paddlesteamers.info : The Internet's leading website for
Side-Wheeled Paddle Steamers PADDLE STEAMERS IN
PASSENGER SERVICE The steamers
(and motor paddlers), where they sail, who operates them and who supports them
: links to detailed information, photos and official websites Mobile phone and small tablet users : Click here for a simplified list which is easier to useClick
on the vessel links and the operating company links for more
information. A link is provided, where possible, to the operator's own
commercial website
PADDLE STEAMERS
Waverley, in the UK, is the world's
last sea-going paddle steamer and the only one now offering coastal
cruises. All other European paddlers now only operate on large rivers
or on lakes with the exceptions of Freya which operates in northern
Germany generally keeping to the Kiel Canal and Elbe estuaries, the
UK's Kingswear Castle, which itself keeps to estuarine waters, and the
UK's very small paddler Monarch, which are the only other "salt-water"
paddlers. Some paddle steamers are retained in their original fleets,
others are now owned and operated by preservation groups. In a number
of cases, enthusiasts have restored decommissioned paddle steamers and
subcontracted operation back to their original owners. Freya is
remarkable in having been bought by a commercial operator many years
after she was restored by an enthusiast and operated as part of their
fleet.
Above:
PS Unterwalden in Luzern in 2016. Built in 1901 she is a genuine
steamer and despite many renovations, there is no idea to change this.
Operator : Waverley Excursions (website) on behalf of Waverley Steam Navigation Co and the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society Supporters and owners : Paddle Steamer Preservation Society : (website) Operates
a varied range of full-day cruises from mid June until late August
including from her home base at Glasgow and Firth of Clyde piers Waverley also visits the Inner Hebrides (June), Liverpool & Llandudno (end August), Bristol Channel (September), South Coast (September) and Thames Estuary (Sept/Oct).
Switzerland : Lake Lucerne (Vierwaldstattersee)(photos)
Operator : Schiffahrtsgesellschaft
des Vierwaldstattersees
(SGV) : (website) Supporters : Dampferfreunde Vierwaldstattersee (website) SGV
operates a wide range of year-round services. Paddle Steamers operate
Spring to Autumn with extra services in summer and some services at
Christmas/New Year
Operator : Compagnie General de Navigation sur le
Lac Leman
(CGN) : (website) Supporters : Association des Amis des Bateaux a Vapeur du Leman : (website) GGN operates a wide range of year-round services and cross-lake commuter services. Paddle Steamers operate Spring to Autumn with extra services in summer CGN also operates two paddlers converted to diesel-electric drive on year-round services (Vevey and Italie) and hold one in store for possible future restoration (Helvetie). Montreux
was converted to diesel in time for the 1961 season but was converted
back with a new-build diagonal steam engine, reappearing in 2001.
Rhone is currently undergoing major renovation and is expected back in service in late 2021 Switzerland : Lake Thun (Thunersee)
Operator : Schiffsbetrieb
BLS : (website) Supporters : Freunde der Dampfschifffahrt Thuner- und Brienzersee : (website) Paddle
steamer normally makes two daily return trips from Thun to Interlaken
West from spring to autumn and is in service over Christmas / New Year
Operator : Schiffsbetrieb
BLS : (website) Supporters : Freunde der Dampfschifffahrt Thuner- und Brienzersee : (website) Paddle Steamer usually makes one daily return trip from Interlaken-Ost to Brienz from spring to autumn
Lotschberg(1914) Switzerland : Lake Zurich (Zurichsee) Operator : Zurichsee-Schiffahrtsgesellschaft
(ZSG) : (website) Supporters : Aktion pro Raddampfer Zurich : (website) Regular
trips around Lake Zurich from Zurich to Rapperswil with frequent stops.
Paddlers in summer service as part of year-round public transport
network 2022 : Stadt Rapperswil not in service - undergoing renovation
Operators Navigation Lacs
de Neuchatel et Morat SA : (website) Supporters and owners : Trivapor : (website) A recent restoration and re-engineing of a ship decommissioned in 1969 ship by an enthusiast group, Neuchatel is operated by the local shipping operator as part of their published timetable
Operators : Lauenburger Elbeschiffahrtsmuseums
e.V. : (website) Owned
by a museum society, the vessels operates a range of trips on the
River Elbe, based at Lauenburg. Occasionally sails to other areas. In
1922 it is planned to spend the second half of July cruising on the
River Weser, reached via cruises along a network of canals.
Kaiser
Wilhelm(1900) Germany : Kiel Canal, Schleswig-Holstein
Operators : Adler-Schiffe Gmbh &
Co, KG. : (website) Adler
owns a large fleet. Freya operates on the Kiel Canal mainly between
Kiel and Rendsburg with occasional visits to Brunsbuttel, Laboe,
Rostock and Hamburg
Operators : Traunseeschiffahrt Karlheinz Eder GmbH: (website) Owners : Friends of the City of Gmunden Operated
by the local tourist boat company on Sundays in July and August.
