Quote for Private St Petersburg Tours

[docmsf]

I need advice? How much would you expect to pay for two full days with a private guide, driver in SPB? Catherine's Palace, Peterhof Palace/Garden ( with hydrofoil), city tour, Hermitage included. I was quoted 1400$ per person (2). Is that reasonable?

[woofer]

A Very good and reliable company is Red October. We told them what WE wanted to do and was it was quite intense and informative. there were 4 of us..........we got a guide and a driver, all entrance fees included.

[docmsf]

Yes I am familiar with Red October from recs on this site. But, is 1400$ per day reasonable quote? It is all inclusive.

[salmar]

We did this trip last July and used DENRUS who were great, no complaints only praise as they tailored the trip as we wanted.

We had a delightful guide who got us to the front of every queue and a charming driver although he spoke little English.

The price last July was $750 per day for 2 people in car with a/c

 

Have a great time.

[wripro]

$1400 per day seems high to me. Are you asking for anything out of the ordinary or just normal touring?

[JaneBP]

I need advice? How much would you expect to pay for two full days with a private guide, driver in SPB? Catherine's Palace, Peterhof Palace/Garden ( with hydrofoil), city tour, Hermitage included. I was quoted 1400$ per person (2). Is that reasonable?

 

 

I infer this to mean that it's $1400 total for the two days, which,i f so, would put it inline with other quotes.

[swifs]

We used TJTravel last summer when we travelled with the Disney Magic and they were terrific. We had a private guide and driver and they worked with us in advance to design an itinerary that covered the lengthy list of things we wanted to see in the 1 1/2 days we were there. At my request, they even gave me book lists of things to read in advance. We paid $1100 for those two days (which we did not pay until the tour was over- and it included the visaa) and it was amazing. Since it was just the two of us, plus our guide Katya, we went to the head of every line- even ahead of other, larger groups- it was like parting the Red Sea! Their contact information is www.travel-stpetersburg.com TJ stands for Tatiana and Julia- I worked with Julia in advance of our trip.

[N51EC]

We also used Red October and were very pleased. I cannot recall exactly what we paid but I can tell you that $1400 per person is WAY to high. Sounds like Russian mafia to me!

[3418ahl]

We have just booked a 3 day tour with Insider Tours, which is rated high on Tripadvisor. We are paying a total of $2055 for 4 people. If you want to email me, I will be happy to forward you a copy of their itinerary. (jstaubinatearthlink.net)

[Sadie Lady]

I have just started working on my St. Petersburg cruise excursions for August trip. My travel agent quoted me a total of 1730 euro for 2 people for private car/driver. This was for 2 full days and included entrance fees to all museums, pre-opening of Gold Room at Hermitage, early visit to Hermitage, and special admission to Catherine Palace on a Monday (when it is normally closed).

This price sounds a bit high. I'm not sure of the exact euro conversion rate, but I'm thinking it is about $2300-$2400 us dollars.

 

I am going to check out some of the other operators mentioned on this site. On Seabourn's website they offer a full day private sedan for up to 3 people for a total of $795 a day. You can do a personalized itinerary, but don't know the rest of the details.

[wripro]

Does the SB private sedan include a guide or just a driver? Important difference.

[secoma4]

We were in St Petersburg in Sept 2010 and booked a private tour for 4 people. We can highly recommend the service. The cost was $US640 pp for 3 days with driver, mini bus and outstanding guide. No deposit was required. At the end of the time we asked what was owned and they repeated what was quoted but said we could pay what we liked. If we did not have enough cash or didn't want to use cards that was ok we could send it when we got home!!! We communicated with them by email beforehand and organised an itinerary to suit. Then when we were there we asked to be taken to some other places eg a typical (non-tourist) lunch venue (excellent) and to the railway station and rise the underground, then to a book store for Russian cookbooks (in English). Had a boat to ourselves for the canal cruise part of the itinerary. The guide (Katya) was fantastic. Let us know if you want more info.

[Sadie Lady]

Does the SB private sedan include a guide or just a driver? Important difference.

 

Wripro:

Here is the exact description from SB website:

St. Petersburg, Russia

 

PRIVATE SEDAN - FULL DAY

 

Tour: LED601 Duration: 8 Hours Moderate Walking We are pleased to offer the opportunity to explore Seabourn's St. Petersburg at your own pace. Enjoy a full-day of sightseeing with a personal guide in the comfort of your own air-conditioned transportation and discover St. Petersburg's treasures at your leisure. This excursion includes a private vehicle and driver, English-speaking guide and 2 museum entrance fees per person; admission to the Treasury Room (Gold or Diamon Room) at the Hermitage is an additional cost. Meals and gratuities are excluded. Note that sedans can accommodate up to 3 guests. Our onboard Manager, Destination Services will be happy to assist in planning a personalized itinerary.

[wripro]

Sadie Lady,

 

Thanks for clearing that up.

[docmsf]

We ended up booking a private two day tour (split in the middle with SB's Moscow shore excursion) with SPB-Tours. They have been a pleasure to work with. We anticipate a great experience in SPB. It was $695 pp for the two of us (could have been less but we added on some extras!).

 

Another offering they suggested (and we look forward to participating in if they get at least 10 passengers) is a evening canal ride, vodka tasting and shopping ending with some desserts! Sounds like fun. We hope we can rangle up some fellow passengers who may be up for some fun!

