DragonOfTheSeas

OK--time for the Vikings. I really liked this museum. It is relatively new and uses various techniques to enhance the experience. They use holograms, smells, things you can touch and feel [warmth of artificial fires], locations to take pictures with artifacts and things children can touch and climb into. Our DGD would enjoy this decoding station. You can see the other children's work. Their goal is to give a true overview of Vikings rather than the myth. [food dwellings, clothes, etc] At the end is an 11 minute ride. The car has 2 seat levels and can hold 5 at the most. You tell them your language and the commentary in your car is in that language. Some reviews say it is a cheesy presentation. It is not Disney quality, but, gives a lot of information within the story it tells. YMMV I think children would like this museum. I even took a picture in the throne.

Thank you for the advice. We will be on the Voyager of the Seas. I have never heard of the Valencia Suite. We are from Virginia and like air conditioning, too. However, we have not needed any in Stockholm. The weather has been perfect. Sunny with puffy clouds and around 70-73 degrees each day. Thank you for the advice for Riga. The House of the Blackheads was something I want to see.

The plan for today was to visit the island of Djurgarden. It is a city park with many museums. The Nordic Museum is the oldest. This building was designed by Carl Milles. I will mention him again tomorrow. As seen from the water: There is also a museum dedicated to the characters of Swedish children’s literature, primarily the books of Astrid Lindgren. There are a lot on Pippi Longstocking references. I mention theses because they are very popular. You might want to visit. But, we didn’t visit them. Hahaha Our second stop was the Viking Museum.

This will be a little out of order but I had trouble with the server at the hotel last night and couldn’t post the pictures of the boat tour. I’ll do that later when we’re home. But we are at the vasa Museum now the number one tourist attraction in Stockholm. The Vasa was a war ship that sank in 1628 and it lay on the bottom of the Stockholm Harbor for 333 years before it was raised. It’s a unique museum. The ship is 98% original most of what’s not original our stainless steel bolts that they used to replace the resting iron ones and the new rope rigging. Everything else is pretty much what it was all that long ago. The really cold water in the harbor preserved the wood and even the skeletons of the crew that did not make it off the ship. this is a 1/10 scale model of the ship. At the back of the ship you can see the mini statues the ship was carrying and how colorful it was.

After the Armory we walked down the steep hill to the waterfront. We saw lots of boats there and we thought there might be a ferry. There wasn't a ferry there at the time and we did not wait. We looked at a couple of the sightseeing boats. There was a Hop On, Hop Off boat that was 500 SEK for 24 hours [around $50] and an electric open sightseeing boat. We decided to go with that electric boat since we already had transportation tickets. This is where some of you on this same cruise could add details of any boat tours you took. The tour was 1 hour and it was 26 SEK. My CC posted this as $51.06 for the two of us. I can not tell you if this was the "best" one to select. Most of the other boats were bigger and enclosed. I am sure that the enclosures are needed most of the year. However, today the weather was perfect. Here is Eleanor our guide and Chris the pilot. He had to duck under some of the bridges--but, not the one below. This is a map of our route. [solid gold line] You see some of the most visited sight from the water.

I am glad to here you are negative, too. Enjoy the ice bar. We will be taking the ferry from Nybroplan to the port at Frihammen, also.

After the testing we were headed to Storykyrkan ‘The Great Cathedral,’ [open 10-6]. Where coronations and weddings take place. It dates from the 1300’s. Admission is 60 SEK and includes audio guide. . . but we missed it. There is currently a lot of barriers and high temporary construction walls around the cathedral and we missed it on the way in. We were too tired to look for it when we left. 😲 I bought the Rick Steves Scandinavia book as part of my research. He suggests that unless you have lots of time touring the palace will eat up all your touring time. It is huge. He suggested visiting the Royal Armory. [side entrance of the palace] It is free and there is a lot to see there. [weaponry, carriages, fashion, etc] It was enough for us. Look at this dress can you image wearing this? There was a statue of Gustaf Vasa in the square outside the palace. I told DH he looked like Bonaparte