Available for charters and events, otherwise moored at Gmunden
Gisela(1871) Austria : River Danube (based at Linz)
Operators : Oesterreichische Gesellschaft fuer Eisenbahn
Geschichte - OGEG : (website) Owned and operated by the Austrian Railway History Society and operated entirely by unpaid volunteers Operated day trips from Linz on many weekends and also undertakes various special trips on occasion
Schonbrunn (1913)Austria : Lake Constance (Bodensee)
Operators
: Hohentwiel Schifffahrtsgesellschaft mbH, trading
as Historische Schifffahrt Bodensee : (website) Owners and Supporters : Verein Internationale Schifffahrts-Museum Bodensee eV : (website) Operates
cruises around the international Lake Constance offering cruises
with a strong emphasis on high-quality dining The company markets both Hohentwiel and the historic motor ship Osterreich which is now owned by a separate preservation society
Operators : Nederlandse Raderstoomboot
Maatschappij : (website) Owner
: Christine Key, whose father Klemens was a well known saviour of
steamships and steam engines, including this ex-Rhine steamer,
Rudesheim as was Used for dinner cruises and charter hospitality
events from her Rotterdam pier at Maasboulevard or as required
elsewhere on the river system in south Holland
De Majesteit (1926) Czech Republic : River Vltava, Prague
Operators : Prazska Paroplavebni Spolecnost as (PPS) trading as Prague Boats :(website) Operates
short cruises from central Prague and longer trips upstream to the
Slapy Dam. occasional full day trips downstream to Melnik are offered
Operators : Vodni Zasilatelstvi
Kedrst (VZK) Captain Kedrst built the small Sirius in 2010 for local round trips in Prague in association his two other motor vessels
Norway : Lake Mjosa Operator : A/S Oplandske
Dampskibsselskab : (website) Operates
a short summer season of cruises from Hamar, Lillehammer or Eidsvoll,
depending on the day. Cruises are often single, requiring a return by
rail
Skibladner (1856) Denmark : Silkeborg and Himmelbergjet
Operators : A/S
Hjejlen : (website) Services from Sikleborg through low-lying lakes to view Himmelbergjet, the highest point in Denmark
Operators : Foreningen Forsviks varv : (website) Occasional summer trips and charters in the river and lake systems of south eastern Sweden, based at Forsvik The ship is a modern reconstruction of a traditional ship of 1836 whick sank in a storm on Lake Vattern in 1856 Note : 2022 : Ship up for sale : https://shipsforsale.com/en/ships-en/shipid/1195/passenger-ships_7_eric-nordevall-ii
Erik Nordevall II (2011) Romania : River Danube
Operators : Ministry of Education and Heritage Operates short cruises for children out of the port of Braila and is available for charter
Although
many Danube paddle steamers, including Schonbrunn (see above) were
fitted with limited overnight accommodation, Russian river ships have
traditionally had considerable cabin accommodation and were originally
used for passenger and some freight transport over long distances
in remoter parts of northern Russia and Siberia. One paddle steamer is
believed to survive on these runs
Russia : River Dvina at Archangelsk
Operators : Pomor Tours : (website) Offers occasional three and seven-night tours from Archagelsk
MOTOR
PADDLE
VESSELS (CONVERTED FROM STEAM) Electric or hydraulic transmission
Above : Goethe on the Rhine in 2017. Goethe is one of a number
of paddlers which have been converted from steam to diesel operation,
normally as an economy measure and especially if major work was
required, such as a boiler replacement. In Goethe's case, there were
fears about a hairline crack in the engine's entablature. Few paddle
steamers have been so converted. The pioneer was Lake Geneva's Geneve in 1934.
