Review: 12N Scandinavia & Russia - Celebrity Silhouette 28/May/2015

[upwarduk]

Thanks for your wonderful review, including times that you needed to be off the ship in St P. We too are doing the SPB 2 day tour, on our Eclipse cruise at the end of July and pre warning is good. Also I am glad that we decided not to book an evening tour, it sounds like Celebrity have that covered very well. The Russian artists that are invited on to the ship look excellent.

Did you see any Ho- Ho buses at the Port in Tallin? I am rather concerned after all the walking in St P that my legs might not be up to another day of walking!

[nekzaadvakil]

Thanks for your wonderful review, including times that you needed to be off the ship in St P. We too are doing the SPB 2 day tour, on our Eclipse cruise at the end of July and pre warning is good. Also I am glad that we decided not to book an evening tour, it sounds like Celebrity have that covered very well. The Russian artists that are invited on to the ship look excellent.

Did you see any Ho- Ho buses at the Port in Tallin? I am rather concerned after all the walking in St P that my legs might not be up to another day of walking!

 

Yup, not to worry at all. There are plenty of transportation options. The ship has a drop off as well which leaves you at the other side of the old town (the one with the castle like entrance in the pictures above). You can then walk to the other end through the old town.

 

Also in the old town, there were PLENTY of people with cycle rickshaws who were offering rides back to the ship. Most of them youngsters who spoke perfect English and didn't trouble you if you politely declined. My inlaws and their friends did quite a bit of shopping and took a cab back to the port since they couldn't carry all that weight. The ride takes 5-7 minutes. DW and I walked backed since we were not too tired.

[upwarduk]

Thanks, I think we will be more of the age group of your in- laws!:p

[junetraveler2014]

Just want to thank you very much for your tour. So little time on your boat but what wonderful places you visited. My DH was never interested in this particular cruise because of the crowds. They seemed very maneuverable and with all your wonderful pictures he is definitely going to check into it. Thank you again for taking the time to take and post all those wonderful pictures with the story line.

Victoria

[nekzaadvakil]

Just want to thank you very much for your tour. So little time on your boat but what wonderful places you visited. My DH was never interested in this particular cruise because of the crowds. They seemed very maneuverable and with all your wonderful pictures he is definitely going to check into it. Thank you again for taking the time to take and post all those wonderful pictures with the story line.

Victoria

 

Thanks Victoria, for your very kind words. The cruise was indeed one of our most memorable trips, and by far the one with the best itinerary. In spite of the ship being full, we never felt that there was a huge crowd anywhere. We always got place in the theater, at the casino tables, in the bars, oceanview cafe, everywhere. In fact many of the pictures look like there's hardly anyone on board! Celebrity really knows how to keep us cruisers happy.

 

We saw 7 countries, 8 cities in less than 2 weeks time, without the hassles of packing, traveling from one place to another, wasting time at airports, etc and at a fraction of the cost that a land based holiday would have cost.

 

Stay tuned for more :-)

[nekzaadvakil]

3rd June 2015

 

Woohoo! Sea day at last!

 

 

As much as we LOVE seeing new places, we absolutely love our sea days. DW and I are very hesitant to book a cruise which doesn't have at least 2-3 sea days during a 10-13 night cruise.

 

 

Sea days means we can get up late, laze around, play ALOT of table tennis (DW and I are fiercely competitive), play some BINGO, roam around the ship, shop in the numerous bazaars in the boulevard, take part in the activities, dip into the jacuzzi, try our luck in the casino, eat every couple of hours, book our future cruise, start drinking early, the list just goes on and on. And we did everything mentioned above. I also sat in the balcony even though it was chilly, but the beauty of a balcony comes alive on a sea day. No noise, no work pressures, no deadlines just you and Mother Nature. I always stare out and remember this saying:

 

'We're not born just to pay bills and die'. Spending time on the veranda gives you that feeling that this is what life is all about, even if it is just for one fleeting moment. Maybe it's because I am an aquarian, but I just love the water and I love cruising! Sea days rock!

 

We had a great time! The celebrity life activities team had so much planned, it was impossible to do everything. Their raw energy ensured that everyone on the ship was in a holiday mood. The live band (Top Notch) was absolutely amazing. There was a Russian bazaar as well. Lucky draws where people won merchandise.

