Russia 2 day Princess Excursion

[SeaPete]

St. Petersburg, Russia

Princess Cruise

2-day Discovery Exclusive 2-day excursion

Price: $629.95 per person

 

We were excited to see Russia and all the history stated on the excursion description, when we booked this Princess 2 day excursion. It says strenuous, and the Princess rep stated the first day is supposed to be 14 hours. And here in lies the problem because 14 hours would have been fine. When we signed up online the starting time states 7am. Onboard our tickets said to be in the lounge at 6:15am. We then returned to the port parking lot at 4:30pm we had to be back to the bus (thru Russia customs again) at 6:05pm for the evening part of the excursion. We departed promptly at 6:05, had dinner in Russia with our group at 10pm and returned to the ship at 12:35am. By the time we walked to our room it was 1:00am. The second day we had to be thru customs and at the bus at 6:55am. My husband and I were unable to attend the second day of the excursion because I didn’t think I could function for a full day excursion on less than 5 hours sleep. I went to the excursion desk on Princess asking for some type of compensation for not attending the second day of my 2 day excursion. I was told by the shore excursion mgr. that they were not responsible and no money could be refunded. I was told I should have checked with the shore excursion department when I arrived onboard to ask for more information for details about this excursion. Really?

Why, after they sold me the excursion, are they not responsible? A phone call from Princess upon my return home said they “were sorry” I should have been prepared for a “strenuous 14 hour day”. As I said fourteen hours would have been fine! They were not running late, this was what was planned. Dinner was at 10pm and then the long ride back to the ship.

The first day of the excursion was fantastic and I’m glad I participated. But a second full day on only a few hours sleep, not to mention pouring rain, was pushing what should have been a fantastic excursion to a tortuous and expensive port.

The total I spent on Princess excursions this trip was over $3000.00. What a shame Princess wasn’t responsible for any of it. Guess they didn’t make any money. lol

This was my first Princess cruise, we were in the owners suite. I have many cruises on Royal and Celebrity…on one occasion we were partially refunded an excursion price, so it’s not unheard of.

Thanks for letting me vent and I hope I’ve explained enough so if anyone participates they know what to expect.

[arctickitty]

perhaps their math didn't include meeting time, customs time, and breaks. Do others know what is customary when they add up the total time?

[Elitein85days]

Excursions go late, they end early, you chose not to go on the 2nd day. I don't see how that's Princess's fault. Maybe you should pay extra because you got a longer first day.

 

Life is not perfect and you chose not to go the 2nd day. There are consequences to your choices. This one is that you forfeited the 2nd day of the excursion.

 

Your line of "I spent $3,000..." just makes me think you'll never be satisfied with anything princess offers.

[bassmaster150]

I have to agree that this was a choice to not go on the second day which then becomes your responsibility as opposed to Princess's responsibility and no refund or compensation should be expected at all on your part. We did the same cruise and the same excursion, and when we returned from the second day we were absolutely beyond exhausted, but it was incredible.

[sunsetbeachgal]

If the excursion was marked strenuous and you decided to skip the second day because you would be too tired, I really don't think you have a case for any partial refund nor to expect much sympathy from others. A simple stop at the shore excursion desk to speak with them would have most likely yielded answers about the timing and the exact itinerary. I find that the employees there are usually knowledgeable and there are more in depth descriptions of the tours. My guess is that if you would have done this right after you boarded and determined that the tour was too strenuous, you probably had time to cancel without any penalty and choose an alternate tour that was not so strenuous.

 

And I doubt any other cruise line would give a partial refund if someone didn't show up for a tour.

Edited July 12, 2016 by sunsetbeachgal

[moki'smommy]

If the excursion was marked strenuous and you decided to skip the second day because you would be too tired, I really don't think you have a case for any partial refund nor to expect much sympathy from others. A simple stop at the shore excursion desk to speak with them would have most likely yielded answers about the timing and the exact itinerary, and my guess is that if you would have done this right after you boarded and determined that the tour was too strenuous for you you probably had time to cancel without any penalty.

 

 

Technically they could not have canceled without penalty at that point unless Princess was able to sell their spot to someone else. But excursions rarely follow the printed schedule exactly....and missing the second day was their choice. I probably would have said "Once in a lifetime" and done it...but that was not OP's decision.

[junglejane]

Another vote for Princess. Minimal research would have revealed that St. Petersburg is wonderful but also very exhausting. As I recall, there is also a time change working against you. You are most familiar with your own need for a full night's sleep, and if you are unable to suck it up for a day, you should not have booked the most strenuous excursion possible. It's not Princess' fault that you bit off more than you could chew.

[Coral]

I personally think Princess could have been a little lenient on this one or substituted a different tour if one was possible.