[BrentC]

We also used DenRus in June 2008 and were very pleased. We had a guide who spoke excellent English (Olga), a private driver and a large van for two days. They met us at the pier and we went to Catherine's Palace one day and Peterhof the next. We got right to the front of the line in each place. We wanted to be left alone in St. Petersburg to explore on our own so arranged for the driver to pick us up later at a specified location to take us back to the ship. I don't remember what we paid, but it wasn't anywhere near the quote you got.

 

I'd highly recommend DenRus and would use them again in a heartbeat.

 

BrentC

[Chairsin]

Two years ago we had 3 days of touring arranged by our Virtuoso TA with Esperance. We had a fabulous tour guide and a driver and a very modern Mercedes van for six of us. We paid about $1200 per couple.

 

By the way, noticed the earleir reference to hydofoil -- if you are on Seabourn you do not need to hydrofoil over to Peterhof. I think that only applies if you are on a big ship and dock way out of town where the Neva River meets the Baltic Sea. When we were on the Pride we docked about a block from the Hermitage -- friends who were on the Sojourn last September told me they docked at the same location.

[pinotg]

Secoma4...what company did you use for your 2010 St Petersburg tour?

[Theacruise]

Our first cruise on Seabourn will be the Baltic cruise on July 14. We are very interested in a land tour in St. Petersburg but very confused on how to go about it. Can anyone suggest tours they have taken and/or tour operators that they can recommend? My husband and I are in our early 50's, we both have worked for airlines in the past and are well traveled, but have never been to Russia. We are excited and a bit overwhelmed; any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. :o

[woofer]

to answer your question: we shared the 2 days with another couple and it was about 1000 a day (for 4). it was worth the expenditure. we told them what WE wanted to do and due to that, packed in many, many things, probably more than if they did it. If you are interested, i could try to find the itinerary we created. that said, our tour guide was a "savant" and quite arrogant.....but we didn't care, we learned a lot. Now that we've been there, we never have to go again. We did go with the cruise ship (evening) to the ballet in st.petersburg, which was wonderful. remember, if you go, there is no air conditioning in the theater !

[frodo1]

We are on the Azura Jul 3 Baltic Cruise & are looking to participate in a 2 day St Petersburg with other Cruise Critic members. The suggestion at the moment is Alla tours which is US$300 p.h. with a max of 16 (I think).

* Has anyone used this company?

* Is this too many people?

* How long should you spend in the Hermitage?

* Any suggestions for a place for dinner one night in town?

[Plimsoll]

Frodo1

 

We used Alla tours last summer. I had specified no more than 6 in group. We had 6 -- myself and wife, a couple from England and a couple from New Zealand. Group was put together by Alla. Cost was $300 per person for 2 days including two luncheons and hydrofoil. Guide and driver were both excellent. Guide's English was flawless idiomatic English. We went to head of line at all venues. Communicated by email. No deposit required and payment not due until end of second day. Payment accepted in either dollars or credit car (if dollars make sure you have new bills).

[JaneBP]

>" Any suggestions for a place for dinner one night in town?"

 

Don't forget that if you are not having dinner as part of an organized tour, you will need individualvVisas to get off the ship and be on your own. I am sure you can arrange for your tour guide to set up something on one of your tour days. They provide all the necessary paperwork.

[CarolSWM]

We have just booked a 3 day tour with Insider Tours, which is rated high on Tripadvisor. We are paying a total of $2055 for 4 people. If you want to email me, I will be happy to forward you a copy of their itinerary. (jstaubinatearthlink.net)

I am just starting to speak with Insider Tours. I would be grateful if you could send me your itinerary as we too shall be a group of 4 for 3 days. carolroy@btinternet.com

TIA,

Carol

[frodo1]

Hi Carol,

Remember we are only there for TWO days and you have three. The nice thing about Alla Tours, apart from their price of US$300p.p. (or so I hear as we haven't gone with them yet!) is that they will set the itinerary according to your needs. That's the benefit of going with a smaller group than those offered by the Ship. Their proposed itinerary is on their web site & seems pretty reasonable. We will play with that, but basically, it doesn't look too bad.

 

I want to spend MORE time in the Hermitage and include a good performance of Swan Lake or similar. I want to see and do the things that we will not see or do elsewhere. I am interested in exploring the WW2 and life under communism experience if I can. If I had more time I'd like to find out what it is like to live in Russia, esp. the corruption, bureaucracy and crime, explore their health and justice systems etc. but that would mean staying there for a while and that ain't an option at this point in time - something that is on my agenda for another visit though when I've worked out the visa system!.

 

I want to do LESS walking around markets, doing tacky passive touristy things (like boat rides and "traditional" lunches) and bus tours. I am OK with dinner out somewhere, but is it really going to be a lot different from or better than that which we will get in one of the Ship Speciality restaurants? We have good Baltic restaurants here in Melbourne. I certainly won't spend another AU$3-400 for the experience for 2.

 

For us, the Palaces outside St P seem to be really interesting, and certainly worth going to, but they are secondary for us, the main focus will be the Hermitage, Ballet and the City Palaces and Churches (in that order).

 

On a personal note, I realise its gunna be really hot when we are there and I understand there is little air-conditioning of public buildings. Remember what it was like in London last early summer (May) when it was in the mid-high 20's for over a week! This will probably have an impact on what we can see and do in 2 days!

 

Hope this helps.