St. Petersburg

[Stelladoro]

We're planning to take a Baltic cruise next year. Just wondering if most of the popular sights are open each day. I believe the Hermitage is open 7 days a week, but I'm not sure about the other sights. Any advice? Thanks!

[LHT28]

Depends on the sites some are closed certain days of the week

 

When we were there Catherine's Palace was closed to the general public but the ship's tours got in

We had the place to ourselves

 

I would check each site you want to visit & see what days they are closed or if you are hiring a private guide they will know & schedule the tour accordingly

[victor123]

We're planning to take a Baltic cruise next year. Just wondering if most of the popular sights are open each day. I believe the Hermitage is open 7 days a week, but I'm not sure about the other sights. Any advice? Thanks!

 

Hello!

Hermitage is closed on Mondays.

[Giantfan13]

We're planning to take a Baltic cruise next year. Just wondering if most of the popular sights are open each day. I believe the Hermitage is open 7 days a week, but I'm not sure about the other sights. Any advice? Thanks!

 

Yes, I also believe the Hermitage is closed on select days. There are also times when the fountains at Peterhof are turned off, and I'm really not sure of some of the other places. This is one of the main reasons why you should try and book an independent tour with any of the major tour companies in St Petersburg. It is their city and it's their job to make sure you see everything you want to see. They know when certain places are open or closed, when is the best time to view a certain place and they can get you into places when others cannot. This is definitely the way to see St Petersburg. This is such a gorgeous city, it would be a shame to go and not see waht there is to see.

 

Here are a few pixs of St Petersburg to help you along

 

Catherine's Palace and it's Gardens

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster712.jpg

 

Upon entering Catherine's Palace a Russian Band is there to entertain you

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe671.jpg

 

At Peterhoff, looking out towards the Sea of Finland

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe721.jpg

 

Church of the Spilled Blood

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe764.jpg

 

Inside the Church of Peter and Paul, where Peter the great and the Romanovs are buried

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe878.jpg

 

Inside the Hermitage

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe927.jpg

 

Hope you enjoy

 

Cheers

 

Len

[Stelladoro]

Thanks everyone for your advice. We also prefer smaller, private tours. Once we've selected ship and sailing date, we'll check out if we can join others on a private excursion, as there are only 2 of us.

[BCHappyGal]

The fountains at Peterhof operate every day but are only turned on at 11am....

 

I too was told the Hermitage was closed on Mondays....

 

We used St Petersburg Tours.com and they were excellent .. their maximum group size is 17 but we were only 14 which was great. They include your visa and will also provide you with an evening tour ...

[Stelladoro]

Hi, I've narrowed down our ship selection to the Celebrity Constellation, with June 15/11 sailing date. Ship will dock in St. Petersburg on a Tuesday and Wednesday, so we will avoid any Monday closures.

However, I note the ship will be in Stockholm on a Sunday. Will most of the shops be closed?

[Stelladoro]

Hi, no need to respond - should have done some research before asking above question. Seems most shops are open on a Sunday in Stockholm.

[skatergirl]

Just come back from Baltic cruise and most shops are shut in Stockholm on Sunday. A few of the souvenir shops were open in the Gamla Stan (old town). I think one of the department stores in town is supposed to be open on a Sunday but we did not find it as it was pouring with rain and we just stayed on the hop on, hop off bus.

We thought because of the rain we would head to the ice bar but it does not open until 3.30pm on a Sunday and the last shuttle back to our boat was at 4pm.

Some people were booked on the ship's tour to the ice bar but that was cancelled because of the time.

[ukgirlie1]

Hi!

We have just got back from our Baltic cruise today and had a fantastic time. We booked a private tour through Alla Tours and they and our guide Elena were great. The flexibility of the schedule was an advantage as a couple of sites had unexpected closures due to a funeral and visiting dignitaries and so, with some last minute swapping, we were still able to visit everywhere. We had 10 of us in a minibus and our driver dropped us off and picked us up right at the entrances and were already leaving the hermitage when all the crowds started turning up. Phew!!

We were given radio receivers to be able to hear our guide easily. The visas were organised so easily with a quick e-mail to give basic passport info. Many other passengers on the ship had never heard of this way of seeing St. Petersberg so I was really pleased that I had found out all about it through this website.

 

Have a great time planning your visit but do remember that touring is very tiring. We ended up cancelling our evening option as we were exhausted after day one. There is so much to take in it can be overwhelming. Beautiful but overwhelming!

 

Several people on the ship said the usual Ballet trip was not of as high a standard as they had expected apart from two of our party who had done some research and booked tickets to the Mariinsky theatre ballet (again through Alla). This was more expensive but had 40 swans on the lake as opposed to 16!!

 

I now have some photos almost as good as Len's!!

 

Have fun, Sarah