 

This was also our 2nd formal night and everyone on the ship was dressed well. I know from previous blogs that many like the idea of a formal night, where as many do not want to wear a suit/tux on holiday.

 

Our cruise was pretty relaxed. Almost everyone was well dressed in the MDR and many in smart formals without suits were seen as well. On this trip we didn't try any speciality restaurants as we had already tried Qsine last year. Definitely a one time try but maybe no repeat value for DW who thought the vegetarian options were pretty limited.

 

We first went to the pre-late seating show at the theatre and we all felt this was one of the best shows we had seen. Lots of variety acts. Very good performances.

 

 

 

[nekzaadvakil]

Dinner was at the MDR after drinks and mandatory pictures around the ship. Dinner was really good!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The steak and the desserts were absolutely fantastic! We played a little more in the casino but went to sleep early by around 11:30-12:00 as we had an early start the next day in Warnemunde/Berlin !

[nekzaadvakil]

4th June 2015

 

Berlin, Germany !

 

Ok, so we woke up early, had a quick bite and were on our way from Warnemunde port to Berlin. We knew it was a 3-3.5 hour drive each way and would hopefully catch up on some sleep in the bus (I can never sleep on a bus). Here's our first view of Warnemunde from the Oceanview cafe.

 

 

I have always wanted to visit Germany and always thought I'd visit Frankfurt and Munich, since they are close to the Formula1 tracks (I'm a huge F1 fan). I never had Berlin on my list of places to visit. Boy was I wrong!

 

SPB Tours had clear signages put up and we were ushered into our respective buses. Our bus driver didn't speak much English but he checked if our names were on the list that he was given.

 

The drive was very scenic and our bus driver was very good. We had a 20 minute comfort stop and I was very happy to get my hands on some ice cream.

 

 

 

In exactly 3 hours time we reached the sachsenhausen concentration camp where we picked up our guide for the day, a lady called Arja (Aria). That's probably the only time I'm going to call Aria a guide because she is actually a brilliant historian and story-teller. We are never fans of guided tours, but we were so very fortunate to get Aria, who completely changed our views on what guided tours could be.

 

Over the next 7-9 hours, Arja would take us all on a whirlwind tour, back in time to one of the worst places in history.

 

While Arja walked us into the concentration camp, she told us about how this started out as a camp to hold prisoners and not a concentration camp and its significance since it was so close to the capital Berlin. The weather was PERFECT, 11-12 degrees and bright clear day.

 

 

Now without a guide, we would have perhaps just walked by buildings like the one seen below. Arja explained how this was the officers mess and how inmates were both privileged as well as cursed to be working here. Since they were useful to the German officers they were 'safe' from being killed but since they were in close contact they were abused and tortured as well.

 

 

We really felt like we were standing there in time and looking at what was going on in those houses.

 

[nekzaadvakil]

Another example of the fabulous tour we were on, was the story behind this sign below. It means 'work will set you free' which was a ruse to show outsiders that people could work their way out while also ensuring that people inside the camp were incentivised to work hard, follow orders so that they could get out. No one made it out due to hard work.

 

 

I wouldn't want to go into the details of the tour since the beauty is to experience it first hand, hence here are just some pictures to wet your appetite.

 

Arja's magnificent story telling ways left us all feeling that we were part of that camp and made us sick to the core that humans were capable of such brutality. Arja's grandfather was also a **** soldier and she was able to explain how they were also brainwashed into thinking in a particular way.

 

 

Tracks on which prisoners were made to run on for 8-10 hours in shoes that were 2 sizes smaller than their feet.

 

 

 

The memorial:

 

 

 

 

We were so glad that we decided to do the concentration camp + Berlin tour instead of the Berlin tour, as this turned out to be one of the top3 places we saw on the entire holiday. This is definitely a place one needs to visit with a guide (although they also had audio guides which you could purchase from the reception area). We got back onto the Bus and headed to Berlin. Arja also kept a watch on the time and made sure we were able to see ALOT during our rather short day in Berlin. German after all.

[nekzaadvakil]

We then went into Berlin and unfortunately there was ALOT of traffic since it was also the UEFA Champions League Final in Berlin the next day. We got off the bus and walked. We also grabbed a quick 10 minute lunch on the go and we were very fortunate to have an amazing group (16 of us in total on the bus) that didn't mind the short lunch stop, or the walking.

