Tours in baltic ports - ships own or private?

[rdnpdx1]

The Hermitage is closed on Mondays and any local tour company will know that and NEVER schedule a tour there, so you must be mistaken on that. Book all the ship's tours you want, they also cannot get into a place that is closed.

 

Which tour company are you blaming for this, if I may ask??

 

Cheers

 

Len

 

?Hi Len,

 

I think the opster mentioned Ulko Tours in one of the postings.

 

Bob

[cruisingrammie]

We cruised the Baltic in July of 2010...most of the ports are easy to do on your own...St. Petersburg we booked through Anastasia Travel...it was the best decision we could have made!!! Since there were just 6 of us, we had a van, our own driver/body guard (he was fabulous fun)...and our guide (who was equally wonderful!). They met us at the port both mornings and we were off. When we compared what we accomplished in our two days compared to everyone else, we were amazed at all the things the others had missed. Because we were a small group, we ended up moving through the Hermitage with ease and could linger for the things we especially wanted to enjoy. Elena and Sergei took us to local cafes for lunch, shopping at a local "Soviet style supermarket", many landmarks only the locals know about, and every cathedral and palace on the ship's itinerary plus a few more,the subway, and walking the streets...the REAL Russian experience. I would HIGHLY recommend Anastasia for your visit to St. Petersburg!

The only ship's tour we took was the one to Gdansk/Sopot in Poland. It was really sad. The guide told us her whole life story but very little about the area we were seeing. It was a zoom to Gdansk (about 45 minutes away because we ported in Gdynia), a 10 minute overview of the one street we visited, a snack at a restaurant, an hour to wander, zoom to Sopot, a 10 minute stop at the beach and then zoom back to the ship...we were disappointed with that one port, but loved every other port that we visited on our own. Stockholm is very easy to get around. Ferries stop at the end of the ship's pier, about a 5 minute walk, then you buy a day ticket and hop on/hop off (HOHO)the ferries...very easy. Oslo we stopped right at Akershus Fortress, walked and did a HOHO bus...again very easy. In Helsinki, we took the ship's transfer bus into town and walked from the drop off point...an easy city to walk (although you could also use the tram once you get into the city). Tallinn was maybe a 10 min. walk from the ship to the Old Town. We arrived early on a Sunday morning, so we did some wandering and picture taking before things opened up, but it's a very easy city to walk. If you are leaving from Copenhagen, I would definitely arrive a couple of days early so you can enjoy this quaint city. We flew in 3 days early, took the train to Central Copenhagen, walked to our hotel (We booked our own rooms at the SAS Radisson, which is just a hop, skip & a jump from the train station and just kitty corner from Tivoli, and directly across the street from the TI.). We walked, took a canal cruise, and took the HOHO bus all over Copenhagen for three days before we boarded the ship. It is an amazing and beautiful city, with so much to see and do....don't miss it if you can get there a couple of days early!

[lrn376]

Wagtail, My husband and I are doing the Baltic Tours. We are strongly considering Alla-tours.If you did Berlin would you be so kind and tell us your itinerary. Also, we are planning to do St. Petersburg, 2 day tour (ship only docked for 2 days). Can you also please give me some info of your Berlin itinerary. The more I read, the more confused I'm getting. By having a private tour in either place, do you have a driver and tour guide with you at all times? Looking for any help we can get to make this experience a wonderful one. Many thanks for your input on whatever you can help us with. You can e-mail me at LRN376 at yahoo dot com. Again, many thanks. Looking forward tohearing from you. Lois

[Giantfan13]

I am not the person you asked, but I'll try and answer anyway. In St Petersberg, if you book with an independent tour company, you will be picked up right at the pier and you will spend however many days you are there, with them. You are not allowed out on your own. They pick you up, take you around and drop you back at the ship in the evening. The next day, the same routine.

 

If you booked a Berlin tour, then you CAN do things on your own or go with a pre set tour company. if you book with a private tour company, the same things apply. You will be picked up at the ship, taken to Berlin, escorted all around Berlin and then dropped off right at the ship when you return.

 

The difference is in St Petersburg you have to do things on some sort of tour group, be it from the ship or an independent company. In Berlin you can do anything you like on your own. Several people travel to Berlin on their own and reserve a tour once they get there, or do it on your own. With a tour from the ship or private you will be with them the entire time.

 

Cheers

 

Len

[yenemod]

Helloo Wagtail90!

 

What experiences did you have in Kemi and Vaasa? Compared to the rest of your destinations they are very small cities (more like large towns), and I'm wondering if the ship had something special arranged or if you did your own thing?

 

Cheers

Heta