Switzerland : Lake Geneva (Lac Leman)
Operator : Compagnie General de Navigation sur le
Lac Leman
(CGN) : (website) The CGN operates five genuine historical paddle steamers (see above) as well as numerous motor vessels Diesel-electic
paddle vessels Vevey and Italie have been renovated and re-engined
recently and due to their economy operate in year-round service
Vevey (1907, converted in 1956) Italie(1908, converted in 1958) Helvetie(1926, converted in 1977)
Helvetie
has been out of service since early 2002 but is maintained at the GCN
dockyard at Lauseanne-Ouchy. It is hoped that she can be returned to
service in the future Germany : River Rhein
Goethe
was the last in a long line of paddle steamers operated by the KD
company in its earlier guises and remains on the flagship "Nostalgia
Route" from Koblenz to Rudesheim She sails for spring until Autumn
Operator : Chiemsee Schiffahrt Ludwig
Fessler : (website) Serves
as part of a small fleet on the Chiemsee in south-east Bavaria which
features the magnificent palace of Herrenchiemsee on an island in the
lake
Ludwig Fessler's engine had been saved and was eventually used to re-engine PS Neuchatel (see steamers above) Germany : Ammersee, Bavaria
Operator : Bayerische Seenschifffahrt GmbH : (website) Serves
as part of a small fleet on the Ammersee to the south of
Munich. The company also operates the new-build motor paddler
Herrsching of 2002
G Zanardelli(1903, converted in 1983) Italia(1909, converted in 1980)Netherlands : Amsterdam
Operators : (website) Available
for charter for corporate or social events and can be chartered as
floating accommodation anywhere accessible in the Netherlands water
system
Kapitein
Anna (1911, converted in 1977) Bulgaria : River Danube at Kozloduy
Operators : Kozloduy Museum (website) Maintained
in operational condition for occasional educatuional trips but
otherwise serves as a museum celebrating the life of independence
fighter Hristo Botev
Converted
from a Soviet 732 Series tug and rebuilt in 1966 to approximate
the appearance of Austrian passenger ship Radetsky of 1861 and used by
Botev in 1866 in his insurrection against Ottoman Turkish rule Ukraine : River Dnepr at Kiev
Operators : Based
in Kiev with 31 hotel rooms available. Could be hired for corporate and
private events and can sail on charter in the summer months ( * STATUS UNCERTAIN) * Bogdan Khmelnitskiy (1954, converted in 2004)
One
of the numerous Soviet Project 737 river paddlers, but built at Budapest, Hungary. sailed in the Soviet Ukraine on
the Dneipr until 1976. Rebuilt with new motor engines after extensive
fire damage India : River Hooghly at Kolkata (Calcutta)
The
last
known survivor of the large numbers of shallow-draught paddlers
supplied by Wm Denny & Sons of Dumbarton for service on the rivers
of Bengal in India and remaining in Indian territory after partition.
After static service as a training ship in Kolkata, she was moved to
dry-dock in 2019 for renovation as a restaurant ship. She will be
fitted with new diesel engines as a replacement for her original steam
engines which are believed to be being retained aboard for educational
purposes. Covid-19 pandemic delays have meant that her reintroduction
to service into 2021 MISCELLANEOUS SMALLER PADDLE VESSELS in Europe
SMALL COMMERCIAL AND NON-COMMERCIAL STEAM PADDLE VESSELS (UP TO 12 PASSENGER CAPACITY)
Built in 1994. Offers short commercial trips on the River Frome at Wareham in Dorset. *
Note : in December 2021 it was reported that the vessel had been
sold. Following boiler issues she was reported as to be converted to
diesel operation
Built in 2007. Based on Lake Lucerne but can be transported elsewhere and has
sailed on Italian Lakes
Netherlands
De Jonge Wachter
Based at the De Wachter Mill Museum at Zuidlaren
which has numerous steam engines in store and display, this small
paddle steamer (10 m long with single cylinder engine dating from around 1920) was built
by enthusiasts and entered service in 2003
Off-topic : Genuine Steam-powered Sternwheelers in Czechia
Fascinating modern built small but steam powered sternwheel sightseeing boats Hradec and Kralovna Eliska on the River Elbe at Hradec Kralove, CzechiaBIBLIOGRAPHY & REFERENCESThe
essential reference book for Paddle Steamer enthusiasts is:
Paddle Steamers in the 1990s By Russell Plummer
Published 1994 by GMS Enterprises, 67 Pyhill, Bretton, Peterborough,
England Tel (0)1733-265123
IBSN 1 870384 27 X
This book gives extensive details of all known paddlers remaining in
Europe, including motor powered paddlers - at the time of publishing (1994)
Also the following which also includes screw steamers and diesel conversions,
including those in static roles (valid in 1988)
Steam Ships of Europe by Alistair
Deayton Published in 1988 by Conway Maritime press Ltd, 24 Bride Lane, Fleet
Street, London EC4Y 8DR ISBN 0 81577 478 4
PADDLE SHIPS BUILT AS MOTOR VESSELS Once diesel power became widely available for excusion
ships in the late 1920s, new ships around most of Europe were
screw-driven. Only on the Clyde in the UK did the London & North
Eastern Railway experiment with diesel electric drive for their
paddler Talisman of 1935, one year after Lake Geneva had so
converted their paddle steamer Geneve. The experiment was not repeated
although a number of screw-ships in Scottish waters received
diesel-electric drives in the 1930s, with MV Lochfyne being a pioneer
in 193.1
The
Austrian DDSG's Stadt Wien and Stadt Passau (now Grof Szechenyi) of
1939 and 1940, with geared diesel drives, were unusual and unique.
There were no further new-builds until the modern era when "paddle
steamers" had become popular from a heritage aspect and replica or
heritage-styled vessels came in demand, but the costs associated with
obsolete steam power were deemed unacceptable. Elias Lonnrot
(1986) which replicated an older steamer was an early example of a
side-wheeler, whilst "Mississippi-style" sternwheelers became popular
as novelty vessels. Diesels were chosen for the brand
new Herrsching (2002, see photo taken in 2003, above) on Germany's
Ammersee.
MPV Stadt Wien and Grof Szechenyi have cabins for overnight
accommodation but these ships are no longer used on their original long-distance services on the Danube and these are
not used in service. Stadt Wien was open for overnight accommodation at Tulln,
Austria.
