Baltic Cruise on Crown Princess 8/18/2013

[producegirl]

Hello! There is a group of 8 going to ther Baltic 8/18/13 on the Crown Princess. I am looking for info on private tour guides for the following cities:

1. Brussels/Burge

2. Copenhagen, Denmark

3. Helsinki, Finlind

4. Stockholm, Sweden

5. Oslo, Norway

6. Gdnask, Poland

7. Tallin, Estonia

 

We are doing the ships tour for St. Petersburg as we do not want to get a visa.

 

Any names would be much appreciated! Thanks

[NancyIL]

You don't need to get a visa for St. Petersburg if you book a private tour. There are a number of highly-recommended tour companies in St. P. We went with DenRus in 2005 and were very pleased with them. http://www.http://www.denrus.ru/

 

For Copenhagen, Oslo, Helsinki, Stockholm, and Tallinn - we used Rick Steves' Scandinavia for helpful info on tour guides and do-it-yourself touring.

[aquilegia]

As NancyIL says, you don't need a visa for St Petersburg if you book with an accredited Russian tour company (a fact the cruise lines craftily fail to mention!). As for Tallinn, it is so easy to walk around that you don't need to pay for a tour, just get a guidebook.

[Ashland]

You can easily do all your ports on your own..you can use ship offered shuttle bus to get to center of town then many have HOHO bus or boat tours..The exception is of course St Petersburg..we used TJ Travel for our private 2 day active tour and it was the best decision we could have made..You will see and do more than any ship offered excursion with the flexibility of seeing what you want and the speed you want to do it in without waiting in long lines and for the stragglers that can slow you down when touring with a large group...You and your traveling companions will have a trip of a lifetime using a private tour operator../B]

[producegirl]

Wow...really did not know about the visa. Everyone we spoke to said to tour St. petersburg you needed a visa. Going to look up your suggestions Thank you all so much for your help. Anyone else know of any other tour guides...jump right in! Thanks again!

[aquilegia]

Wow...really did not know about the visa. Everyone we spoke to said to tour St. petersburg you needed a visa. Going to look up your suggestions Thank you all so much for your help. Anyone else know of any other tour guides...jump right in! Thanks again!

 

Other reputable companies that come to mind are Alla and SPB, but there are a number of them. If you look for St Petersburg threads on this board, you will find a lot of indormation about private tours. The tour companies cover you with a group visa in exactly the same way that the ship does. And, like a ship tour, it only covers you while you are actually on the tour. If you wanted to go off on your own, you would indeed need to get your own visa. But the vast majority of people take tours.

[madame]

As others have said, the tour group needs some passport info from you ahead of time, then they get a group visa which covers you. SPB tours was fantastic. We did two days with them at half the price Princess charged. We had a small group of 16, instead of a huge busload. Our van was new, clean, great seats. We had Headsets to hear the guide and they worked perfectly. We saw so much and the tour was customized to fit a couple of special requests such as the subway and a hydrofoil ride.

[Giantfan13]

Wow...really did not know about the visa. Everyone we spoke to said to tour St. petersburg you needed a visa. Going to look up your suggestions Thank you all so much for your help. Anyone else know of any other tour guides...jump right in! Thanks again!

 

Producegirl

You DO need a visa to get into St Petersburg, but, like the ship's tours, any of the independent tour companies secure you a temporary visa to tour the city as long as you are under their care. No one can get off the ship and thru Russian immigration without some sort of visa.

As was said, the best way to see St Petersburg is with any of the major independent tour companies. You will see more, get service that will amaze you, and have tours done to what YOU want to see and do. As I have said so many times, ship's tours do what they say they will do, but they couldn't care less if you have a good time. Any of the private tour companies care a great deal if you have a fantastic time as their reputation goes on the line every time. They need your recommendation, so they will bend over backwards to make sure you have a fantastic time.

You should go to your ship's roll call (on the CC site) and see what others are doing for their time in St Petersburg. Just a note, if you use a company called SPB Tours, which many of us have used, with glowing results, they offer a sort of package deal with tours in several of the other ports (I beleive there are 5 ports now). You will get a nice discount by booking more tours with them. They are a terrific company and their owner Viktoria is just a joy to work with.

 

If you haven't been to the Baltics before, here are a few pixs of some of the things you should expect to see. Hope you enjoy them.