 

We walked past the Berlin Cathedral, the Lustgarten, the Brandenburg Gate, the Altes Museum while Arja told us how Berlin and these monuments came into existence. However by this time the weather was horrible and was quite warm.

 

We walked past Hilter's bunker where he was found dead which was now a parking lot. We walked past the Berlin mall and at every nook and corner we were WOWed!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[nekzaadvakil]

The bus driver was really trying hard but the traffic was impossible, which meant that we continued our tour on foot. Luckily everything was close by and Arja's story telling skills kept us entertained.

 

 

We ended our tour at the Berlin Wall.

 

 

From there we got back onto the bus and drove past checkpoint Charlie. Arja bid us farewell and we then drove all the way back to the ship. It took us a good 3 hours and had another comfort stop on the way where I got some more ice cream.

 

 

We got back to the ship well in time and were all completely exhausted. The bus didn't have wifi like the bus we had in St.P which made the drive back a bit of a drag. Berlin was the first port we've been to where we said that 1 day was just not enough. Honestly I don't even think 2 days would have been enough to see all there is to see in this wonderful city.

 

But here's where I have a point to make to all the nay Sayers who say that cruising doesn't give them enough time to see a city. The 1 day in Berlin showed me enough to get me interested in planning another 3-4 day trip to Berlin to see this city in its entirety. As DW and I made a pact to come back to Germany, we bid adieu to it from the comfort of our ship.

 

 

 

 

The sail out was also amazing!

 

Next up: Fredericia, Denmark

[prish]

Hi. I have booked SPB as well as bought tickets to the mariinsky ballet. SPB will be providing transportation for us to and from the ballet. Did you use them as well? What time did you get back to the ship and what time were you picked up? I am thinking that we wont have too much time to turnaround. Yes, I did hear that they use local artists for the show so it wouldn't work on the 2nd night unfortunately. Thanks for any info.

 

Gina, we were a group of 16 who'd booked tickets at the Mariinsky, the show was at 7pm and SPB told us we wouldn't have time to go to the ship after our tour. SPB had us all in the same bus and they took us to the Stolle pie restaurant for a quick bite around 6ish, it is very close to the Mariinsky and they dropped us off there by 6.30. Apart from the pie place there are a couple of other cafe restaurants nearby, including a Subway. Some of our group had brought a change of clothes, though we'd decided against it. We had the same van and driver for the evening also, he waited for us and took us back after the show.

 

Seeing the Sleeping Beauty was a wonderful experience, but it was a long evening, 3 intermissions of about 25 mins each, so it was well past midnight when we got back to the ship. But well worth it IMO, how often does one get a chance to see a ballet in Russia? The conductor that evening was a famous one, he got a standing ovation, the production too was out of the world and we all thoroughly enjoyed it.

[prish]

Thanks for your wonderful review, including times that you needed to be off the ship in St P. We too are doing the SPB 2 day tour, on our Eclipse cruise at the end of July and pre warning is good. Also I am glad that we decided not to book an evening tour, it sounds like Celebrity have that covered very well. The Russian artists that are invited on to the ship look excellent.

Did you see any Ho- Ho buses at the Port in Tallin? I am rather concerned after all the walking in St P that my legs might not be up to another day of walking!

 

I'd contacted one of the taxi companies in Tallin and pre-booked an 8 seater minivan, the driver was waiting for us we got off the ship. He dropped us off at the upper town near the Nevsky cathedral, we then walked our way down to the old town square, cost 9 euros for eight of us. On the return my brother took our mom back in a taxi and paid 10 euros for the ride back to the ship!

 

Celebrity does have a shuttle but IMO the taxi option is much better, cheaper too. There's also a kind of toy train which takes you around the old town, but you need to get up there first of course, that might be an option to get an overview without walking too much.

 

tellimus@tallinktakso.ee / Call center phone number +372 6408921 /24 h

 

BTW, watch out for pickpockets everywhere, DH lost his wallet in Tallin and the thief ran up purchases worth almost 1000 euros on his CC by the time we got back to the ship and reported the loss. Luckily it was just the CC and not passports, that would have been a huge hassle.