Today was Covid testing day so DH and I set out for Gamla Stan about 9:20. Our appointment was for 10 AM and we did not want to miss it. It only took us a short time to ride the T-bana one stop from Slussen to Gamla Stan and arrive at the pharmacy on Västerlånggatan. Describing this as a pharmacy is a misnomer. It is a small office with a desk, printer and 2 small booths in which they actually test you. There are no products for sale. Here is a map of Gamla Stan [old Town]. You can see all of those places. After we finished our touring we went back and got a printed copy of our results. The first picture shows the street around 10 am this morning and the last two show it at almost 2 PM. It was shoulder to shoulder. At home this would be called a super spreader event. LOL You do not need to be there at 10 am, but as early as you can get there is good. It is a quaint little street and we enjoyed looking in the shops. It is the most popular in Gamla Stan. We did a take out lunch from one of the stores. I am going to go back and get some souvenirs. I did not want to carry them around today.

The most important news of the day is that we are NEGATIVE! Yeah! So we are officially cruising. I did not mention it before because I did not want to jinx us but we have been lucky with with our cabin. We booked a balcony years ago on deck 6. About a month after final payment the prices went down. We had already put in for a Royal Up bid on all of the suite categories except two bedroom and the Royal suite. But the price difference was within a few dollars of what we bid for a Junior Suite so we did a paid upgrade. The advantage of that is we get the points for a suite. I went back to our Royal Up bids and removed the JS and adjusted the other bids down since we had paid a little more with this move to JS. Imagine my surprise when Monday we got an email that our bid for an Owner's Suite was accepted. Hooray! We have had a a few Junior suites when I got a good price 😊. . . and we had a Grand Suite once. This will be a real treat for us. We will enjoy having breakfast in Chops Grille each day and since we have a dining table and chairs we might eat in for a few meals. We are by the elevator on deck 10. If you pass by you will notice my Dragon of the Seas name sign on the door. We got an email this morning from Gabriel Cecy welcoming us to the voyage. He is the Suite Concierge.

No, I think we are going to the Happy Hour here at the hotel. DH and I are pretty tired out from our touring today. Good Luck on your test.

Yes, pricey--I can not comment on Copenhagen yet. Give me a few days.

After a short nap we got up and walked around the area some just to get our bearings. As I mentioned Slussen is a transportation hub and busy most of the time. It is currently undergoing a huge construction project. I am not sure what they are doing. While the cranes take away a little from the views of Gamla Stan and the surrounding water are beautiful. We are Hilton Diamond members so we visited the executive lounge after our walk. That is where I took this picture. I had identified a restaurant near the hotel for dinner. It has great reviews and was very busy on the outdoor seating. But, the inside had plenty of room. DH and I decided we would try the Swedish meatballs. They were great. I was only able to eat half of them. The waiter asked me if I didn't like the dinner. It was a big plate of food. Tomorrow is the all important Covid Antigen test. I will let you know how it goes.

Sorry--had not thought about the fact we land in Copenhagen. HaHaHa Blame it on not enough sleep.

I am not sure where your hotel is located. If I had it to do over again I would take the taxi after the Arland express. This is a taxi stand right by the exit.

There was one thing I would have done differently. We got off the Arlanda Express at Stockholm Central Station. We were told we could buy the multi-day ticket at the Presbryan store. It is a little convenience store in the station. There is a type of mall with a food court in the station. The first store had run out of cards and we had to find another one. Then when we got to where you enter the metro there was a ticket booth right there. The real issue with the metro is that the elevator leading to the metro entrance is broken. You have to take the escalator with your luggage. I tripped. No worries and I did not hurt myself at all. I just ended on my fanny. [plenty of padding] But, after that the attendant helped us get our bags down. He complained that the company sent them an email that the elevator was fixed. He said no one had even looked at it, yet. We have found everyone here to be very helpful. For those of you on the next cruise. It might be worth a taxi ride after you get off the Arlanda Express depending on where your hotel is located. I still think the transportation ticket is the way to go to get around for sightseeing. But luggage and escalators do not mix.

