Celebrity to St. Petersburg July 2020

[sgcass123]

DH and I are going on the Celebrity Silhouette July 2020.  We will be in St. Petersburg for 2 days.  If we go through the ship for our excursion, will they take care of our visa, or do we still have to do that ourselves before going?  I know that private tours in St. Petersburg offers to take care of the tourist visa themselves.  I just want to make sure that Celebrity will do the same.  Thanks!

[CruiserBruce]

If you go through the ship, the local providers they contract with will take care of your visa.

[dogs4fun]

1 hour ago, sgcass123 said:

DH and I are going on the Celebrity Silhouette July 2020.  We will be in St. Petersburg for 2 days.  If we go through the ship for our excursion, will they take care of our visa, or do we still have to do that ourselves before going?  I know that private tours in St. Petersburg offers to take care of the tourist visa themselves.  I just want to make sure that Celebrity will do the same.  Thanks!

 

1 hour ago, CruiserBruce said:

If you go through the ship, the local providers they contract with will take care of your visa.

 

Exactly - the provider with whom Celebrity contracts and the private operators with whom you book independently use exactly the same procedure. Your tour ticket acts as your "visa waiver" whilst on the tour. Note that you are not allowed to wander about the city on your own without an authentic Russian Visa but the Russian Federation offers visa free visits as long as you are booked with a licensed tour operator and remain with them while off your ship. Thus, your tour ticket and your valid passport will allow you to pass through immigration at the port of St. Petersburg.

Edited November 6, 2019 by dogs4fun

[trosebery]

OP, you might be interested in this thread I started a while back:

Have fun in St. P.!

[flowslow]

Yes, Celebrity will do the same. However, they would probably use the services of a local tour operator too and charge a higher rate. You are better off contacting the local tour operators directly to get better rates. You'll get a tour that will give you so much flexibility and that will be done in your own pace. You'll enjoy a private tour or a small group tour compared to a ship's tour with a bus full of people. Good luck! 

[John Bull]

For a tour with a local operator you do need to book in advance - the tour operator has to provide your details to immigration and you'll need to print-off the tour ticket that they e-mail to you. (I don't know whether being able to show it on your tablet is good enough, but JB is a dinosaur & wouldn't trust the technology even if it is).

You'll also need to book if you take a ship's tour but I don't know whether that's possible during your cruise.

 

And I whole-heartedly concur with those who advocate booking with a local operator - small groups (max 16), more personal, more flexible, quicker thro the traffic & loading/unloading, and experiences like a subway ride & possibly Peterhof by hydrofoil which aren't possible with large groups.

 

JB