MichinganTwoSome

Thank you so much for sharing your experience! We are taking an Alla tour at the end of next month and will know what to expect now. Did your group need to wait long for everyone to get off? would hate to think someone could be left behind because of being given bad information!

No! Actually we were the second to the last couple to get on. The last one came a few minutes later and then we were off. Seems we weren't the only ones that waited! Good luck.

Diana: Alla was there around 8 AM the first day and 7 AM the second day.

Just got back a few days ago from our cruise. Wife and I took the Holland American Zuiderdam out of Ft Lauderdale on a Baltic cruise. Before we sailed we booked a tour with Alla Tours for Saint Petersburg. Crossed the Atlantic and less than two days before we hit Saint Petersburg we got a notice in our mail box stating that "Guests who book their excursions independently must wait 90 minutes after docking before independent tour operators and drivers allowed into the by Port Authorities." Our ship was scheduled to arrive at 7 AM and our tour operator was supposed to pick us up at 830 AM! Hmmm that would not give us much time to get through customs. So I went to our EXC guide, he was no help. Customer Service next, I asked to see the Officer in Charge. No help there either. I felt as if they were treating us differently than the others who had booked our tour through the ship. I can understand them trying to make more money for the company but telling us less than two days out? We wanted to take our tour and see St Petersburg!

The day arrived and there were two stairwells letting the guests out. I could see the passengers slowly ebbing out. We went down to the floor where they let us out. We were told that the Russian customs officers would turn us away as we were on a tour with a independent company. Okay, no problem we would just get back into line until they approved us. Wife and I just walked out of the ship by the Officers and workers who wanted us to stay onboard. I believe it was about 7:45 AM. You head to a building where there are several lines of single customs agents sitting in booths. There are agents helping the lines move forward as well as the ship officers trying to move people along. I did not count the lines of booths because we were in one side and I could not see the other but there had to be 8-10 booths. The lines move slowly as you enter the booth one at a time. They look at you, swipe your passport through a reader, look at the paperwork provided to you by Alla. They print off a visa which you turn in at the end of the first day. It took my wife and I about 35-40 minutes by the time we got into the line and were both through. You really feel that you are in a movie: our nervousness, the guards in their uniforms, going through customs, being in Russia etc.

My wife did ask when she was in the booth with the customs officer if it were okay to be there at that time as we were with Alla Tours. He replied "of course." All in all it was the best tour we have had. I talked to others who went into Russia by themselves with a visa they bought before they got there that it cost 175 USD per person! Alla Tours is worth all the five stars they have earned. At the end of the first day Alla drops you off, you again go through the customs booths. They take the visa form they printed out from you and you head back to the ship. The second day was so much easier. They still have to see you but it is a lot quicker, a wait of about five minutes. No printed visa, just a quick look. In all you get two stamps in your passport. The weather in St Petersburg is sunny 55 days a year and that it is very rainy. I hate to tell you that we used up two of those sunny days while we were there! We still love Holland America though and wish all going to St Petersburg blue skies and flat seas. I hope this review of us getting into St Petersburg helps!