Giantfan13

Like Ashland, we would also highly recommend The Original Bus Company.

WE thoroughly enjoyed our Fish and Chips meal at the Sherlock Holmes Pub, did the walking tour before the Changing of the Guard and waited until night to do our free cruise on the Thames as we wanted pix of The Tower Bridge at night, all lit up.

I don't know their schedule, but it sure seems as if they are all over the city, one after the other. We had no problems getting off and waiting about 5-10minutes for the next one.

The Original Bus

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1399.jpg

Along the walking tour of the Changing of the Guard

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1466.jpg

Sherlock Holmes Pub

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europept2135-1.jpg

Tower Bridge at Night

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe151.jpg

Cheers

Len

I know your time in London is short and there is so much to see, but if you even think this might be your only time there for a while, you 'MIGHT' consider doing a trip outsider of London for one day. You can easily book one of those three places tours like Windsor Castle, Stonehenge and Bath (or whatever you might like to see). Or, if you were adventurous, you could take the Eurostar train to Paris for the day. Your kids would definitely love to ride the Eurostar, and just spending a day in Paris would make anyone happy.

Of course there is so much to see and do in London, but if you budget your time well, you can accomplish a lot of this and still have a day left over to get out of the city for other adventures.

anyway, just a thought.

Oh, have you considered booking a tour of Buckingham Palace?

Cheers

Len

We booked a Windsor, Bath, Stonehenge tour with a company that was run by Evan Evans. They were like a satellite company of theirs, a bit cheaper but the tour itself was taken and run by Evan Evans. If I get the chance I'll see if I can find it if it is still around.

So as for the tour itself, I would recommend Evan Evans very much. On our tour, there was a problem on the road so the switched things around so we didn't have any problems traveling, to make sure we got to each stop and had ample time there. Very professional at all times.

We were able to be picked up at our hotel and taken to the bus depot to transfer to the main bus. Would recommend them anytime.

Cheers

Len

I disagree. Of course most of the Brits will tell you to use the public system, we felt the HoHo gave us a great idea how the city is laid out, where we want to spend more time, what is around many of the areas and just a great perspective of the city before we 'attacked' it. :D

Plus, if you use the Original Bus company, you can buy a very reasonable lunch at he Sherlock Holmes Pub, plus a nice FREE cruise down the Thames which we enjoyed very much.

The tubes and regular buses are great also, but I would recommend the HoHo as a first view of the city.

Cheers

Len

We did this a couple of years ago, but we took the National Express bus from London to Dover. They have 'fun fares' which are basically dirt cheap. The buses are great, always on schedule and the trip is about 2 1/2 hours. Took the 8:30AM bus and was in Dover at 11AM.

Now the bus is supposed to stop at the bus stop in Dover, but most people who post, including myself, say the driver seems very eager to earn a few extra pounds and will offer to take you right to the dock. Of course he expects a nice tip, but it is well worth it. They will take your luggage right from the bus onto the ship, so you don't have to schlepp it anywhere.

If they don't do this anymore, it is about a 10 minute taxi ride from the bus stop to the ship, about 7 pounds cost.

Cheers

Len

If you are interested in doing tours with any of the private tour companies, or the one you might have used before, email them, tell them exactly what you just told us and see what they can come up with for you. You have nothing to lose. Tell them your likes, dislikes etc. and see what they can plan for you.

Many people have used companies like SPB tours, and arranged their own itinerary completely. If you are not sure or don't know, ask for help or suggestions. They know their city and surroundings and can be a lot more helpful than we can be.

Cheers

Len

We did the NCL Jewel when she sailed the Baltics. At that time they charged an extra $10 fee for EVERY transaction. So if you wanted to exchange for 3 different currencies it would be an extra $30. And then if you came back with any money and wanted to exchange it back to dollars, another $10 exchange fee for each exchange.

Simply outrageous unless money is no object and you just want the convenience.

Either get some money from your bank before you go or hit the ATM's when you get into port.

Cheers

Len

We also chose SPB Tours for our 2 days in St Petersburg. We had positive feelings about them from the first email I received from them. Like a previous poster, we didn't want to 'do everything, see everything" in a few hours, we wanted to remember where we were and what we did. How you accomplish that is up to you.

Chose the company you feel most comfortable with, not the cheapest price or the one some one recommended to you because THEY had a great time. EVERYONE has a great time.

Cheers

Len

I have heard sort of the same thing. If you are paying with a CC, they do it the first day to make sure the payment clears and if you are paying with cash it is usually done morning of the 2nd day.

If things have changed, it would be good to know.