The fastest and easiest way to get from the airport to the city is with the Arlanda Express. It is about 20 minutes-- 298 SEK for 2 seniors. [not included in SL ticket] A regional train takes twice as long and is included in the SL ticket. However, there is an airport exit tax [not sure that is the correct term] for the Arlanda Airport using the regional train. That makes the price much closer. We took the Arlanda Express and it could not be easier. It is easy to find the ticket booth near the baggage claim. The trains were running every 15 minutes today. I am not sure if that is every day. We purchased a SL card for transportation. [~$4 each for the card] Since we arrived on Thursday and leave Stockholm on Monday, we think the 7-day fare is best. It is only ~$8 USD more than 72 hours and gives us flexibility. We are seniors and get a discounted rate. There are also discounts for children. I found this on the website: [Visitor tickets | SL] 24 hours: SEK 165 (adult fare); SEK 110 (discounted fare) 72 hours: SEK 330 (adult fare); SEK 220 (discounted fare) 7 days: SEK 430 (adult fare); SEK 290 (discounted fare) This card is good for any public transit. [metro, buses, trains, ferries. etc.] It was 20 SEK each for the Card and 290 SEK each for our discounted ticket to be loaded on the card. It was 620 SEK plus 8 SEK listed as Moms. I have no idea what that was for. Today the 628 SEK is listed as a conversion of $61.10. My credit card company will do that. I will not get that exact rate. But letting the CC company make the conversion will get you a better rate than if the vendor does that. When I look at prices, I just estimate 10 SEK to a dollar.

It was interesting that before our flight from Washington/Dulles to Munich the United staff announced that Germany requires air passengers to wear a medical grade mask onboard flights to or through German airports. For the US this means at least a KN95 mask. [no cloth or surgical masks] Thankfully that is what we have. She said the German government would fine passengers if they did not keep the mask on for the entire flight. She said they have fined almost an entire flight before. She said they have sophisticated facial recognition. Hard to believe someone is looking at a feed of the cabin at 3am? Everyone was very conscientious and wore their masks except when eating. It was hard to try to sleep with the mask. The crazy thing was when we got to Munich almost none of the passengers/staff in the terminal had on masks. . . We did need to wear them on the Lufthansa flight. I should stop here [since we are on the subject] and tell you that cruisers need to be fully vaccinated [we are boosted, too] and present a negative Covid test taken within 2 days of the cruise. Unvaccinated children under 12 can cruise with some restrictions but must take a rapid PCR test at the pier. DH and I have been wearing a mask anytime we have been indoors and away from home for 2 weeks. It is almost like being in lockdown again. UGH! We took a cruise in March and are familiar with the testing process. Since we will be in Sweden, I had to find a pharmacy that does the tests. A fellow roll call member suggested a pharmacy and one of the branches is not far from our hotel: The address is: Västerlånggatan 36A, 111 29 Stockholm Website is: PCR-test och antigentest för Covid-19 med reseintyg | Testmottagningen Cost: Antigen test 295 SEK I am sure there are others. However, this pharmacy is in Gamla Stan very near the T-bana stop and we were able to make a reservation for 10am on Friday. Results come back in an hour. Wish us luck-- we must pass this test, or all bets are off. We bought trip insurance. Please refrain from giving your opinion on testing and masking for Covid. The testing requirement is what it is and if anyone wants to cruise, they need to follow it. End of story! Sorry to be blunt. But I have seen too many threads go off the rails.

Welcome to Stockholm. We made it! We’re so glad it was a mostly clear day and we could see all the little islands as we flew in.