 

I took a tour on HAL once. It was a basic tour and ran over 2 hours late - it really didn't need to. I was slightly annoyed because I had made plans to meet friends for a late lunch and missed it (and they were waiting for me, etc..).

 

I went to the shore excursion desk to inform them that it ran late hoping that they correct the time in the future (either time on brochures or with the tour operator) and explained that due to running late, I missed a later engagement. I did not ask for money back and left. I later had a note in my box that my tour had been fully refunded. This was going above and beyond IMO. Class Act.

 

Princess could have tried to accommodate them on a later tour the next day. They obviously have some flexibility because if you see the doctor, they waive the tour costs.

 

I am so sorry the OP missed the 2nd day in St. Petersburg as for many, this is a once in a life time tour.

 

Here is the description of the tour:

http://www.princess.com/excursion/exDetails.page?tourCode=LED-150

Edited July 12, 2016 by Coral

[Pam in CA]

I agree with the others that this was a choice. It's well-known that excursions in St. Petersburg are very strenuous so a little research could have gone a long way. It's the norm that while a tour is scheduled for fourteen hours, if you need to go through Immigration at the pier, that takes time and isn't included in the tour time. The tour was scheduled to leave at a specific time and it takes time for all of the passengers to get off the ship and through Immigration.

[Chris86]

Sounds like a choice to me also. At least they arnt Costa. Cancelling your tour. Informing you on the day. Placing you on another tour which is double the price (without your knowledge ). Then invoice you the difference :)

[caribill]

It appears that the actual times of the first day tour (7 AM - 4:30 PM and 6:05 PM - 12:35 AM) add up to 16 hours, two more than the expected 14 hours.

 

Looking at the details of the tour on the Princess web site, the times for the day part add up to 8 hours and 50 minutes, 40 minutes less than you actually had.

 

The evening times add up to 5 hours 50 minutes, again 40 minutes less than you actually had.

 

So your first day tour, listed as 14 hours 40 minutes in the details on the website, actually lasted a total of 1 hour 20 minutes longer.

 

This definitely is the most strenuous excursion Princess offers in St. Pete.

 

Even the two day excursions that do not include an evening portion are very strenuous.

 

Princess estimated tour times never include the time required to meet before the tour and then get to the tour bus. This is no different that what I have seen on other cruise lines. And, of course, the time between the two parts of your day one excursion is also not included.

 

I am sorry that you were (understandably) too exhausted to take the day two tour. Without realizing it, you signed up for more than your stamina allowed.

[shredie]

This is instructive. We're doing that cruise next year, so now I know to be careful booking the tours.

[gkkapp]

All the more reason to book tours with independent companies like Alla, SPB, Best Guides etc. You can set the time and pace of the tour and decide if you want an evening tour or not. Princess has a local Russian Folkloric Show troop (free :)) on the ship on the first night so no reason to do the same thing off the ship.

 

Just IMHO.

 

<<<Karen>>>

[dreaminofcruisin]

Sorry for the situation, but I agree Princess can't control the times and they offered to provide the tour, so in this case the choice was the OPs.

 

I just wanted to add that Princess is Outstanding in refunding a partial amount of a tour that doesn't happen. We arrived late to port for one of our excursions due to bad weather. They had to shorten the excursion time meaning an included lunch was eliminated. Not only did we get a partial refund for the shorter excursion, we got a partial refund for the port taxes as we were in port a shorter amount of time. All without asking. :)

[LeeW]

We took the Princess two day excursion and it was fantastic, if tiring (over 8 hours both days). The folks that added evening activities the first day (either evening with Catherine or the ballet) looked pretty dead when they got on the bus for the second day but all of them fully expected that and were not about to miss their only trip to Russia. We even had a lady on the tour that had twisted an ankle in a previous port but she was NOT going to miss either day. Getting a wheelchair over all the cobblestones and through museums was not easy, either. Next day was fairly easy (Talinn), but it did take a few days to recover.

 

The tour description is pretty clear about how strenuous the tour is.

[Gwendy]

After a lot of research we decided the two day tours were too full on, both with Princess and the private operators. We chose individual tours on both days, one on first day to Peterhoff and the ballet at night and the second day we toured the subways and in the afternoon did a canal cruise.

We were very happy with this arrangement, saw lots and lots of things, but we're not exhausted as many people were after the two days. our tours were condensed with not a lot of travelling from place to place and lunches, rest stops etc.

[travellover3]

My companion and I were happy campers with this tour...both of us in our mid 70s. Very complete and exhausting, but thoroughly worth it! It shouldn't be missed if possible...one can sleep in the next day! Sorry you couldn't manage the entire 2 days. This was one of the very best Princess excursions I have ever been on and would do it again.

