Berlin on SPB Tours

Has anyone used this company for Berlin? We are considering the grand tour, but I am worried that they may not get us back to the ship in time. Any insights would be helpful. We want to do a day in Berlin but not just take pics through a motor-coach window.

We have at least 30 people on our roll call who are using SPB to Berlin, both group and private. Very few people are concerned about getting back on time.

Has anyone used this company for Berlin? We are considering the grand tour, but I am worried that they may not get us back to the ship in time. Any insights would be helpful. We want to do a day in Berlin but not just take pics through a motor-coach window.

they have been going for several years and you will find reviews on this forum

we used them a few years back-coach to Berlin with 2 other parties.On arrival in Berlin split into smaller vehicles for ride to different areas but there was plenty of walking and sightseeing opportunites

there was an option to do "Berlin on your own" with the cruise line but that would have involved older non air conditioned trains and no guide

we had a good day in Berlin seeing a lot and arrived back at the ship in plenty of time

You should not worry about getting back to the ship on time when using a large reputable tour company. If they missed a ship just once, their business would take a huge hit. Tour companies are super conservative with time and know to allow for extra time during busy traffic hours, detour routes when necessary, keep in touch with their management etc.

Berlin is a HUGE city and would be impossible to do on your own without transportation and an exact plan. Because of the distance to the ship, booking a tour would be the only way to be close to seeing most highlights and return to the ship.

If you want to see only a few spots to spend more time at each, I'd book a private tour and design your own day. With limited time in Berlin, you are getting a "taste". To get more, a land stay would be necessary. Some people forego Berlin and stay in the area around the port.

One thing that you might not know about SPB tours is that Vika the owner is Russian, but her hubby is German and he runs the operation from Germany. So if something goes wrong in Germany, there is a "big shot" close by. There has been much discussion over the years, and the consensus is that any of the well known true and tried for cruiser companies make sure that they are back in time. To be late and miss the ship would be the end of their business. . .

Large, well known companies like SPB Tours, have all this down to a science. They do this basically everyday and know the ins and outs of this trip backwards and forward. They have contingency plans if anything might go wrong, so there is absolutely no need to worry about anything. They are a well known and well respected company and it is perfectly safe to sue them for any excursion.

cheers

Len

Thank you to all that have replied! We will be going with them as the price and tours look awesome! :D

Thank you for starting this thread...we are considering them as well, much less than ships tour and love smaller groups. I have done enough private tours over the years to know that these tour operators are vigilant about getting you back to the ship early. Their living depends on it, and they are all aware of the power of tripadvisor and Cruise Critic!!

We were a group of 20+, and SPB had set up an AC Coach for us for the trip. They met us right after we got off the boat, and were very flexible and considerate -- we were able to customize the tour, and see plenty of the old east and west Berlin areas. It made for a very long, but wonderful trip.

As there were many in our group for whom this would likely have been the only opportunity to see Berlin, it was very well worth the time.

Cheers

Just used them on 4/30/15, the Regal Princess docked in Hamburg, so it is not a normal stop. But, they put together a private tour for a cruise critic group. We got a late start waiting on customs clearance, etc but they really watched the time and were aware of timing and when we needed to be back to the ship. At the end because of timing we had to do a couple of drive byes. Traffic was terrible as many of the streets were closed prepping for the big May Day celebration. We got back to the ship in time and everyone raved about the tour. We had 2 private buses but ran into each other on occasion but were not on the same travel time. I can not recommend them highly enough. Ps the ship was late leaving as the trains for the princess tour were an hour late. Things can always happen, however, the company was very professional and monitored current traffic conditions with GPS device.