Where do cruise ships actually dock? Amsterdam, for example???

[12B@C]

We will be on a cruise to the Baltic next year and are wondering about the places the ship will actually dock. Can anyone help me with the following?

In Amsterdam, for example, do cruise ships actually go through the canal that connects the North Sea with the city of Amsterdam, or do the ships stop before going through the locks and dock well short of the city?

The reason I ask is that four of us want to make some shore excursions on our own and would like to know what the port facilities are like. In the Amsterdam area, for example, I would like to hire a driver to take us to the “Zaanse Schans” and then Volendam before we go sightseeing in Amsterdam. The Zaanse Schans is an interesting village restored to the days when Peter the Great of Russia was here to learn how to built sea going ships back in the 17th century. This in itself, might an interesting tie-in to the tour of St. Petersburg later on.

How about the other ports? Where do the ships normally dock? The satellite views on Google’s maps show a lot of detail of the harbors and cities, but, of course, not where our ship will be.

[Peregrina651]

We will be on a cruise to the Baltic next year and are wondering about the places the ship will actually dock. .

 

Once I booked our cruise, I e-mailed the cruise line and asked where we would be docking for each of our ports of call. However, as CC experts have pointed out, regardless of what the cruise line says, it is the harbor master who determines where each ship is berthed and even that can change at the last minute.

 

Most of the ports have websites that list where the cruise ships are docking; you can use google to find them for your ports of call. I also found a website called cruisecal.com.

 

Hope this gives you a start.

 

[HeinBloed]

You should tell which ports are to be called...

which ship...

which date...

 

Regards,

HeinBloed

[Ine]

We will be on a cruise to the Baltic next year and are wondering about the places the ship will actually dock. Can anyone help me with the following?

In Amsterdam, for example, do cruise ships actually go through the canal that connects the North Sea with the city of Amsterdam, or do the ships stop before going through the locks and dock well short of the city?

The reason I ask is that four of us want to make some shore excursions on our own and would like to know what the port facilities are like. In the Amsterdam area, for example, I would like to hire a driver to take us to the “Zaanse Schans” and then Volendam before we go sightseeing in Amsterdam. The Zaanse Schans is an interesting village restored to the days when Peter the Great of Russia was here to learn how to built sea going ships back in the 17th century. This in itself, might an interesting tie-in to the tour of St. Petersburg later on.

How about the other ports? Where do the ships normally dock? The satellite views on Google’s maps show a lot of detail of the harbors and cities, but, of course, not where our ship will be.

 

Ships going to/from Amsterdam all have to sail through Northseacanal that connects Amsterdam with IJmuiden/Northsea. It is about 20 miles long.

In IJmuiden the ship has to go through a lock, always nice to see how a large ship fits into it...

Cruiseterminal in Amsterdam is just east of Centraal Station and close to city-center with good connection also by tramnr 25.

Peter the Great learned to build ships not on Zaanse Schans but in Zaandam. You will still find the very small house in which he lived there, it is a very tiny museum that even Mr. Putin once visited.

http://www.zaaninfo.com/english/czaarpeterhuis.htm

Zaanse Schans is outside Zaandam, close to Koog Zaandijk. You will find restored still functioning windmills/cheesefactory, clogfactory etc. over there. All along river Zaan.

http://www.zaanseschans.nl/

 

Volendam (and Marken the once island reached by ferry)) was a fishingvillage, still a nice place with old houses, sometimes you will see people in traditional clothing etc. You can have your photo made in this...

http://www.vvvvolendam.nl/index.php?id=637

 

Regarding other ports, as mentioned, tell us which ones you will go to.