Cheers

Len

We just got back from doing this tour in Freeport. We were on the Carnival Splendor. When we looked to book this tour, it was closed out. "With the help of Rico from *****, he got us in touch with Reef Tours and they in turn with Carnival and we got on the tour.

We are both seniors and my DW worried about her ability to do this Segway. We both did great and we both loved ever minute of it. We had Felix as our teacher and guide and he was simply great. We was patient with those that needed a bit of extra time to get the feel of the Segway, and stern when some of his important rules of the road weren't being followed.

They take you on a sort of off road trip, stopping several times to learn about the island and it's history and surroundings. personally, once you get to feel comfortable on the Segway, you don't want to stop and I wished we could have spent more time Segwaying, but we did have a great time.

They also took us to a beach for an hour or so (If anyone is interested the sign said Nude Beach, :eek: but alas, no one wished to observe the sign and all wore clothes. :D:D

They then dropped us off at a Marketplace for some shopping (same items as in Nassau but much higher priced, buy your 'made in china' stuff in Nassau instead. :)

All in all, we had great weather and a fun time..

Thanks again Rico for all your help.

Thanks Felix for being so patient and helpful to my DW

Cheers

Len

OK, let me set some of the record straight. We just got off the Carnival Splendor and did this exact thing. We are both seniors but walking is no problem. From looking at the map and chatting with people on this site, we decided to walk to the Zoo.

If we had to do it again, we would NOT.

Why, you ask?. It is very walkable, as was said, about 1 1/2 miles. We looked at the map, goes along the main street to the fish fry and then a few blocks in the other direction. We thought there would be people, shops etc all the way. NOT SO. Once you leave the main area of the city, we walked by ourselves and didn't see other people for blocks. Yes there are cars going all the time, but there were times walking, I thought about just hailing the bus. With all the publicity about crime in Nassau, staying in populated areas, even the ship put a special message in the daily bulletin about not straying too far off the main ways as crime is on the upswing, again, if we had to do it again, we take the bus. We did this coming back. We couldn't find the bus stop, saw the bus coming, waved to it and they stopped for us.

Just my humble opinion, but the way they publicize the crime in Nassau now, I would think twice about walking this.

The Zoo itself is very nice, even for 2 'older' folks. Whatever animals they have are out in their cages, not hidden under a rock some where. Several beautiful peacocks just roaming around the grounds.The feeding of the parrots was a lot of fun. They will give you as many apple slices as you like to attract the parrots to eat them out of your hand. The Flamingo show was cute and they let anyone who wants go out in the middle and sort of interact with the flamingos. Great photo ops.

We enjoyed our few hours there. We used a Credit Card to pay, and the staff is very friendly.

Cheers

Len

We just got off the Splendor and we have to say we had a great time.

I usually don't do a review but I have been reading many reviews here and just thought there are some things that others never mentioned that I thought I would try and bring out.

First the cruise itself was fantastic. We left in a blizzard and everyone had stories how they got to the pier (we heard many did not get there). We had much snow on the deck for our first sea day so no one was even allowed outside, but by day 2, it was swept away and if you could brave the winds, the sun was strong enough to get some nice air.

The service on this ship was absolutely terrific. We ate in the Black Pearl Dining Room and requested the same wait staff every night and got them. Don't remember their names but the tables were in the 120's. We went to dinner with anytime dining, went to eat about 6:30-6:45 EVERY night and never waited ONE minute to be seated. There were just the two of us and we sometimes asked to share or we ate at a table for 2. We were always done before the first show so we could attend.

I read many reviews on how bad the entertainment has been. We were on the Glory over the summer and I agree with this. But on this cruise the entertainment was absolutely excellent. From the Fiesta show to the comedienne/ventriloquist, to the lady who did the Motown show (what a voice she had, to the VaVooom show (which we absolutely loved) to the last show, the Legends. The guy they had doing Frank Sinatra could headline a Vegas Show, he was so good.

We had marvelous weather, did the Parrott/Flamingo zoo in Nassau and the Segway tour in Freeport. great weather and had lots of fun.

Now for my bad. If I ever decide to take a cruise on a holiday week when all the kids are out of school,. some one shoot me. This ship was overrun with kids who did what they wanted, when they wanted. Now I've been reading this site for many years. I know what people will tell me, if you don't like these kids, don't go at this time. We have no choice as my DW works in the NYC schools. We LOVE kids. What we don't love are parents who just tell their kids not to fall off the ship, and everything else is OK. Now I'm talking to all the parents who will read this and think 'NOT MY KID'. You are sadly mistaken. Even the best of kids, when they hang around others who do mischief, create trouble, your kid will be doing this also. No doubt about it.