I agree with you. The original cruise that we booked three years ago was a 12 day cruise round-trip from Amsterdam. And it had 3 sea days sprinkled in. That was really a better itinerary for someone our age. But they are not doing that Cruise this year

I plan to include lots of pictures of the ship and the ports we visit. Stockholm is built on 14 islands and is the largest city in Sweden. On embarkation the ship sails along the island chain through the Stockholm Archipelago. We are looking forward to lots of water views in the city and the sail through the archipelago. The more I researched the city the happier I am that we have an extra day there. As usual I have created a trip planner [table] with all the relevant information. Yes, I am an over planner. However, we do not run from one thing to the other. We just have lots of option identified. Here is a copy of a portion of one of the pages. We do not do everything I identify. But it gives us enough information to go to a plan B or even C if issues arise. I am a former teacher, and I always had a lesson plan—even if I did not follow it. 😊

DH and I are from Central Virginia and usually cruise from Baltimore. We are veteran cruisers interested in history and enjoy nature. DH accuses me of visiting every fort and church I pass. HaHaHa I will be happy to add Vikings, towers, city walls, and a Medieval Festival to my usual stops. All these ports are new to us. So, I started a thread on Cruise Critic to gather information over the last few months. Many local cruisers offered invaluable information. This is the link to that thread: Would like information for Baltic cruise from Stockholm to Copenhagen w/Riga, Helsinki, Tallinn, Visby, Ronne, Aarhaus - Northern Europe & Baltic Sea - Cruise Critic Community We had a fright when we got here to the airport. 😕 United looked at our tickets and said "Lufthansa is on strike. We do not think you have a connecting flight. We can't send you to Germany and leave you stranded.". Of course, I said I want to go to Germany one way or the other. They called Lufthansa and our flight tomorrow am still on. Then they looked at the flight coming back and said there is no such e ticket #. Yikes. I called Air2Seas emergency [day of travel] number and they answer immediately and gave me new RL numbers and stayed on the line until the United agent could pull up the flights. Thank goodness. We leave in 1.5 hrs so I guess we are actually going. Flying is so stressful.

Actually, we are still at Washington Dulles Airport, but we will be in Scandanavia tomorrow. 😁 I have read many live threads and enjoy “cruising” via the Internet with fellow Cruise Critic members. I hope you will join me on this Scandinavian adventure. Like most cruises since March of 2020 this trip has had its ups and downs. It was scheduled 3 years ago to celebrate “my big birthday” last summer and has been “lifted and shifted” twice. The embarkation ports are different; the number of days and itineraries have all changed. . . and then Russia invaded Ukraine. This is the final version of the itinerary: We plan to tour Stockholm for 4 ½ days before we board the Voyager on Sunday. The ship will stay at the dock overnight before it sails on Monday. This was one of the changes after the cruise line removed the 2-day port stop in St Petersburg. That was great for passengers that were flying in the day before. [mostly Europeans] We would have preferred time in another port. I have research all of our stops and Stockholm has enough things to do to keep you busy for a month. So, the extra day is a good thing. There will be quite a bit of time difference between the US and the locations of our ports. Latvia, Estonia and Finland are 7 hours ahead and the rest of the trip is 6 hours ahead. Therefore, “Live” will be a relative term.

We had a fright when we got here. United looked at our tickets and said Lufthansa is on strike. We do not think you had a connecting flight. We can't send you to Germany and leave you stranded. Of course, I said I want to go to Germany one way or the other. They called Lufthansa and our flight tomorrow am still on. Then they looked at the flight coming back and said there is no such e ticket #. Yikes. I called Air2Seas emergency number and they answer immediately and gave me new RL numbers and stayed on the line until the agent could pull up the flights. Thank goodness. We leave in 1.5 hrs so I guess we are actually going. Flying is so stressful.

We leave on our Odessey today. 😁 I plan to do a "Live" thread to share the information I learned in this thread to help other cruisers. I will post a link when we get to the airport this afternoon.

I think that would be too late for my cruise next weekend.