[Murphey]

After researching St Pete, we too booked a private tour for just 4 of us. It was amazing. We saw everything there was, but with 4 people, things just went faster. And it was a fraction of the cost of Princess. Yes, we were exhausted. Probably more so than a lot of folks because 2 of us had some health issues. But because it was just 4, we could shift things around and as I said before, we just got a lot done in less time. We did NOT do the ballet in the evening. I knew ahead of time that after a long full day, going out again was not going to happen. You just have to make choices.

[tully07]

We loved the 2 day excursion -- we knew that it would involve very long days -- but we decided it was something we had to do. Of course, the first day would not have been so long if it hadn't taken almost an hour to get through Russian immigration on the first morning! That made us paranoid about long line-ups for subsequent departures for onshore activities in Russia, which thankfully never materialized.

 

My only regret about this tour is that I didn't take pictures of our Russian visas on that first day before the Russians took them back when we returned to the ship to get ready for our evening at Catherine's palace.

[IECalCruiser]

It 2013, we specifically decided not to do anything in the evening because we wanted to be fresh for the second day. We selected a private company, SPB, because the price was much less at $285/person and offered more than the more expensive Princess options. We had a fantastic two day tour. The was a Russian folklore performance in the evening on board.

[Colo Cruiser]

if the excursion was marked strenuous and you decided to skip the second day because you would be too tired, i really don't think you have a case for any partial refund nor to expect much sympathy from others. A simple stop at the shore excursion desk to speak with them would have most likely yielded answers about the timing and the exact itinerary. I find that the employees there are usually knowledgeable and there are more in depth descriptions of the tours. My guess is that if you would have done this right after you boarded and determined that the tour was too strenuous, you probably had time to cancel without any penalty and choose an alternate tour that was not so strenuous.

 

And i doubt any other cruise line would give a partial refund if someone didn't show up for a tour.

 

+1.

[Eppe4]

It 2013, we specifically decided not to do anything in the evening because we wanted to be fresh for the second day. We selected a private company, SPB, because the price was much less at $285/person and offered more than the more expensive Princess options. We had a fantastic two day tour. The was a Russian folklore performance in the evening on board.

 

We're boarding the Regal Princess on 8/30 for 25 days, it's a b/b with the first cruise being the Baltic's. We're booked with SPB tours for the 2 day Deluxe Tour and we're considering the "Like a Local" evening excursion that includes lots of vodka! I've been walking for months to make sure my stamina is at it's best for this cruise. I know in my heart that if I over book us (me) it's my problem and no one else! Cancellation is quite clear, 48 hours in advance. So suck it up and sleep on a sea day or loose some money but most sadly, why would you loose the experience of a lifetime for a few hours of sleep? We only live once!

[IECalCruiser]

We're boarding the Regal Princess on 8/30 for 25 days, it's a b/b with the first cruise being the Baltic's. We're booked with SPB tours for the 2 day Deluxe Tour and we're considering the "Like a Local" evening excursion that includes lots of vodka! I've been walking for months to make sure my stamina is at it's best for this cruise. I know in my heart that if I over book us (me) it's my problem and no one else! Cancellation is quite clear, 48 hours in advance. So suck it up and sleep on a sea day or loose some money but most sadly, why would you loose the experience of a lifetime for a few hours of sleep? We only live once!

I really didn't feel that the two day tour was that strenuous. I just know that if we had done an evening tour that included lots of vodka that we would have been exhausted and not enjoyed the second day.

[Eppe4]

I really didn't feel that the two day tour was that strenuous. I just know that if we had done an evening tour that included lots of vodka that we would have been exhausted and not enjoyed the second day.

 

Thanks for your input, your post makes more sense than the first. We've been on many long tours and have done just fine, however, we're getting older :eek::eek::eek:

 

If we can arrange a tour from 7 to 11 with some drinking and some extra time to shop, then it's a slam dunk!

 

Again, thanks for your input.

[Mytravellove]

We did the 2-day strenuous tour on St. Petersburg on our Baltic cruise in May 2016. I am not an early riser, specially when I am on vacation and more so on a cruise....but I had psyched myself by being prepared the night before to have my clothes ready, day bag packed with camera, binoculars, etc., and alarm set for 5.30am. We did not only a very long first day but also went to the Ballet that evening with only 45 mins to spare between getting back to the ship and being ready to get on the bus to go to the Russian Ballet. We rehearsed in our minds how we were going to shower, dress up, eat, go through customs in 45 mins....and we did it. We got back to the ship that night around midnight and it was nice to see the streets lit up and St. Petersburg's locals enjoying their city (just like we would do in our own home towns). The second day we had to be ready by 6 am again, but exhausted as we were, we would not have missed the tour. It was just as fast paced and filled with new experiences, like the metro, market, palaces, gardens, etc.

The thought to skip the 2nd day would never have crossed our minds and glad it didn't. If it did, would I expect a refund? Definitely not....it was my choice to pick the 2 day tour and it would have been my choice to skip the 2nd day of the tour.