Just a few instances. We saw kids throwing dishes off the deck above the Lido. There was a 14 year old girl who won $1400 in the casino.

OK, that is a bit sneaky, but on this cruise, there was no security or when they were around they did nothing. We saw kids passed out in the hallways. The last night in the Lido, we were there at 1:00AM, there had to be 300 teens up there, throwing ice cream on the floor, pouring ketchup on the seats. We called security ourselves, but by the time some one came, they had moved on. Things like this were the common thing, not the exception.

Again, I know it was a holiday week. This was our 6th cruise on Carnival so we know what to expect, but nothing like this. If anyone is going with their teens, you have to know they will follow others, and if you think not, you are not thinking very clearly.

Plus, in the main pool area on the Lido deck, when the weather isn't that nice they have it enclosed with a retractable roof. When that roof is on, the noise level in there is way above what one might wish to sit around. Even the Serentity area, they placed the mini golf right above that, so the yelling was still there. It didn't ruin our cruise, but Carnival just drops the ball on this.

And to the two ladies from Michigan, who were on the cruise before this and since they couldn't fly out of NY because of the blizzard and decided to do it all again, I hope you got home safely. It was a pleasure chatting with you.

Cheers

Len

Found this helpful

overview of the Baltic cities

http://savvyguides.com/baltic/

Dan

Excellent site. Thanks for posting it. Lots of great info there.

Cheers

Len

My husband and I are taking the Scandinavia & Russia Cruise on the Celebrity Constellation in May. I have already booked a private tour in St. Petersburg, Russia. But what I would really like to do in all the other ports is just get off the ship and wonder around. Can someone tell me if there are things you can walk to in each of the ports or if I will need to take a bus or taxi to get to anything?

The Itinerary is:

Amsterdam, Holland

Berlin (Warnemunde), Germany

Tallinn, Estonia

St. Petersburg, Russia

Helsinki, Finland

Stockholm, Sweden

Copenhagen, Denmark

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Judy

Judy

As has been said to you, a lot depends on where your ship docks on the day you will be in port. There is a site that tells you the specific place, if known now, but I forgot the web address, maybe some one else can supply it.

Most ships dock in the West harbor in Helsinki. If so, you will need some sort of transportation to get you to Market Square. That is usually the starting point for the tram or any of several places that are fairly close to Market Square. There is a bus that can take you there and there are taxi's. To walk it would be about 40 minutes or so.

Market Square section of Helsinki

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster1150.jpg

The Lutheran Cathedral in Senate Square

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1062.jpg

In Copenhagen, again, many ships dock near most of the attractions. If you dock at Langeline Pier, you are minutes away from the Little Mermaid, and from there most of the things you would want to see and do, Nyhavn, the Canal Cruise, The Stroget, Tivoli Gardens, Town Hall Square and Rosenborg

Castle are all within walking distance, usually around a 2 mile radius.

The Nyhavn section. A great place to wander about a bit

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe248_zps07b56845.jpg

Copenhagen from the Canal Boat Cruise

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe284_zpscc7bc696.jpg

Stockholm has several venues to dock, some right in the heart of the city, others a bit outside and then some dock at a town about an hour away. Even if you dock in the heart of the city, several of the attractions like Vasa and Gamal Stan and the Royal Palace are not next to each other so you will need some sort of transportation to get from one to the other.

A picturesque Bridge over the river to the Vasa Museum

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster1235.jpg

Gamla Stan

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1265.jpg

Obviously Berlin you need a 3 hour trip to get you to from Warnemunde. This town itself is OK, not that much to do except wander about for a bit or hit the beach there. Many opt to go to Rostock, or several other cities inh the surrounding around via the train that is right there. You would be hard pressed to find things to do in Warnemunde for an entire day. It is a quaint town, but just not much there.

Along the Canal in Warnemunde

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe363.jpg

Town Square in Rostock

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe407.jpg

Tallinn, all ships dock in the same place and it is about a 10 minute, easy walk to the entrance to the Old City. Once inside, there are several great walking tours you can download to be sure and see what there is to see. A lot of the fun of Tallinn is also to just wander about on your own, discovering many others likable things to see and do. There is a hill to walk up, some opt to take some sort of transportation up the hill and then walk down, but it isn't a steep walk and easily done if you are mobile.

Fat Margret Tower where you enter the old city

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe509.jpg

Alexander Nevsky Cathedral

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe566.jpg

Hope this helps a bit

Cheers

Len

Len I'm glad I was able to be of assistance. :)

 

 

Sent from iPhone -Send Inquiries to Rico@*****.com

Thank you so much Rico for all your help. I'm sure will enjoy it very much.

