How long does it take to canoe the Danube?
The average distance per day varies greatly and obviously depends a lot on how much you stop and what you want to see on route. That said, at least 60kms a day was pretty standard with the exception of the slow water for the 100kms upstream of the Djerdap dams in Serbia. Our longest day was just over 80kms. From Kelheim the Danube took us 45 days. The Tour International Danube have an itinerary of 65 days – perhaps more realistic if you want to spend a good amount of time in towns and cities. Bare in mind, on our journey, as we had a lot of ground to cover, we generally did longer days than you might as a regular canoe tourer.

Where did you store the canoe when stopping briefly?
Take a long bike lock. When leaving the canoe we would always lock it to something using a long bike lock and took our paddles with us. As for leaving bags in the canoe, we learnt this lesson the hard way. Admittedly the city of Tour on the river Loire is no small village, but we had loads of our gear stolen from our dry bags, including tent and sleeping bags, when we visited the city for an afternoon. From then on whenever we stopped anywhere we locked the canoe and took both of our large dry bags with us. That meant the canoe was left alone with only food in it, easily replaced. Other than Tour we never encountered any problems however.

Where did you store the canoe at night?
Canoe club and rowing clubs are fairly frequent from Germany to Hungary and many offer good camping facilities. The TID camping locations, marked on their itinerary, can be useful for this. These are good secure places to stay and meet like minded people. All along the Danube you can find wild camping spots and the further down the river you go the easier this becomes. By Bulgaria and Romania you can camp almost anywhere. We did plenty of wild camping but be aware it is not legal in Germany or Austria so be particularly careful there. Here we simply slept with the canoe rolled over next to our tent. We could also store a few things under it at night time to keep them dry, sometimes using a bike lock to hold everything safely together.

Where did you store the canoe in cities?
Again, use a trusty bike lock and lock the canoe to something. As in the previous question canoe and rowing clubs are ideal places to store your canoe safely. The people there are like minded and keen to help you out. If you are not staying in a club or campsite our advice is NOT to lock the canoe and leave it by the river while you stay in a hotel. Talk to the hotel and ask them about storage, ask in the tourist info, but for safety in the city be sure to find somewhere. We often used the friendly people on couchsurfing.org or warmshowers.org - online communities set up by travellers to help travellers. If your in need of a friend to help you out abroad, these are the websites to use.

What are the options for canoeing the Danube delta?
Since we did not follow the delta route our answer is quoted from the following website: danubekayak.moonfruit.com (which appears to no longer be active):

"There are three. At Tulcea the channel splits into three main navigation routes, the Bystroe route in the north, Sulina route in the middle and Sfantul Gheorghe route in the south. In addition to this there are literally hundreds of sub channels crossing all through the delta, so you could pick out a route of your own based on one of the three main channels. Take care coming off the main routes as good navigation or sheer luck is needed – we had more of the second. Still, I would highly recommend getting into these narrow channels if you can, as it will surprise you what you find!

From research and local advice we chose the southern channel to Sfantul Gheorghe route. It was a truly magic route, which I would highly recommend. The village of Sfantul Gheorghe is laid back, small…and perfect. There is a superb campsite in town or fancy lodge options if you feel you earned it! Mid-August there is a very alternative film festival in this village, with an excellent party to boot, so if you can time your arrival to coincide with this it will be a fitting end. 

On the other routes, the northern route is probably the least frequented. Ending in the town of Bystroe takes in some Ukrainian towns, so if you have a visa it could be very interesting place to travel. The central route to Sulina is the main cargo channel, so may be easiest to navigate and holds the true end point of the Danube in a lighthouse, so if you’re a purist, perhaps this is your one."

What about canoeing the Danube-Black Sea Canal?
The Black Sea Canal is a 45km shortcut that took us from the Danube to the Black Sea avoiding the delta. If you are not in a rush our advice would certainly be to take the river route to the sea, taking in the famously spectacular scenery. The canal, however, is accessible to canoes and kayaks with one lock at either end if you choose to take this route.

You are not permitted to enter the locks and there is no set up for portaging, for this you just have to clamber up the banks and do it yourself.

The canal is also called 'the canal of death' due to the great number of slave labourers and prisoners who died there in poor conditions. It is a grim and eerie place. It is a very unique experience but not an entirely pleasant one. Where it finishes in Agigea we were forbidden access near and beyond the lock since it is a large commercial port. To reach the sea is therefore a particularly long portage.

Do I need a water purifier?
We took chlorine tablets which we did use fairly often from Serbia onwards. However, you can certainly get by without, simply by having a decent amount of water storage and topping up whenever you get the chance. For safety it is always best to carry something, just in case.

Have more questions about canoeing the Danube?
Simply get in touch through our contact form.

Following this advice?
These FAQ pages are intended to answer your common questions but reflect out-dated knowledge from our experiences in 2013. Things on the Danube may be different today. James Warner Smith and Nathan Wilkins do not take responsibility for anybody that follows our advice without seeking further, professional guidance and cannot be held responsible for any loss, damage, injury or death that occurs as a result of following this information. Please be cautious, act responsibly and canoe safely.