Edited June 24, 2015 by prish

[Irish Blondie]

Hi. I have booked SPB as well as bought tickets to the mariinsky ballet. SPB will be providing transportation for us to and from the ballet. Did you use them as well? What time did you get back to the ship and what time were you picked up? I am thinking that we wont have too much time to turnaround. Yes, I did hear that they use local artists for the show so it wouldn't work on the 2nd night unfortunately. Thanks for any info.

SPB have given me a price for a Ballet taking place in the Hermitage, St Petersburg, seats cannot be booked, I would be doing this on my own, anyone any knowledge of this theatre? Thanks Margaret

[nekzaadvakil]

BTW, watch out for pickpockets everywhere, DH lost his wallet in Tallin and the thief ran up purchases worth almost 1000 euros on his CC by the time we got back to the ship and reported the loss. Luckily it was just the CC and not passports, that would have been a huge hassle.

 

Wow Geeta! I thought credit cards were safe! I used mine everywhere (except for Russia) and every merchant required a PIN number as well. Hopefully your CC insurance should ensure that you guys don't need to pay for any of that. That really is a downer. Hopefully it didn't ruin your day too much. Quite a few cases of people being pick-pocketed on our cruise :-(

[nekzaadvakil]

5th June 2015

 

Fredericia, Denmark

 

Before the cruise started, when we were booking this itinerary, we had never even heard about this place. I was wondering why Celebrity would have this as a port of call instead of another overnight in Berlin or better yet, at the end of the cruise in Amsterdam!

 

We had a similar experience in 2013 when we hadn't heard about Kotor, Montenegro but that turned out to be one of our best and most memorable ports till date. So we went out feeling positive. Here's the first view of the port. It looked like half the town was at the port to visit us. There was also a special festive feel since it was their Constitution signing day and a public holiday. There was a live marching band playing and welcoming cruisers to their town.

 

 

 

We had booked a car for a 110 km drive from the port to Egeskov Castle. We had tried booking a big car for 6 adults from Avis, Sixt and Budget but didn't even receive a response from them. The website of Sixt said that they were sold out. We then came across a smaller company called Fredericia Biludlejning ApS and booked a 6 seater car. As it turns out, they were able to keep the car ready at the dock instead of us walking/ taking a cab to the offices & then taking a car from there.

 

We made a payment of €200 and the car was very clean and the tank was full. We were asked to fill up the tank upon our return. In 5 minutes we were off to Egeskov.

 

I really enjoyed the drive to Egeskov. The roads were wide and easy to manage. We drive on the left hand side back home in India, but it took just a few minutes to get used to driving on the opposite side. Also I guess what they say is true, once you drive in India with our traffic, anywhere else is pretty much a breeze.

 

DW was excellent with the Navigation and in 75 mins we were at Egeskov Castle.

 

 

 

Here's the view from the parking lot.

 

 

There was a lot to do at Egeskov as well as the map below shows!

 

[nekzaadvakil]

There was free wifi at the entrance, where one purchases tickets from. We loved this sign as well!

 

 

This place had a lot of people coming to spend the day here, enjoy a picnic with family. Lots of kids (very well behaved) with their families, however a lot more adults than kids were seen.

 

 

There were tree top walks, Segway rides, a Harley Davidson museum, museum of fire engines, open lush gardens, horse rides, a lot of beautiful nooks and corners and people seemed to be having a really relaxed time. The weather was excellent as well (cool and clear day)

 

 

 

 

[nekzaadvakil]

After spending some time in each place at our own laid back pace, we walked to the castle. It was a wonderful walk with lush gardens on both sides. It wasn't as grand as others we'd seen but it was one of the most picturesque places we had visited. Felt straight out of a fairy tale!

 

 

 

 

 

 

It was a wonderful day which allowed us to explore the place at our own pace and we felt really relaxed after a hectic day in Berlin. After 3-4 hours we drove back to the port.

[nekzaadvakil]

Coming back to the ship was slightly tricky. There was a cycle race on and hence the roads were closed. We tried using google maps but all the roads were closed without any directions. Luckily the ship was visible and we used our directional senses to get closer to the ship and we managed to get back to the parking lot. The guys were there to take back the keys and check the car. Once again fabulous service. I highly recommend using their services if you are in Fredericia.

 

DW and I then decided to go out and walk around in the town. Here are some pictures of the town.

