New Disebarkation Rules for St. Petersburg in 2018

Here is an article about new procedures that will be put into place for disembarking in St. Petersburg in 2018. They had a successful test 2 days ago and will be implementing it with some tweaks.

http://guidetopetersburg.com/new-disembarkation-rules-st-petersburg-cruise-port-for-2018-navigation/

The way that I interpret the article, even in 2018 this new system will only be implemented on busy port days. Looking at the port schedule which I provide below, we will be the only ship in port. I will be in St. Petersburg on 11 and 12 June. So would this still apply? Any additional information that anyone could supply would be great!

http://ports.cruisett.com/schedule/R...urg/June_2018/

TIA - Joe

Thank you for posting this. Maybe it should be made a sticky so that we can all follow and add to this. Your list of who is in port is interesting as it does not include the Viking Sky which will be in port on the 12th and 13th of June, 2018

Here is an article about new procedures that will be put into place for disembarking in St. Petersburg in 2018. They had a successful test 2 days ago and will be implementing it with some tweaks.

 

http://guidetopetersburg.com/new-disembarkation-rules-st-petersburg-cruise-port-for-2018-navigation/

 

The way that I interpret the article, even in 2018 this new system will only be implemented on busy port days. Looking at the port schedule which I provide below, we will be the only ship in port. I will be in St. Petersburg on 11 and 12 June. So would this still apply? Any additional information that anyone could supply would be great!

 

http://ports.cruisett.com/schedule/R...urg/June_2018/

 

TIA - Joe

I would recommend that you check with the company with whom you booked your tour - they will be able to provide you with accurate information.

I would recommend that you check with the company with whom you booked your tour - they will be able to provide you with accurate information.

So far the 3 companies that I have been contacting (I haven't picked one yet) have all said that they would be compliant and provide a full tour that would be great, in so many words.

Thank you for posting this. Maybe it should be made a sticky so that we can all follow and add to this. Your list of who is in port is interesting as it does not include the Viking Sky which will be in port on the 12th and 13th of June, 2018

Very interesting Jean. I did not think that it would be a complete list yet. It is still 10 months out. With so may cruises that go through SPB, I would agree with making this a sticky but wouldn't know how to go about it or who to ask.

Joe

The article states that five accredited tour companies will be given preference, I wonder which ones? Any names?

The article states that five accredited tour companies will be given preference, I wonder which ones? Any names?

AUTHORIZED TOUR GROUPS IN SAINT PETERSBURG

Thanks to our friends at GuideToPetersburg.com, they provided the list of the five authorized tour groups for the ports in Saint Petersburg:

Arctur Travel http://www.arctur.spb.ru/content.html

Baltic Travel Company http://www.baltictravel.com/page/3

DenEesti http://www.deneesti.ee/ru/

Mir http://mirtc.ru/ (only in Russian)

European Cruise Service Russia http://www.europeancruise.no/contact.html

from another thread

note none of the well recommended private tour companies on here are on that list

AUTHORIZED TOUR GROUPS IN SAINT PETERSBURG

 

Thanks to our friends at GuideToPetersburg.com, they provided the list of the five authorized tour groups for the ports in Saint Petersburg:

 

Arctur Travel http://www.arctur.spb.ru/content.html

Baltic Travel Company http://www.baltictravel.com/page/3

DenEesti http://www.deneesti.ee/ru/

Mir http://mirtc.ru/ (only in Russian)

European Cruise Service Russia http://www.europeancruise.no/contact.html

 

from another thread

note none of the well recommended private tour companies on here are on that list

 

Exactly. These are the companies that provide the tours offered by your cruise line - they are not the independent companies that provide the small group tours at more reasonable prices. So, an "accredited" company will be the tours that your cruise line provides - you must book through your cruise ship, not directly through the company.

So to summarize what is said in the article: «ship-sponsored shore tours passengers come first».

Wow, that stinks! And I'm sure cruise lines will tell passengers this is being implemented on every stop in St. Petersburg, not just on "exceptionally busy" days. They miss no opportunity to maximize participation in their tours....

What about passengers with their own private visa? Will they be allowed off with the ships' tours or not until after?

We needed a private tour for just our family because we were traveling with a 3 year old (he loved St. Petersburg by the way). One of the tour companies suggested starting day 1 later after the mess at customs died down and then starting Day 2 earlier. That way you still have the same amount of time and can avoid the lines. I'd imagine they will move the times of the tours around so you won't have any less time overall, although it is unfortunate you can't start as early as you want.

