Cruise-line excursion or spb

Hi, my wife and I are stopping in St Petersburg for 3 days with Celebrity Silhouette in June 2018 and wish to do a 3 day tour.

On several sites people say save money and go with SPB rather than the official cruise tour.

Celebrity are charging £300.30 for the 3 day package, which has almost identical itinerary to SPB.

However SPB charge £309.48, so more expensive than cruise ship's own package. Add to that the suggested gratuities of 10% for the guide and 5% for the driver and the cost with SPB soars to£355.90. (Plus photo or video pass for Yusopov Palace are extra).

Am I missing something here?

Well - you'd be expected to tip guide and driver for the Celebrity excursion as well. We used SPB years ago and we're very happy. In addition, I suspect that a tour with SPB would have far fewer people (I think we had 12), thus a bit more personal attention.

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We took SPB tours a few years ago. There were 10 of us..a groups fromCC. our guide was fantastic, went to local restaurants for a quick bite and did much more than the ships tour. Much better than going with 50 of your closest passengers.

We used SPB a few years ago in St Petersburg. We couldn't have been happier with the multi-day tour. We were able to tailor it to our needs. Our tour guide Anna was wonderful. (I'm not sure if she still works for them. ). I would definitely book with them again.

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Hi, my wife and I are stopping in St Petersburg for 3 days with Celebrity Silhouette in June 2018 and wish to do a 3 day tour.

On several sites people say save money and go with SPB rather than the official cruise tour.

Celebrity are charging £300.30 for the 3 day package, which has almost identical itinerary to SPB.

However SPB charge £309.48, so more expensive than cruise ship's own package. Add to that the suggested gratuities of 10% for the guide and 5% for the driver and the cost with SPB soars to£355.90. (Plus photo or video pass for Yusopov Palace are extra).

 

Am I missing something here?

We used SPB last year. For me the crucial difference was that with SPB we were on a mini bus with ten others. Celebrity was a coach full of passengers. I would much rather be on a small minibus with a guide than a large coach. We could not fault SPB and I know that people who used Alla Tours said the same about that tour company.

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SPB. The owner Viktoria makes every excursion her personal responsibility. She met us at the pier in St Petersburg on arrival and was there when we departed. She personally engaged with us on pre-tour details, even kidding over her "From Russia With Love" moniker when I asked if Tatiana Romanova would be our tour guide! SPB offers a package deal that includes most of the Baltic ports. They were very quick to refund a portion of the price when weather precluded a stop in Stockholm. Best tour guides ever in Tallinn, St Pete.

Depends on the mini-van.

We've often found the larger buses to be lots more comfortable. ;)

Depends on the mini-van.

We've often found the larger buses to be lots more comfortable. ;)

I've always found our 10-11 seat minibuses very comfortable. Whereas herding 50-60 folks onto and off of buses, through admission lines, served at lunch, out of gift shops, etc... that can be like herding cats.

another vote for SPB...but be sure to express to Viktoria that you want to limit your group to 10 or 11. They sometimes will fill a larger bus if you don't specify you want a limited number of people.

Visa? Did you need a visa to take a non Celebrity tour?

All the tour companies get them for the group. It's included in the price.

Have done St. Petersburg twice with ALLA and when compared to a ship's tour we did a lot more than the Big Bus tours. Know lots of people who have done SPB as well and our experiences are very similar with a private tour; everyone was pleased with their tour guides and drivers! I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND doing a smaller group tour with either company, both have over the years have been well reviewed on CC!

Last year our tour guide was able to use a separate line to avoid the long lines at Catherine's Palace and juggled our schedule to let us see as much as possible. The smaller tours allow for more flexibility and I think are the best way to see St. Petersburg!

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We used spg too. After talking to those that did the ship excursions, we were amazed on how much more we experienced than they had. With a small group the van can get better views and use drop off areas not available to coaches. And the vans used were spacious and comfortable.

Our local restaurant lunch was fun with the smaller group. Not your typical bus group long table lunch. And no way will you get to ride the subway to see how gorgeous the underground is with a group of 60!

For sure..skip the ship excursion.

We actually booked three other ports with SPB and beside getting the cost discounted, we had superior tours in all!!! Look into that.

We would also look at the tour options (and pricing) of both Allla and TJ Tours. Also consider that with these private companies you will have a relatively small group.....whereas with the cruise line excursion you are likely to be crammed on a bus with 50+ other souls.

Hank

We also used SPB. Private custom tour for 6 - me and DH, Phillygirl and her DH, and 2 cousins. Fabulous, let us customize. We were very interested in Hermitage and went twice. Great guide and driver.

Hi Phillygirl.

Another vote for SPB or similar recommended tour agency.