 

In Copenhagen, most people go to the Nyhavn section to ride the canal boat tour, which will give you an amazing different perspective of Copenhagen

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe247.jpg

 

In Tallinn, no guide is really necessary, as there are several terrific walking tours of this quaint and wonderful city. Very easily done on your own.

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe573.jpg

 

IN St Petersburg, one of the main places is Catherine's Palace. An amazing place with magnificent gardens

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

 

Also in St Petersburg is Peterhoff, a residence of Peter the Great. With all the fountains, it is truly a place you will never forget

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster734.jpg

 

Helsinki is a more modern city than most on the cruise, but a great place to see. Here is the famous Lutheran Cathedral in Senate Square

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1063.jpg

 

Stockholm was our favorite city on this cruise. We just loved the Vasa Museum and wandering around the narrow cobblestone streets of Gamla Stan, the old town.

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster1275.jpg

 

Hope this helps some

 

Cheers

 

Len

[producegirl]

Thank You all so much...I already started investigating some of your suggestions and the pictures are wonderful! I'll keep you all informed of what we finally decide on! Thanks again!

[Cornishpastyman1]

Thank You all so much...I already started investigating some of your suggestions and the pictures are wonderful! I'll keep you all informed of what we finally decide on! Thanks again!

In case it's of interest or helps with your planning I did a very similar cruise on the Eurodam in 2010 and made these short videos of each port :

 

Copenhagen (took no. 26 bus from port to town centre, walked back)

 

You can just walk onto that canal tour (about 50-55 mins) at Nyhavn canal (in 2010 it was every hour on the hour) or book your preferred time at the excellent information centre in the town centre, (but that is the more expensive of the 2 firms that do it - we did this to be sure of the 1 pm trip and it still is very good value)

 

Tallin (walked to town - 10 minutes from ship to Fat Margaret)

 

St Petersburg

 

As others have said, there are several excellent independent companies for seeing St Petersburg. It hardly matters which you choose, just as long as you avoid the ship's excursions (less flexible, much more expensive and more people).

 

The Fountains of Peterhof

 

The Catherine Palace at Pushkin

 

Peter and Paul Fortress/Cathedral

 

St Isaac's Cathedral

 

Church of Our Saviour on the Spilled Blood

 

The Winter Palace/Hermitage State Museum

 

plus a ride in the underground, several photo opps, and a bit of souvenir shopping if that's your thing.

 

That was a 2-day 'moderate paced' tour - choose a tour that includes all the above PLUS a visit to the Yusupov Palace to slightly up the pace.

 

Helsinki (took shuttle to the top of the Esplanade, and back of course, else it's a 30 minute walk) and then bought a one-day travel ticket for 7 Euros which is good for trams, buses and ferries. Helsinki is a another great port, criminally under-rated IMHO !

 

Suomenlinna (Fortress of Finland)

 

Stockholm - we docked at Nynasham so no archipelago and 2 hours less time to explore :(. There's nothing good to say about this but if the same happens to you I'd suggest taking the ship's coach-trip only option and doing it yourself.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NweRnGqZ1k

 

Royal Warship Vasa & the Vasa Museum

 

A must for all Stockholm visitors. To be as time-efficient as possible in the Vasa Museum head straight for the information desk to find out the time of the next showing (in your language) of the terrific 25-minute film of how the ship was found, raised and restored. Then go to the theatre 5 minutes before 'showtime'.

 

There is also a 20 minute guided tour of the ship which is worth doing if you have the time. I'd say you can 'budget' for 60-75 minutes once in the museum if you get lucky with the times of the film and tour, 75-90 if you don't, but this won't matter to you as you will be staying in the city.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x45l1WMZOXA

 

So the only place of these you definitely need a tour is St Petersburg, and you are on the case for that, as all the others are very easy to do on your own as long as you know what you want to see.

 

All the best, Tony

[TLCOhio]

Hello! There is a group of 8 going to ther Baltic 8/18/13 on the Crown Princess. I am looking for info on private tour guides for the following cities: 1. Brussels/Burge 2. Copenhagen, Denmark 3. Helsinki, Finlind 4. Stockholm, Sweden 5. Oslo, Norway 6. Gdnask, Poland 7. Tallin, Estonia. We are doing the ships tour for St. Petersburg as we do not want to get a visa. Any names would be much appreciated! Thanks

 

Great experts like Len and Ashland have given some good suggestions, including how some of these ports can be good to do on your own such as charming Tallinn. In some cases, such as Oslo, the ship tours are not perfect and personal, but they can "get you around" to solve logistics/timing challenges and make it quicker to see some great places such as the outdoor Vigeland Park in Oslo. Below are some of my visual samples for what is great to see in a few of these super wonderful places.

