FlyerTalk Forums - Realities of River Cruising

Sharing a worst case scenario when things go pear-shaped due to river conditions.

My mom has done quite a few river cruises, mostly via Tauck, but also with Viking and other operators. She's had river legs turn into bus transfers more than once (most recently, this past June) due to water levels but her most recent was the first time a cruise was outright cancelled mid-voyage (in this case, due to extreme flooding caused by Storm Boris).

The cruise was two weeks from Budapest to Prague; while passengers were boarded for the first two days in Budapest, the ship never left port for the remainder of stops. Passengers were bussed to Vienna where guests were put up at the Park Hyatt for two night where all meals and bar/beverage/minibar charges were comped and then the tour officially cancelled. Passengers were then bussed to Prague for two nights at a Hilton where the rooms were comped along with one night dinner and 50EUR stipend for meals the second day. Passengers who had booked the air portion with Tauck were rebooked home; my mom booked separately but was able to find J space back to the US with a small fare difference. She did buy the travel insurance from Tauck so will see where she ends up compensation-wise after she gets back.