Morning readings · Friday, November 13, 2026
The water report for your river cruise.
River Water Watch predicts water levels on Europe's main cruise rivers, the Rhine, Danube, Elbe, and Seine. We combine official gauge readings, thirty years of records, and a daily forecast into one simple verdict: how likely each month is to sail exactly as planned. Most months, on most rivers, the answer is very. Use it to book the good water with confidence, or to keep a friendly eye on a sailing you already have.
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The morning briefing
Friday, November 13, 2026 · All notes
Rhine week odds rise to 40 percent sailing as planned
Ten millimeters of rain fell on the Alpine headwaters yesterday, double the normal, and the Rhine's odds for this week moved up to 40 percent sailing as planned from 9 percent. The Lower Rhine at Lobith is still at low water, with flow easing to 596. On the Danube at Budapest, 39 percent of sailing days this week go as planned, and 30 percent across November. At these levels a ship usually loads lighter, or passengers coach around a shallow stretch to a sister ship.
Gauges below their mark
7 of 7
low-water rivers
Kaub, the Rhine gorge
65 cm
p1 of 30 years
Danube catchment rain
-29%
vs normal, 45 days
Today at the gauges
| Gauge | River | Reading | Since yesterday | Past week | vs 30 years | State |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KAUB | Rhine | 65 cm | ▲ 8 cm | p1 | low | |
| MAXAU | Rhine | 345 cm | ▼ 22 cm | p9.3 | low | |
| PFELLING | Danube | 316 cm | ▼ 8 cm | p3.6 | low | |
| KIENSTOCK | Danube | 187 cm | ▲ 7 cm | p1 | low | |
| DRESDEN | Elbe | 70 cm | level | p3.3 | low |
Official readings from PEGELONLINE (WSV) and Vigicrues. Change is measured against yesterday's last reading; the small line is the past week. Percentiles compare today with thirty years of records: p10 means lower than 90 of every 100 recorded days.
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Rhine
Lower Rhine at Lobith p0.2 · low
Lower Rhine at Lobith is running unusually low today — lower than most days in 30 years of records — and itineraries on this stretch are flexing. Rain over the Alpine headwaters (Chur, Basel) is 5% below normal for the past 45 days; the 16-day forecast runs 60% above.
Nov*
Dec*
Jan*
Feb*
Mar*
Apr*
May*
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Last five years, month by month
The five years before each month, most recent on top · marks are months that hit low water · solid = a week or more
Danube
Danube at Budapest p0.1 · low
Danube at Budapest is running unusually low today — lower than most days in 30 years of records — and itineraries on this stretch are flexing. Rain over the Inn valley + Bavarian Danube is 29% below normal for the past 45 days; the 16-day forecast runs 71% above.
Nov*
Dec*
Jan*
Feb*
Mar*
Apr*
May*
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Last five years, month by month
The five years before each month, most recent on top · marks are months that hit low water · solid = a week or more
Elbe
DRESDEN 70 cm · low
Elbe at Dresden is running unusually low today — lower than most days in 30 years of records — and itineraries on this stretch are flexing. Rain over the Bohemian basin + Giant Mountains is 31% below normal for the past 45 days; the 16-day forecast runs 28% above.
Nov*
Dec*
Jan*
Feb*
Mar*
Apr*
May*
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Last five years, month by month
The five years before each month, most recent on top · marks are months that hit low water · solid = a week or more
Seine
Seine at Paris p9.1 · normal
Locked and rain-fed: the Seine's risk is high water under the bridges, not a dry riverbed. Rain over the upper Seine basin (Troyes, Châtillonnais) is 9% below normal for the past 45 days; the 16-day forecast runs 52% above.
Nov*
Dec*
Jan*
Feb*
Mar*
Apr*
May*
Jun
Jul
Aug
Sep
Oct
Last five years, month by month
The five years before each month, most recent on top · marks are months that hit high water · solid = a week or more
How to read the figures
Most river cruises, most of the year, run exactly as planned. Each column is a month, and the blue is the chance that month goes as planned, so a full column is a comfortable booking. Water under the dashed line means the itinerary may flex; the hatching shows by how much.
Months marked * use the live forecast, which runs about seven months out. Beyond that, the level is the thirty-year record for that month. Every figure is updated each morning.
We watch the exact stretches where cruises fail: the Rhine gorge at Kaub, the free-flowing Danube reaches, the Elbe at Dresden. Not city averages. How it works.