What's to do on our own in Gdansk?

[Susnyk]

I am thinking that after the intense touring we'll do in the first half of the trip, we may want to just wing it in Tallinn and Gdansk. From what I've read, Tallinn will be an easy place to do that, but I am not so sure about Gdansk. Right now, I have reserved our spaces on the Gdansk On Your Own (Princess) bus, but I really don't know what is great about Gdansk, other than the Malbork Castle. Can I get some opinions about maybe just taking the "EZ Gdansk" tour which includes a half hour of walking tour and an hour to wander around on our own. Has anyone taken that tour? Was it enough time to enjoy the city, and then time to loaf aboard ship?

 

Thanks, Susan

[JordanF]

We really enjoyed Gdansk. Although we signed up for the Sampler, we actually did "On your own" as we left our tour. Gdansk is a delightful old town, easily seen while walking around. There is a church tower to climb, an old crane, and in general, a very nice town. There is good shopping there, with what seemed to be the best prices. We had a relaxing and enjoyable time, and were glad we went. (P.S. We were just there last week.)

[dileep]

You can easily spend 4-5 hours just walking around Old Town and if you shop for Amber then you will have a great time!

[mycruz]

By the time we got to Tallin we were ready for an easy going time and that's exactly what we had. We were off the ship by 9am, did the Rick Steve's walking tour since most stores weren't open yet then finished with some shopping at the outdoor market and shops. Back on the ship by 1130am.

 

Gdansk was a beautiful stop. We split up, I went with the same group that toured St. Petersburg together and did a private tour of the Stutthoff Concetration camp, back to Gdansk for a guided walking tour with a short time for shopping. (The street just throught the Green Gate was great for shopping) then we stopped at Sopot for some time on the beach! It was a great tour. My other half, having already visited several concentration camps on prior trips to europe, took the Malbork Castle/Gdansk tour. He was very dissappointed, only had 21 minutes in the castle, then they had to feed three bus loads of passengers lunch before heading back to Gdansk. He ran over to the gift shop while waiting for his lunch and bought a DVD about the castle since he didn't feel like he saw much.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Mary

[pungo3]

Mycruz (Mary), were you on the Star Princess or another cruiseline? Thanks.

[mycruz]

Pungo3,

 

Yes, we were on the Star. If you need any other info, I would be glad to share what I can remember or what I wrote in my journal. You can email me at swintmf@yahoo.com

 

Mary

[mycruz]

I received an email from Irene wanting info on the tour company that took us to Stutthof. I have tried to reply but the emails continue to come back as failed. Irene, if you still need the info, please email again, perhaps you have a block on receiving emails from unknown addresses.

Mary