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Any advise on companies to use for a private tour for two? While we originally were going to look at private tour companies with a smaller group than the ship ones my husband has been having some knee issues and we don't know how he will feel next year when we travel. We are thinking of doing a tour just the two of us,

 

I understand it will be much more $ but don't want to hold up or inconvenience others if he doesn't get 100% better

 

Thank you

I have wanted to visit St Petersburg for many years and specifically chose a Celebrity cruise in June as it had three full days there. To make the most of it we decided to do a private tour for two, and so I did a lot of research to make sure we found the right person. Well, in a nutshell, we could not have been more happy with our guide Irina Kochkina who runs her own tour company - Muse Day Tours - as well as working through another larger tour company. What an amazing depth of knowledge of St Petersburg and Russia this young woman has! She was also very personable and spoke excellent English. Trying to find our own way to the places we wanted to go would have been very difficult due to the language barrier. Instead, each day she was waiting at the dock, we hopped in her car, and set off on our pre-agreed itinerary. We did all the main sights, palaces, churches, gardens etc - all without waiting in very long lines to get in - plus a few extra WW2 things I wanted to see.

I can't speak highly enough of the experience (and it was very reasonable in cost as well). You can contact her directly via: kochkina-ira@yandex.ru.

Have a fantastic time! Brenda

My partner wanted a Caribbean cruise for his 40th this year, but I'm looking at a European cruise for mine. We both have never been to Europe and I prefer a colder climate cruise than what the Mediterranean offers. One must is that the cruise must stop in Germany. If I am going to Europe, I want to see Germany. Originally I thought the Baltic Sea cruise was a done deal. We get to see a lot of interesting countries on what may be our only time to Europe (Alaska and Hawaii are to follow). However, I looked into seeing the fjords in Norway. They look amazing and there is a starting point in Germany. The idea of seeing many countries is appealing as much as it does to see only Germany and Norway. Any thoughts or opinions from someone who have experienced one or both itineraries?

We did a 14 night Baltic cruise in June and absolutely loved it - particularly 3 days in St Petersburg. We sailed out of Amsterdam and stopped at Copenhagen, Warnemunde (for Berlin), Tallin, St Petersburg, Helsinki and Stockholm. Really a day in Germany is not enough (we went on to five days in Bavaria afterwards). That's my suggestion - if you have a few extra days, maybe think about doing a few days in Germany before or after your cruise?