Rhine-Main-Danube Canal

The 1992 canal through Bavaria that completed a continuous waterway from the North Sea to the Black Sea.

Overview

Charlemagne began a trench between the river basins in 793, the Fossa Carolina, and King Ludwig I of Bavaria opened a small canal in 1846, but only the modern waterway let large barges cross the European watershed. Running about 171 kilometers from Bamberg on the Main to Kelheim on the Danube, it climbs through 16 locks to a summit near 406 meters above sea level. Opened in 1992, it links Rotterdam with Constanta across some 3,500 kilometers of navigable water. Freight volumes have stayed below early forecasts, and river cruise ships have become some of its most visible users.