Natasha708

On 5/5/2018 at 4:53 AM, bbw187 said:

Thank you scottmarilyncruiser! Looking forward to cruising O March 2019. ⚓️

 

 

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Thoughts? I will be cruising on her next month! Thx!

Have read somewhere Koningsdam is scheduled for 12-2 to 12-9 in Freeport? Do you know what she is having done? We are sailing her from Ft. Lauderdale on 12-10 and hoping not to have any problems . . . opinion? :rolleyes:

Dec 2nd is correct.

Try Galveston Shuttle & Limo, they have good reputation

http://galveston-shuttle.com/get-to-know-us/rates/

 

For hotel that offer shuttle in Galveston check out this article:

http://transgateslimo.com/free-galveston-cruise-shuttle-parking/

 

Good luck

Perfect. Thank you so much to everyone.

You can check Galveston Express Shuttle.

 

http://galvestonexpress.com/

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Thank u! Have u used it?

Can anyone give me info on what the best option would be for 6 adults and 3 kids, to get to Galveston from Hobby.

Also what hotels provide the transfer to the ship? Thx!!

We will be in this cabin next month for an Alaskan cruise - do you know what time the bar on top of it closes? Is there smoking allowed in the bar area? Starting to worry about the room and noise issues... Thanks for any guidance - although too late to change now...

We did the Trans Pacific in this cabin. I will admit there was some noise.. but honestly I was able to tune it out. The Balcony is very big.. and well worth the small amount of noise. There was NO Smoke at all.. I would have freaked out as I get very bad headaches from smoke.

Enjoy.. I would take this cabin again.

 

Being from Florida I'm not certain if they are fur or not , but my Michigander wife thought that they are rabbit . And I think that we forgot to mention that she bought 3 for $ 33 dollars at the cruise terminal in St. Petersburg .

But at the Grand Russian Bazaar on the cruise ship after we left Russia they were $ 30 each !

Excellent pics! And thank u for the email. So buy in Russia if possible, and not on ship unless you want to pay a lot more!! What do you do with your coats when touring in the Palace and Hermitage?

We have been there 5 times and if you have questions , we will try to answer them . We did do the Baltic cruise on the Eclipse last year and wrote a thread , full of photos which may be a big help . You can find it by clicking on the blue link below :

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2372103

 

Have a great trip ! :D

I would love to talk to you. Will you email me direct ? Natasha708@aol.com Thx!!!

Just an update.. I ended up booking and pre paying with Viator/ TJ Travel. I have used Viator several times in the past and were always happy with them. My tour is a two day, and includes the most free time/ shopping time I had seen on any of the tours. It says flee market and Nevsky Prospect.. also free time for lunch on the second day. Anyway, I am looking forward to it. Although, I have heard it will be very cold in Russia the beginning of May!

Yes, it's a pretty easy walk into the old town at Tallinn. There is also a free walking tour where you tip as you see fit, but it has limited space and books up. Google it.

 

We also found Helsinki walkable for a self guided tour. But we and our kids are good walkers. When in Europe, we average 10+ miles/day easily.

 

Copenhagen can also be largely done on foot. But definitely also take a boat tour from Nyhavn. There are two companies that offer them. One is at the end of the canal at the square, and the other is along one side of the canal. The one on the side doesn't make lots of other stops, and is half the price. I think the more expensive one may include a hoho bus but not certain, as we just walked everywhere.

 

Going back to St.Petersburg, whatever tour you do, make sure it actually goes inside the Church on Spilled Blood. Apparently many just stop to look at the outside, but the interior of the church is the most ornate, decorated Orthodox church and IMNSHO an absolute must see.

 

The only tour we booked other than Russia was in Warnemunde, where we did the Friends of Dave tour. If you are not inclined to schlep to Berlin, this more local tour is great.

 

 

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Excellent info.Thank u so much!

The Baltic cruise is great.

This will be my first time doing this itinerary. When u ( or anyone reading this) have time could you chime in on the other ports? Estonia.. is it easy to walk into town from the ship? No tour really needed.. Thoughts on Denmark and Finland..

Opinions welcome from all of u. :)

Thx! This has all been very helpful!

Any questions were answered within 8-10 hours.

Enjoy your trip...that Baltic cruise was one of our favorites :)

Thank u! I also found a great Youtube.

We sailed on Silhouette last spring (2016), and Concierge pax were invited on to the helipad at the front of the ship for the sail away. We were joined by lots of ship's officers and staff.....a really unique experience.

This is fascinating! I wonder if there is a Youtube on this? Thx everyone for the wonderful info. I will also be sailing on Silhouette.. it will be my 3rd time sailing with her.

Yes indeed. Look at the website above. We convinced people with us on the ship to book it also and they did everything from the ship. Concierge printed off the required documents. Love the Internet.

That's GREAT!! We have a Concierge Cabin also. Cant wait. Any other tips? Clothes to bring.. I heard like Alaska layers..

