise has turned into a marathon of kilometers,” complains Javier Álvarez, one of the passengers aboard the Ms River Sapphire.
Álvarez recounts that he embarked on the trip last Saturday with the intention of spending a quiet and restful week. However, from the first day of the excursion, things began to go wrong. The itinerary included sailing along the Danube with stops in eight cities across four countries. The departure on the first day was from Passau (Germany) to Bratislava (Slovakia), but due to the low water levels, this route changed to Vienna by bus. “The company did not notify us in time about these changes in the water level, knowing that since mid-July the river was very low and, therefore, we could not navigate,” he accuses.
Complaints to the staff accompanying them on the cruise came from the very beginning, without a clear response from the company, according to Javier Álvarez. They were not given the option to reschedule the trip, nor to use other transportation options such as trains or planes. “We are going to end up doing up to 1,500 kilometers by coach, with no legroom, stopping for bathroom breaks at gas stations. They have treated us like monetary investment packages.” He says this because the refund of his investment — 3,000 euros for the week of sailing and cruise services — has also not been put on the table.
Josep Llauina, another traveler aboard the Ms River Sapphire, says the worst part of the situation has been the disappointment of spending months waiting for a dream vacation as a couple only to be “deceived by the company.” “We are walking on excursions in places with impressive heat waves, which were supposed to be offset by sailing, nature, peace, and the tranquility of the cruise, and we have only had an endless bad time,” he states.
Read more New York, California, and 23 Other States Sue the Trump Administration Over Its New Tariffs
This is not the first cruise to stop on the Danube this summer. Last week, Bulgarian media reported that 186 passengers of another river tourism cruise had been evacuated from their vessel because the ship got stranded near the city of Vidin (Bulgaria) in a shallow area.
The very low levels in the Danube and Rhine rivers have significantly impacted electricity production, freight transport, and tourism. Hungary and Romania have had to shut down nuclear reactors due to lack of water for cooling. In Budapest, the Margaret Bridge was closed after a World War II bomb emerged. The situation does not point to improvement. No significant rainfall is expected in the coming days, and temperatures will continue to hover around 40 degrees.
Read more Japan positions the military industry as a new engine for economic growth