 

 

 

 

 

We got back on the ship after strolling around for an hour and kicked back in the Mast Grill for some Beef and vegetarian burgers. I still need to practice my skills of making a softie ice cream!

 

[nekzaadvakil]

We then went back to our room to unwind and view the sail away from our balcony. We were really fortunate to have a starboard side balcony. The Danish people were all out by the side of our ship waving us farewell. The marching band was playing 'happy' while the people dressed in traditional wear were dancing! The rest of the people were clapping, including many of us in our balconies. Nearly all balconies on the starboard side were full. This was one of the most heartwarming welcomes/farewells we had witnessed. What amazing people! Like Kotor, this unheard of port gave us a memorable day we will always remember.

 

 

We then headed down to the MDR for dinner. Dinner was excellent as usual. I love the chicken Caesar salad which is a celebrity favourite and is available every night.

 

 

The cheese and herb cigar was the best appetiser on the entire cruise!

 

 

 

 

We then spent some time in the casino which was really full. As we were approaching our last 3 days of the cruise, that depressing feeling started to knock, but we had seen so many wonderful places already, and were kicked about our next 2 days in Copenhagen and our last sea day!

 

[prish]

Wow Geeta! I thought credit cards were safe! I used mine everywhere (except for Russia) and every merchant required a PIN number as well. Hopefully your CC insurance should ensure that you guys don't need to pay for any of that. That really is a downer. Hopefully it didn't ruin your day too much. Quite a few cases of people being pick-pocketed on our cruise :-(

 

Nick, understand the thief bought stuff online, which doesn't require the pin. Our CC insurance covered the theft and it wasn't really too much of a hassle, except for the fact that DH was sans wallet for the rest our trip:D

 

Irish Blondie, we also looked at Celebrity's Hermitage Theatre ballet option but decided against it for several reasons. The best tickets at the Mariinsky were about $97, plus $15 for SPB's evening transport, less than what Celebrity was charging, we also saw a premier troupe performing. The Hermitage has open seating and even though its a much smaller, intimate theatre that could be kind of hit and miss.

[podsnel]

I am REALLY enjoying all of your beautiful photography and narrative! :) We are sailing on Silly in Sept 2016, Italy and France, but you are making me go Hmmmmmm..... think I know what the next one will be! Thank you so much for all the details!!

[nekzaadvakil]

I am REALLY enjoying all of your beautiful photography and narrative! :) We are sailing on Silly in Sept 2016, Italy and France, but you are making me go Hmmmmmm..... think I know what the next one will be! Thank you so much for all the details!!

 

Thank you :-)

 

I'm sure you will have a great time on the Silhouette. The ship and her staff are absolutely amazing!

[nekzaadvakil]

6th June 2015

 

Copenhagen, Denmark

 

We docked in Copenhagen nice and early and since we had 2 full days, we decided to plan these days properly so that we had enough time to see everything we wanted to see!

 

Day 1: we decided to travel far north to see the Kronborg Slot (castle), do a boat ride from Nyhavn and spend the remaining time exploring the city, walking streets, shopping etc.

 

Day2 would be for the city centre - little mermaid, Tivoli Gardens, amalienborg, and quite a bit of time in and around Stroget for some retail therapy.

 

My inlaws and their friends decide to take it a bit easy and use more of the public transport while DW and I walked. The men took a HOHO bus right outside our ship. The ladies decided to join us on Day1.

 

We left the ship and there's a long row of shops selling souvenirs. We mapped out our walk to the train station which was 20 minutes away. What a beautiful walk this turned out to be. The weather was 10-12 degrees and due to the wind chill it seemed even cooler. I was yet in shorts and enjoyed the cold.

 

 

This was not the little mermaid, we thought this and the bear cubs were better than the little mermaid statue which was really little!

 

 

 

 

 

[nekzaadvakil]

We made our way towards the train station, and bought our day tickets from the kiosk. It was simple to use and instructions were in English. No issues paying by credit card. The cost was 130 DKK for 24 hours.

 

The train was excellent, safe and very clean. The seats were very comfy and the restroom on board was also clean and convenient.

 

 

A quick 45 minutes later we were at Kronborg Slot. Since it was a Saturday there were plenty of people, but not crowded at all. There was a kiddie marathon organised with parents wearing red clown noses, lots of children running and playing and a mini circus atmosphere that added to the great ambiance around us.