We had ALLA tours. They are absolutely superb! We did a two day and nighttime in St. Petersburg. Had separate driver. Guide, Elena, was extremely fluent and knew slang as well. She was in the Young Pioneers (Communist Party) and had some stories to tell. We used them for St. P, Talin, Stockholm, and Helsinki. I would use them again in a heartbeat. Book the Russia tour and you don't pay until the second day. Dollars are good so is plastic. Book more and you get discounts. 12 passenger NEW Mercedes bus. For those two days and nighttime in St. P was $300 each and totally worth it. No big bus and 20 minutes to load and empty. She zipped us ahead of all the others and reorganized when we went to each event depending upon traffic. https://alla-tour.com/ They meet the visa requirement and you show the guards the paper you print from the email and all is good. They also take you to a warehouse of Russian junk souvenirs and they are extremely cheap compared to the normal junk shops. Lunch on a hovercraft to Peterhof. Evening folk show that was awesome. Catherine's Palace, Hermitage, Dinner in Rasputin's place, et al. Don't pass this one up. Definitely 5 stars.

Very good info! Thank u! I might have to look at them for these other countries too. They take the USD?

Ship tours provide a ticket.

 

If you book a private tour they will email you tickets, so print these out and take them with you.

 

We used Alla tours for a three day tour of St Petersburg. This was considerably better value than anything the ship offered. They were very helpful and professional. If shopping is important to you simply email them and explain exactly what you want to see etc and they will make it happen.

 

Others will no doubt reply with other tour operators who they were happy with too but I'd have no reservations about using Alla tours again.

Thank u! Alla is the company I am considering doing. I am interested in the Comfort and Leisure tour they are offering. It does include an hour to shop. LOL Which should be enough. Do you pre pay the tour with them? Thank u again!

There is a secure area where you can shop before going through Russian immigration. It consists of just two shops selling vodka, caviar a lot of other booze, chocolate a few typical tourist souvenirs and around 300 different types of Russian dolls.

 

You could easily view both shops in 15 to 20 minutes.

 

It is worth bearing in mind that in order to get past immigration you need to be booked on a tour either via the ship or privately. Happy, cheery (not) Immigration officials will want your passport and your ticket every time you wish to pass.

 

No pre booked trip, no entry.

Thank u for this info! When you say they want your "ticket" do you mean ticket from the tour operation that you picked?

How can anyone do any more shopping then this.. if the tour doesn't give much free time?

Also can you tell me which tour company you used or did you buy a tour from the ship. Thank you again!

Hi!

Can anyone tell me if there is a secured area when u get off the ship, that you can shop in?

I fondly call this the "Disneyland area" Similar to what there is in Roatan Honduras, Grand Cayman, and Falmouth Jamaica... for cruise passengers only.

Thank u!

More questions to come.. trying hard to understand this port... Any info welcomed!!!! Thank u again.

Yep that would be sweet and prevent us from having to fly to NJ.

 

We have a Vision quicki booked Jan. next year...and have been pricing Anthem for the fall of 2018. Would love it if she came here instead.

Hi Becci! How have you been? Call us!!

I am referring to the fact that just because someone claims here that they got permission to do something does not make it true. People post lies all the time.

Oh yes I agree. My brother did not get permission. he brought his drone on the Ruby Princess.. in his checked luggage and flew it in Mazatlan.. not a lie.

Someone "said" they got permission. People said that alot and sometimes it is a big fib

What?

[Just to update..

My brother did take his drone on the Ruby Princess. He used it on the beach in Mazatlan with no problems anywhere.

You can't bring a drone onboard RCCL, without a permission. I contacted RCCL before our cruise, got a permission to bring it as long as I didn't had access to it during my time onboard the ship. You need to hand in the drone or the remote control to the ships security when you are boarding. You and the security personel sign a paper that you have handed them the drone, when you get into a port you show your paper just before you leave the ship and get your drone back. When you come back onboard you hand in the drone again. That's how it worked back in 2015 when I had my drone with me. Turned out very well.

Thank you for the info. What ports were you allowed to use it in? Did you have to have special permission for that too? Thx again.

Drones are listed as a prohibited item not allowed to be brought on board with RCI as well.

 

And why would anything about your brother being licensed with the FAA and writing for Drone Magazine be a valid reason to have that prohibition ignored by a cruise line?

Not sure. But it seems someone did say they got permission from RCCL to bring their drone on board. Not sure how they did it. Seems writing an article and giving the cruise line free advertising might be a reason.

Glad there is a thread on this..

My Brother is licensed with the FAA. He is getting ready to go his first cruise with us.

He wants to bring his drone and writes for Drone Magazine. ( He has had the cover story two or three times)

We will be on the Ruby Princess.

It looks like from what I read on here.. RCCL.. has allowed it. Princess does not.

Is that correct? Thx.