EXCELLENCE QUEEN

General information

Course/Position

Latest news

Major rescue operation after river cruise ship allided with bridge

The 'Excellence Queen', enroute from Nuremberg to Erlangen with 80 passengers and 40 crew members on board, became stuck under a pedestrians and cyclists bridge over the Main-Danube Canal near Fürth on July 2, 2025, at around 10 p.m. None of the 120 people on board were injured. The allision triggered a major SAR operation involving firefighters, the Federal Agency for Technical Relief (THW), and water rescue teams. Since it was initially unclear whether anyone had fallen into the water, 70 rescuers searched the shore and the canal using powerful lights. At the same time, the list of passengers and staff on board was checked. Finally, everyone was accounted for. According to initial investigations, the accident occurred because the captain had failed to adjust the height of the ship to the bridge. The Main-Danube Canal was closed to shipping for the duration of the search oepration and accident investigation. About two hours after the alision, the ship, which had suffered damage in the five digit Euro region, was able to continue its journey. Damage was also caused to the bridge. Iinitial estimates put the damage at several tens of thousands of euros. Short past midnight, the shipping on the waterway was possible again. On July 3, the "Fürberger Steg," which connects the two Fürth districts of Unterfürberg and Oberfürberg, was to be checked for stability. Reports with photos: https://www.nordbayern.de/nuernberg/polizeibericht/grosseinsatz-am-main-donau-kanal-bei-furth-passagierschiff-kollidiert-mit-brucke-1.14745320 https://www.br.de/nachrichten/bayern/flusskreuzfahrtschiff-bleibt-an-fussgaengerbruecke-haengen,UprYjBd https://www.infranken.de/lk/fuerth/blaulicht/fuerth-passagierschiff-kollidiert-mit-bruecke-70-einsatzkraefte-vor-ort-art-6235919

Allision on the Rhine

On Nov 5, 2016, around 10 p.m. the "Excellence Queen" (EU-No.: 02333623) allided with a floating pier in Schönau at Rhine km 248,80. The pier was torn out of its fixings. The ship suffered damage at the starboard side bow and to five cabins, where the windows broke. Railings were torn off on deck. No one was injured. The damage was some 100000 Euro. The accident was thought to have been caused by a navigational error of the master.