Rhine Hits Record Low, Disrupting River Traffic and Cruises

The Rhine River reached a new record low at the border between Germany and the Netherlands over the weekend, with forecasts not anticipating significant rainfall in the coming days. At Lobith, the point where the Rhine enters Dutch territory, the water level dropped to 6.1 meters on Sunday, September 27, below the previous record of 6.12 meters set in August.

Further upstream, in Cologne, the river's gauge level fell to just 40 centimeters, leaving around 1.5 meters of navigable draft. The conditions temporarily ran aground the Dutch river cruise ship Dutch Melody, which carries 140 passengers across four decks, in the middle of the river; the vessel was able to resume its voyage after receiving assistance from another ship, according to the German water police. On the IJssel River, Dutch water authorities (Rijkswaterstaat) imposed a one-way traffic system between Arnhem and Zutphen, forcing vessels into a 300-kilometer detour. The low water also caused the suspension of some ferry crossings and led river cruise operators to cancel departures or shorten itineraries on Rhine stretches that became impassable.

The Copernicus Climate Change Service reported on October 2 that Europe went through the summer with the lowest river flows since records began in 1992. According to the agency, the Rhine, Danube, Loire, and Seine recorded historic low flows during the summer, causing disruptions to navigation and cargo transport.

The river cruise line Uniworld Boutique River Cruises made a series of operational changes to its European fleet due to low water levels on stretches of the Rhine, Main, and Danube. On October 11, Danube water levels prevented the S.S. Maria Theresa from reaching Budapest for embarkation, so passengers had to stay first at a hotel in that city before transferring to the ship later in the voyage. The company also modified embarkation and disembarkation for the S.S. Beatrice: that departure will now take place aboard the S.S. Maria Theresa, which likewise cannot reach Regensburg, so passengers will embark in Passau instead.

The adjustments also included other vessel substitutions: a departure from Basel originally scheduled on the S.S. Elisabeth will now operate on the S.S. Antoinette, an embarkation in Vienna originally scheduled for the S.S. Emilie will move to the S.S. Beatrice, and the docking berth in Amsterdam was also changed for the S.S. Victoria. Uniworld noted that river conditions can change within a few days, so its decisions are based on current water data rather than long-term forecasts, and it added that it will continue to assess the remaining October departures on a case-by-case basis.