 

For places such as Stockholm, Copenhagen, etc., those working as travel guides are unionized and very, very costly. Prices start at around $100 a hour and go up with all of the extras, etc. That's just for the guide, not including transportation, driver, etc.

 

In St. Petersburg, a private tour there would be much better in making things fit your personal needs and lessen traveling "mass-style" in a larger, slower "big-bus style". We used Anastasia and there are many very good private firms to use there. They'll take care of the visa and make your needs/interests the priority.

 

Helsinki does not have the centuries of Royal heritage and architecture that you will see in Copenhagen, St. Petersburg and Stockholm. Below is one of my visuals samples for what might be of most interest there. We also did a tour outside of town to the country home for the famed Finnish architect Eliel Saarinen at Hvittrask with its buildings made of natural stones and logs from the surrounding area. He was the father of the famed American architect who designed the St. Louis Gateway Arch, Dulles and JFK TWA terminals, CBS Black Rock building, etc. In Helsinki, our tour also passed the Saarinen designed train station, Olympic Stadium, used for the 1952 Olympic Games and the statue of the "Flying Finn", runner Paavo Nurmi, and visited the park with the stainless steel monument for composer Jean Sibelius, a patriot whose most famous orchestral piece was appropriately named Finlandia. The market area is a must-see for great "walking-around" sights and options.

 

Keep researching and planning!! It will be very helpful.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 71,160 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 64,386 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

 

Appreciate those who have “tuned in” for these two posts. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment and/or ask any questions of interest.

 

 

Vigeland Park has a wide variety of outdoor sculptures in a super, wonderful setting that is a highlight for Oslo. There is a wide variety of art, water features, spectacular settings, etc. Its admission is free and the views and art are "priceless". It is open 24/7 so hours are not an issue. It is not within easy walking distance of the main downtown area.:

 

 

 

Shopping is great in Tallinn. Here we are inside a nice linen shop near the City Hall.:

 

 

 

Helsinki’s Church of Rock, or Temppeliaukion Kirkko, is carved out of solid stone with a unique contemporary design.:

 

 

 

The historic and scenic main town square in Bruges is super scenic and has lots outdoor dining options, activity, etc. When Bruges was at its peak, it was considered the top commercial city in the world! Like Amsterdam, Bruges is sometimes referred to as the “Venice of the North". Bruges was already included in the circuit of the Flemish cloth fairs at the beginning of the 13th century. The city's entrepreneurs reached out to make economic colonies of England and Scotland's wool-producing districts. The statue of Jan Breydel and Pieter de Coninck, the leaders of the uprising against the French in 1302, can be seen on the central market square. Starting around 1500, the ship channel, which had given the city its prosperity, started silting. The city soon fell behind Antwerp as the economic flagship of the Low Countries. Its power and wealth faded after that point until tourism came to revive and bring back its past glories. The historic center of Bruges has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000.:

 

 

 

At Stockholm’s Royal Palace, the changing of the guard is one of the key hightlights and is handy, close to the next-door historic old town area. :

 

 

 

Copenhagen’s Nyhavn or “new” Harbor is actually old and charming. This waterfront entertainment district is lined by brightly colored 17th and early 18th century townhouses and bars, cafes and restaurants. Serving as a "heritage harbor", the canal also has many historical wooden ships. Lots of people and fun activity!! Don't miss doing the canal boat tour in this great city.:

 

[april47]

I disagree about the ship's tours not caring if you have a good time. The ship contracts for local tour companies. They don't conduct the tour themselves. The guides are locals who still have to make people happy if they want the ship's business. I've had some wonderful local tour guides on ship tours. I've also had tours that were not ship tours where some of the guides were only there for the ride. It's kind of the luck of the draw. The advantage to private tours is that you can do research and and get recomendations. The advantage to ship tours is ease of booking.

[Cornishpastyman1]

I disagree about the ship's tours not caring if you have a good time. The ship contracts for local tour companies. They don't conduct the tour themselves. The guides are locals who still have to make people happy if they want the ship's business. I've had some wonderful local tour guides on ship tours. I've also had tours that were not ship tours where some of the guides were only there for the ride. It's kind of the luck of the draw. The advantage to private tours is that you can do research and and get recomendations. The advantage to ship tours is ease of booking.

