St. Petersburg on our own

[vegaszip]

My GF and I will be in SPB for 3 days off of the Celebrity Sillouette in June. I want to get a visa and explore SPB following Rick Steve's guidebook. My GF likes the idea of private or group tours with SPB TOURS or ALLA tours. Has anyone out there done SPB on their own? What was your experience? I want to go out in the evening and enjoy the White Nights Festival on our own. Thanks in advance.

 

 

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[pjs678]

Hi there, we're on your sailing and will have Russian visas from going to Moscow pre-cruise. We will be doing it on our own too. It doesn't look that hard. We will be getting a tour guide for the first day to get to Catherine's Palace and for a quick toud of the Hermitage and then doing everything else on our own.

 

To be honest, if we weren't going to Moscow first and had to get visas, I would have probably just done a 3 day tour with one of the recommended tour companies.

 

Come on over to our roll call and check out the groups that have already formed:

 

June 19, 2016 Silhouette Roll Call

 

Also, if you search this forum for "St. Petersburg on your own" you will find several prior examples of people that have done it.

 

Edit: Just realized there are two sailing stopping for three days in SPB on the Silhouette this June. If you're not on our sailing, you should check out the June 7 Roll Call.

Edited March 14, 2016 by pjs678

[dogs4fun]

My GF and I will be in SPB for 3 days off of the Celebrity Sillouette in June. I want to get a visa and explore SPB following Rick Steve's guidebook. My GF likes the idea of private or group tours with SPB TOURS or ALLA tours. Has anyone out there done SPB on their own? What was your experience? I want to go out in the evening and enjoy the White Nights Festival on our own. Thanks in advance.

 

 

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I applaud your spirit of adventure. I've been to St. Petersburg multiple times and it is not difficult to do on your own. It is no more difficult to negotiate than most other major European cities except for the alphabet (cryllic).

That said, the first time that I went to St. Petersburg, I was aboard a cruise ship and I booked our tours with Alla (great, by the way). It made little sense to go through the hassle and expense of obtaining a visa (mine cost $300+) for a short port stay (2 days). I have returned several times (with a visa) for a more in-depth exploration of Russia.

Your ship will dock at Vasilyevsky Island and you will need transport from the cruise terminal to the center of town (there is a taxi stand inside the terminal where you can get a taxi - also, ATM). Most taxi drivers speak little (if any) English, just so you are aware. Most street signs are in the Cryllic script although some signs have the Latin script below the Cryllic (subways have both Latin & Cryllic scripts). I would download the Cryllic alphabet & take it along (unless, of course, you are already familiar). Also, a map will come in handy to show your driver where you want to go (too far to walk to the nearest metro station from Vasilyevsky).

St. Peterburg is a fascinating city. Hope you have a wonderful time!

[baby88]

If you sign up for a 2 day tour with one of the major tour companies, they will probably issue you a blanket visa waiver for the entire length of your stay because some people decide at the last minute to add an evening program, and if the ticket covers the time of your entire visit you have the flexibility to be able to clear customs at any time since customs will check the time on your tour ticket before letting you enter the country. You can check your ticket prior to boarding to see what dates and times you will be allowed to enter Russia. According to Russian law, if you arrange for a visa waiver through one of the major tour companies you are supposed to stay with your tour guide and driver at all times. And the major tour companies will all be able and willing to arrange for a private tour of whatever evening activity you would like. Our tour company wanted to charge us $200 to drop us off for dinner, so we were contacted the hotel attached to our restaurant to arrange for a cab. The hotel was willing to arrange for a cab to pick us up from the terminal, and they would charge us $40 for roundtrip transportation, and since it was a 5* hotel I thought it would be fairly safe. However, the risk you are running if you leave for an evening program on your own without a visa or your tour guide is that if anything goes wrong, you are in Russia illegally and I don't think the Russian government would take that lightly. We ultimately chose not to go to dinner because we were too tired after touring St. Petersburg all day to go out to dinner, but I wanted to let you know that this is something you can arrange, but it may be quite risky if anything goes wrong.