Cheers

Len

Hi - trying to decide between two Baltic cruises:

 

1) NCL Star, an older ship, and a 9-night cruise that does go through the archipelago

2) Royal Princess, a new ship, and an 11-night cruise that adds Oslo, but doesn't cruise the archipelago

 

Others have said that the archipelago is a must… really beautiful, but, and excuse my ignorance, I'm unsure why.

 

Can anyone tell me why cruising through the archipelago is so great? Just curious. It might be a deciding factor.

 

Thanks!

Maybe I can shed another bit of light onto this. The archipelago is a wonderful sail. Is it a cruise breaker, definitely not. I'd be more concerned about not docking in Stockholm proper than sailing thru the archipelago.

I was going to put up more pix from our sailing, but you have a great idea of what it is and what to expect.

On a side note, I see you are from NY, or where from NY. We are from Long Island. Not to make light of the archipelago, but if you have ever sailed thru or visited the 1000 Islands in upstate NY, they it is very similar. We have done this several times and sailing thru the archipelago was very similar.

Personally, if all things being equal, I would take the extra 2 days instead. But that is just MVHO.

Cheers

Len

We toured with SPB and enjoyed the eating in the restaurant very much. Yes the food is pre determined, but we are vegetarians and we told them that, so we ended up with some white fish which wasn't too bad. Don't quote me, but if you rather not eat warmed over beef stroganoff, try that suggestion and see if it works. They usually bend over backwards to help you.

We have eaten borscht many times, but it was American version of what they think borscht should be. When we had real Russian borscht, we were very surprised and it was delicious. You MUST add the sour cream and the boiled potato, but the taste is simply different from what American version of borscht.

When we cruise, we liked to be served. We always eat all our meals in the main dining room or specialty restaurants. I avoid the buffet at all costs. So the idea of eating a boxed lunch really turned us off. I understand some of the benefits of it, but we enjoyed our 2 restaurant stops very much.

Cheers

Len

That is the small ice chunks. The other side of ship had the huge chunks!

Were they playing the theme from Titanic, when you were sailing down the Hudson? :D:D:D:D

Cheers

Len

We will be on the Splendor next week, sailing to the Bahamas. I'll let you know about her when we get back.

We also did a Canada cruise out of Boston last summer on the Glory for 7 days. Myself, we hate the beach, we hate hot, humid weather so it was a no brainer to go to Canada in the summer and the Bahamas in the winter. You and your partner have to see and know exactly what you would like.

For us though, the weather for most of the cruise, to put it mildly, was atrocious. It either rained just about every day, or was so foggy you couldn't see your hand in front of your face all too well. In fact, I can still hear that fog horn on the ship going off every 5 minutes, for hours at a time.

That said though, the ports were great. Halifax is a wonderful town and St Johns, even in the rain, was great.

Tow completely different vacations, which is best for you, only the two of you can decide.

Cheers

Len

You have gotten a lot of great advice so far. I understand exactly what you are trying to do, but believe me, even the best laid plans just never go according to what was planned. To say you want a 'quick peek in' could end up being an hour.

We did a Baltic cruise a couple of years ago. We wanted to take a quick peek in at the Vasa Museum in Stockholm. Well that quick peek ended up being 2 hours and I loved every minute of it. That could happen to you also, if your kids find something they would like to look at longer.

Have you thought about getting them on the London Eye?. They would really love that and if you book on line you can pick the time you want to get on it without having to stand in line for hours.

I might try one of the HoHo buses that will take you all over London and you can get on and off at the places you might want to take those peeks at and just do a drive by some of the others. PLUS, if you use the Original Bus Company, you can also buy a wonderful fish and chips dinner (or lunch) at the Sherlock Holmes Pub. Everyone will really like that.

Enjoy your trip

Cheers

Len

thanks for the great description Trish. We have booked it for our cruise in 8 days. We are both seniors and been wanting to do this for a long time. We can't wait.

Cheers

Len

As much Rum as they will let us carry.:D:D:D:D

Cheers

Len

Thanks to all of you for your input. After a lot more research and thought we have rebooked on the Emerald Princess July 26th. We don't need hassle on a cruise vacation, also fewer people on the Emerald.

Thanks again

Good for you freodr. I'm sure you will have a grand time. Need any other help, please just ask away.

Cheers

Len

We did Russia on a Vantage river tour. The visa asks questions about military service, which I had, but it wasn't a problem.

 

You probably don't need a visa on an excursion from a cruise ship.

If you are on a tour, either thru the ship, or booked privately, they secure a temporary visa for you. All they need is your passport number and you are all set.

Cheers

Len

Neighbors:D:D:D:D

cheers

Len