 

Ordinarily I'd agree but there are differences here. Private tours, because of the smaller numbers, can go inside places like the CSB and St Isaac's Cathedral (rather than just drive by them) and mean you can see can much more per hour than the ship's tours, who can often offer only 'single attraction tours' before returning to the port to transfer to another coach for another attraction. So they are far less time-efficient. Once at an attraction, other than the larger numbers, the experience will be as good, as the quality of guides seems uniformly high.

 

As for ease of booking, this is extremely marginal. All I had to do was create an account (supplying email and password) and then ask to be on Tour X on Ship Y on the 2 days. It could hardly be easier. Add in the considerable cost saving (about 25-30%), the greater flexibility on the day, and the far lesser numbers, and for St P at least there is simply no comparison in terms of value and experience between the 2 'camps'.

All the best, Tony

[TLCOhio]

The ship contracts for local tour companies. They don't conduct the tour themselves. The guides are locals who still have to make people happy if they want the ship's business. I've had some wonderful local tour guides on ship tours. I've also had tours that were not ship tours where some of the guides were only there for the ride. It's kind of the luck of the draw. The advantage to private tours is that you can do research and and get recomendations. The advantage to ship tours is ease of booking.

 

Great above points by April47. Ship tours can serve a good function and work well. That ease and flexibility for booking can be a major plus, especially if you are not the kind of person, like me, who enjoys researching and planning ahead.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 71,160 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

 

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 64,386 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

[janisutx]

We used Paulo's Tours in Helsinki. He was great. We did his Helsinki and Porvoo tour. It was nice to see the countryside too. Also keep in mind a good local guide adds a lot to your experience.

 

paulostours@hotmail.com http://www.paulostours.com/

 

We used SPB for the 2-day Deluxe Tour in St. Petersburg. They are wonderful. Our guide Elena ? was excellent. She is a school teacher and has a daughter about 10 years old. Her English was perfect and easy to understand.

[kathy16]

SPB tours now have tours in Helsinki, Copenhagen, and Tallinn. Anyone have experience with these tours?

[Giantfan13]

I disagree about the ship's tours not caring if you have a good time. The ship contracts for local tour companies. They don't conduct the tour themselves. The guides are locals who still have to make people happy if they want the ship's business. I've had some wonderful local tour guides on ship tours. I've also had tours that were not ship tours where some of the guides were only there for the ride. It's kind of the luck of the draw. The advantage to private tours is that you can do research and and get recomendations. The advantage to ship tours is ease of booking.

 

Sorry April, but I disagree with you on this. Yes, the ship contracts out to locals, they are obligated to show you what is on the itinerary. If you have a good time, isn't a requirement. No ships tour will adjust their schedule, or itinerary to take advantage of great weather, large crowds, traffic problems etc. All local tour companies will. When we went with SPB Tours, we had glorious weather on day one so they adjusted their itinerary to take full advantage of that fact and we did most of the outdoor venues on that day. They also adjusted to local traffic.

Plus, we did a set tour, but I asked if it was possible to view the Grand Choral Synagogue (it wasn't on our itinerary) and in a wink, it was done.

We got great customer service, and any, and all our questions were answered in a day thru email. Can you do that with a ship's tour office.

And, as Tony has pointed out, it is just as easy to book a private tour company as it is to book thru the ship. Just send them your passport number and you are in.

Personally, ships tours are good for nothing as we never use them. they are overpriced and take you to their places where they get the biggest kickback. If that's your preference, so be it, but in St Petersburg, private tours are the way to go.

 

Cheers

 

Len

[Giantfan13]

Thank You all so much...I already started investigating some of your suggestions and the pictures are wonderful! I'll keep you all informed of what we finally decide on! Thanks again!

 

Glad you enjoyed the pix and thanks for the nice words about them.

 

BTW, where in Jersey are you from???

 

Cheers

 

Len

[producegirl]

You all have given me so much to think about...we are leaning towards DeRus for St. Petersburg and the other Baltic cities. Looking for someone for Brussels and Gdnask.

Thanks:)

[gkkapp]

Please see this thread for suggestions for Gdansk, Poland: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1580538

 

<<<Karen>>>

[producegirl]

Can anyone suggest tour companys or guides for Brussels?

Thanks so much!:)