We needed a private tour for just our family because we were traveling with a 3 year old (he loved St. Petersburg by the way). One of the tour companies suggested starting day 1 later after the mess at customs died down and then starting Day 2 earlier. That way you still have the same amount of time and can avoid the lines. I'd imagine they will move the times of the tours around so you won't have any less time overall, although it is unfortunate you can't start as early as you want.

that is what we intend-later start to avoid immigration queues and stay out later

actually will be nice to have a lie in and relaxing breakfast

after all we do have several time changes on this cruise so will be tired!

Here is a response that a fellow Roll Call member got when she emailed them a copy of the article (Note: I made two edits. I took out her name and I took out the name of the company since I don't think that is allowed):

Dear ABCD,

Thank you for your email. We are currently in the midst of the 2017 season and will be updating our guests on the 2018 season shortly. This season was the busiest on record and we will be assessing all the happenings of the 2017 seasons after October and will be able to let guests know about what will hopefully be some smoother disembarkations at the port on busy days.

Have a great weekend.

Best,

Alex

xyz-Tours

#1 on TripAdvisor

that is what we intend-later start to avoid immigration queues and stay out later

actually will be nice to have a lie in and relaxing breakfast

after all we do have several time changes on this cruise so will be tired!

A private tour for just your family will give you the flexibility to do this, since it might be harder to get a group of 16 together to agree on this plan (although it is always an option to post this on your roll call and see if anyone else agrees with you). The other thing I'd recommend if you are worried about being tired is to try to take it easy in Tallinn, since that is a ton of walking and usually the day before st. Petersburg. You can take a cab up to the top of Toompea Hill and then wander down saving yourself the harder climb up. There are pedicabs at most of the major tourist sites, and that is a nice way to see the beautiful medieval town. Tallinn by itself isn't challenging, just in combination with all the other cities you'll want to see is the reason you might not want to walk for 8 hours (the old town is closed to cars, so walking around or pedicabs are your best ways to explore)

So to summarize what is said in the article: «ship-sponsored shore tours passengers come first».

 

Wow, that stinks! And I'm sure cruise lines will tell passengers this is being implemented on every stop in St. Petersburg, not just on "exceptionally busy" days. They miss no opportunity to maximize participation in their tours....

 

What about passengers with their own private visa? Will they be allowed off with the ships' tours or not until after?

It doesn't stink. Ships tour is held up due to numbers of non ship tour passengers at immigration and the trip has to be curtailed and miss things on the itinerary who gets the complaints? The ship excursion desk.

Private tour is curtailed due to immigration hold ups it isn't the ship operators problem, so the ship will always look to minimise the risk to those it is responsible for.

What about passengers with their own private visa? Will they be allowed off with the ships' tours or not until after?

Good question - my best guess is that passengers with their own Russian visas will also have to wait until the ship tours depart (on day 1 only).

If I were considering a visit to St. Petersburg and had secured my own visa, I think I would be inclined to fly in. Contrary to what others have posted, I find it is quite easy to get around in the city using a combination of the metro and one's feet.

For Baltic cruise passengers, it seems that all who book St. Pete with independent operators (or secure a tourist visa) will be forced to comply with the new disembarkation rules. It really should not be a problem for most - it appears that only the first port day will be affected and that one can disembark at will on subsequent port days. An easy workaround that I can immediately see is a later start on the first day and an earlier start on subsequent days.

Another thought is that I believe that this new procedure may also end many of the Hermitage early entries that the independent tour companies offer. Especially for those with only one or two days in port. Bummer! :mad:

A personal drawback for me would be that a later start on one of the few days in port would limit my time in the museums. Most open around 10 or 10:30 am & close by 6 pm (Faberge is open till 9 pm, closed Fridays - Hermitage is open Wednesday and Friday till 9 pm). I am an early riser and like to be on my way before the tourist hoards arrive - especially at the Hermitage. However, if you already have a visa, I would plan on staying later at the Hermitage if you are fortunate in the dates of your stay (Wed or Fri).

It doesn't stink. Ships tour is held up due to numbers of non ship tour passengers at immigration and the trip has to be curtailed and miss things on the itinerary who gets the complaints? The ship excursion desk.

 

Private tour is curtailed due to immigration hold ups it isn't the ship operators problem, so the ship will always look to minimise the risk to those it is responsible for.

My opinion is mine to own -- I've cruised long enough to remember the days before shore excursions were a huge contributor to the bottom line and when ship lecturers would actually tell you how to get around the ports on your own, not just tell you about the ship's tour offerings.

A cruise is not an all-inclusive. When the ship docks, in my opinion, everyone should be able to depart the ship on a first-come first-serve basis.