Edited March 14, 2016 by baby88

[vegaszip]

Thank you all for info

 

 

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[Regguy]

We toured with one of the big tour groups. During our Hermitage visit, a couple of people in our group were tired and wanted to sit down. Our tour guide told them where they could go to wait, but they decided after waiting for a little to go for a walk. I don't know exactly how it happened but there was a major situation caused by the fact that they left the group. Our guide eventually talked his way out of it with the authorities, and It don't exactly remember the details but I would not even consider leaving the tour without a visa.

[alcpa1]

Vegaszip,

Your best bet would be one of the recommended tour operators with a specific request for the evening White Nights Festival. If this is even a possible offering they will accept your request. This would be an add on to the day tours.

I too have been to St. Petersburg with a Russian Federation visa and also an SPB tour from a ship. There are not too many sites that are within walking distance and without expedited entry provided by the independent tour operators you will waste more time standing in entry lines than you could possibly imagine in June.

The Russian Federation visa is cumbersome to fill out. It must be error free and is considerably costly for such a short visit. If you are a government employee or active member of the armed forces it can get a little tricky too and may be declined or delayed in which case your cruise could be cancelled because you have been denied entry into Russia. They don't seem to care too much about the blanket visa's for the independent tour operators. I know this may seem drastic but one of the travelers for our land tour was not cleared and had to cancel the trip. This trip was also in the late 90's, before Putin, when things were much easier for Americans in Russia.

[macaroni]

We booked with Alla tours and planned our own itinerary and then asked others if they wanted to join...it was wonderful

[easyboy]

We had SPB Tours for a 2-day St. Petersburg tour package. The tour voucher served as our visa. Well worth it.

[effie_4]

Are you sailing on 7th? I have the same question about the evening! We want to walk around cause I heard it will be amazing! After a lot of reading I end up that booking an evening tour is the best option. I found 1-2. If someone has something to suggest please....

 

 

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Edited April 1, 2016 by effie_4

[mickeysgal]

We toured with one of the big tour groups. During our Hermitage visit, a couple of people in our group were tired and wanted to sit down. Our tour guide told them where they could go to wait, but they decided after waiting for a little to go for a walk. I don't know exactly how it happened but there was a major situation caused by the fact that they left the group. Our guide eventually talked his way out of it with the authorities, and It don't exactly remember the details but I would not even consider leaving the tour without a visa.

 

So given that you have to stay with the tour at all times, I'll ask the obvious...what if you have to go to the bathroom? I imagine they provide breaks in the tour for restroom stops, but what if you just HAVE to go?

[gkkapp]

Bathroom breaks are usually stops at souvenir shops where you often get a shot of vodka or tea plus the use of the restroom :D. No need to buy anything but they hope you do ;).

 

<<<Karen>>>

[lcumpire]

Are you sailing on 7th? I have the same question about the evening! We want to walk around cause I heard it will be amazing! After a lot of reading I end up that booking an evening tour is the best option. I found 1-2. If someone has something to suggest please....

 

 

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I am on the Navigator of the Seas and using TJ Tours during the day but arranged an evening walk on the Nevsky Project and a boat tour afterward. Probably all the companies do the same thing.

 

 

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[easyboy]

So given that you have to stay with the tour at all times, I'll ask the obvious...what if you have to go to the bathroom? I imagine they provide breaks in the tour for restroom stops, but what if you just HAVE to go?

Ask the tour guide. Info are always given at start of walking tour.

[dogs4fun]

Are you sailing on 7th? I have the same question about the evening! We want to walk around cause I heard it will be amazing! After a lot of reading I end up that booking an evening tour is the best option. I found 1-2. If someone has something to suggest please....

 

 

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Other than the Ballet, Folkshow & evening visit to the Faberge Museum, most of the frequently mentioned tour companies offer private evening options. I used Alla Tours (fantastic!) - they offer a free content evening program wherein you are free to do whatever you want (you will be provided with a driver and an escort). It is called "St. Petersburg Anyway You Wish".

Some possible suggestions: Dinner at a local Russian restaurant is nice - perhaps a visit to the Vodka museum (tasting included), stroll Nevsky, maybe visit a local Russian pub, climb to the top of St. Isaac's dome.

Check with your tour company for recommendations or google to see what may interest you in particular.

Edited April 4, 2016 by dogs4fun