It has been 6 or 7 years since we have been to St. Petersburg and I think your price has not risen too much from our booking fee.

The best part of your port stop is three days. You will see ever so much more and with a great deal more flexibility particularly using a private guide. The professional guides have the ability to alter the itinerary to avoid the largest crowds while the bus tours are on a set schedule.

There will be almost no waiting for the straggling guests to finally make it back to the bus while delaying everyone else. Smaller groups seem to understand this and seem to be more aware of the others in their group, particularly those groups put together on Roll Calls.

The tour operators are more than willing to tailor itineraries which the big bus tours cannot do. If the group wants an extra hour at Pavlovsk so be it. If one of the passengers has a restaurant recommendation then the small group tour leader will do their best to accommodate the groups wishes. We also were on a three day stop and actually had a white tablecloth gourmet lunch which was what our group wanted. You won't find that on a bus tour - a ship's pricey limo excursion - maybe.

This was my second trip to St. Petersburg. The first was a week's land tour in the city and its environs and I was so glad to visit a few sites I did not see on my first trip. Viktoria was eager to plan our tour and was delighted to show off some of the sites most don't get to visit. The other members of our Roll Call touring group were grateful for SPB's accommodation for one in a wheelchair too.

Every site will be crowded next June but your tour operator will do their best to make your St. Petersburg port stop memorable.

Visa? Did you need a visa to take a non Celebrity tour?

Tour vouchers/tickets of accredited tour companies serves as the entry permit, or "visa", when presented at Russia immigration together with the passport.

If you want to tour Russia by yourself, you need to secure a visa from the Russian consulate.

Hi, my wife and I are stopping in St Petersburg for 3 days with Celebrity Silhouette in June 2018 and wish to do a 3 day tour.

We are on Silhouette leaving Southampton 23.06.18 and our stop over in St Petersburg is for 2 days!

We did a similar Baltic sailing on Eclipse in 2015 and used SPB. We had Luba as our tour guide, she taught the other guides in the winter. The service was excellent and I can highly recommend them.

However, this time I want to see something different, so am actually wondering about doing the ship's tour as they go inside the palace at Peterhof.

It's a way off, so I intend reading the reviews on here on C.C and wait to see if other options are added before I make my decision.

SPB - only way to go. You become friends with the 10-12 fellow travellers. Our guide was amazing - always telling us who the pickpockets were and to stay clear of them. Highly recommended.

We also used SPB. Private custom tour for 6 - me and DH, Phillygirl and her DH, and 2 cousins. Fabulous, let us customize. We were very interested in Hermitage and went twice. Great guide and driver.

 

Hi Phillygirl.

Hi srdancer! It was a fabulous trip! Hope to tour with you again soon!

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We are on Silhouette leaving Southampton 23.06.18 and our stop over in St Petersburg is for 2 days!

We did a similar Baltic sailing on Eclipse in 2015 and used SPB. We had Luba as our tour guide, she taught the other guides in the winter. The service was excellent and I can highly recommend them.

However, this time I want to see something different, so am actually wondering about doing the ship's tour as they go inside the palace at Peterhof.

It's a way off, so I intend reading the reviews on here on C.C and wait to see if other options are added before I make my decision.

When we used SPB in 2010, one of the couples in our group had spent time in St. Petersburg on a land tour, but had not been to the Peterhof Palace. SPB customized our tour to include that attraction, so I am sure they'd do the same for you.

However, visiting that palace was the most disappointing part of our great tour. It was hot, crowded and IMHO not worth the addition to our tour especially in comparison to Yusapov and Catherine's palaces.

We did Alla two years ago and it was a 5-star experience, less expensive. We actually did their "Comfort Tour" in a small mini-bus with six other passengers. It is less rushed and you see most of the same things as the Deluxe Tour.

Another vote for private company tours. Reducing the herding factor time permits you to spend more time at more places, e.g., the subway ride. We have done lots of private tours and it seems our fellow travelers always make it back to the van on time, plus your guide is right with your group of 10-12.

SPB and Alla both will get early admission to the Hermitage. You wouldn't believe how horribly crowded it is after regular admission time as we were leaving. To add to that we saw some of the Celebrity tour bus groups waiting outside in the rain to get in. It was a Russian holiday and even with the tour guide the larger groups had to wait. Many on the Celebrity buses missed lunch and returned late to the ship. There was a line at customer service to get their money back, and some even cancelled the next days excursions.

Be sure to ask for early admission to the Hermitage!

Just wanted to suggest that the OP consider the Faberge Museum in St. Petersburg...it was another highlight of our Alla tour last year. And I think my husband 's favourite experience on our tour was the St. Petersburg subway!

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We didn't do the Faberge museum last time, so thank you for the fabulous picture.