I will keep sailing on the small ships that are not much affected by these shenanigans and in fact am already half-planning a return to St. Petersburg along the lines suggested by dogs4fun; i.e., not via cruise ship.

Here is an article about new procedures that will be put into place for disembarking in St. Petersburg in 2018. They had a successful test 2 days ago and will be implementing it with some tweaks.

What's particularly offensive about this policy is that the ship excursion folk aren't asked to report to the lounges until, typically 30 minutes after the ship is cleared for disembarkation. Then, the sorting out process may take another 30 minutes. That leaves about an hour before any ship-excursion cruises are even walking towards the gangway. Plenty of independent cruisers could be off the ship and away from the passport control desk if we were let off the ship the instant it is cleared. Even if independent disembarkation were allowed only until the time for excursion folks to assemble in the lounges -- to make sure we had all cleared passport control -- that would be an improvement over the new rules.

I doubt anyone will be able to advocate for independent cruisers since. Some time ago, SPBSTAN wrote that the port was now under the control of a company that has a subsidiary, Arctur, one of the accredited tour companies, now benefitting from the new policy.

Here is an article about new procedures that will be put into place for disembarking in St. Petersburg in 2018. They had a successful test 2 days ago and will be implementing it with some tweaks.

 

http://guidetopetersburg.com/new-disembarkation-rules-st-petersburg-cruise-port-for-2018-navigation/

 

The way that I interpret the article, even in 2018 this new system will only be implemented on busy port days. Looking at the port schedule which I provide below, we will be the only ship in port. I will be in St. Petersburg on 11 and 12 June. So would this still apply? Any additional information that anyone could supply would be great!

 

http://ports.cruisett.com/schedule/R...urg/June_2018/

 

TIA - Joe

Wow! I am on the Breakaway one week before you and see there are two other ships there in St. Petersburg with us. It's gonna be a zoo. Haven't even thought about excursions yet. Just now working on hotels and airfare.

I have asked the people at Guide to St. Petersburg if they have any idea what the total passenger count needs to be to trigger this new policy and they are going to get back to me. This information might help with planning but I am sure that the individual companies will help as well.

This is not going to prevent me from booking my own tour. We will get as much as possible out of the days in port and be happy with that. The state of the world requires that we be flexible.

I have asked the people at Guide to St. Petersburg if they have any idea what the total passenger count needs to be to trigger this new policy and they are going to get back to me. This information might help with planning but I am sure that the individual companies will help as well.

 

This is not going to prevent me from booking my own tour. We will get as much as possible out of the days in port and be happy with that. The state of the world requires that we be flexible.

Jean,

Thank you for doing that! I am very curious to know if it is a specific number of passengers or a number of ships!

Joe

So far the 3 companies that I have been contacting (I haven't picked one yet) have all said that they would be compliant and provide a full tour that would be great, in so many words.

I have not pick one yet as well. We have plenty of time.

Have you contacted Alla tours?

USA & Canada Toll Free 1-800-317-706

.

We toured St Petersburg several years ago, and it was the SHIP's that were trying to institute this policy. They tried to scare the passengers into believing that anyone with a private tour had to wait until all the cruise ship tours had departed. If memory holds, some one sued the cruise line basically saying that they had no right to restrict anyone from leaving the ship when they wanted, AND they won. That practice was really put on the back burner or eliminated.

BUT, now the Russians are saying it, so how can you fight that?

What the cruise lines tried to do was illegal, but now????? They must have given some person on the Russian payroll a lot of money to implement this ridiculous rule. Just my take anyway.

Cheers

Len

Here is the response that I received. I am not surprised - we should count on starting our tours late. My question was to determine how may passengers would trigger the "busy day" response. I assume that "forever" means always.

"No, they haven't. We think this will be usedforever, though it's now said to be implemented on "busy days"."

We were there this year on our cruise and booked a two-day tour with SPB Tours. Our first day's tour lasted ten hours and the second day was only nine hours to be back before the all-onboard time. Because of having a seasoned guide, on the second day she had us meet 15-20 minutes early so our group was at the front of the line for the canal boat tour.

Opening and closing hours of the attractions seem to be set for the current situation. It appears that the new policy may lead to shorter days touring with the independents.

Here is an article about new procedures that will be put into place for disembarking in St. Petersburg in 2018. They had a successful test 2 days ago and will be implementing it with some tweaks.

 

http://guidetopetersburg.com/new-disembarkation-rules-st-petersburg-cruise-port-for-2018-navigation/

Thanks for the info.