Shore excursions St Petersburg

[room with a view]

Hi,

 

We are going on RCI Jewel of the Seas Baltic cruise in July.

 

The RCI excursions are very expensive. Has anyone used Alla tours?

 

Recommendations ? Problems ?

 

thanks:)

[DataStar]

On our cruise to St. Petersburg on Jewel, we contacted the three agencies that seem to have the right to handle group visas. Ultimately, we chose Denrus, and had 10 people from the Cruise Critic boards join our group. I have to say we were very happy. One example was their idea that when we visited Peterhof, the bus would take us there and immediately return to St. Petersburg. At the end of the tour, we walked to the pier and took a scheduled hydrofoil which brought us back to right near the State Hermitage museum, where our bus was waiting. The 30 minute boat ride gave us a different view of the area, and we avoided the hour and a half ride through traffic. Our guide, as it turns out, had been a docent at the Hermitage and gave us a great tour. We would use that company again if the opportunity arose.

[mpbmark]

I used Alla a couple of years ago. I put together a tour over 2 days and then posted the itinerary on the roll call. It was a combination tour I put together with her help. Ultimately ended up with about 14 people and we could not have been happier. She was very responsive and I can't recommend her highly enough.

[room with a view]

Thanks for your quick reply.

 

We are very new to cruising- this will be our second !!!!- previously on Brilliance.

We will check out Denrus - and hopefully through CC meet others doing the Baltic cruise.

 

thanks

[Hebersgyll]

What date in July (or August?) will you be in St Petersburg? Have you seen my posts about shore excursions in the Roll Call for 28 July 2009? (on the 28 July departure we will be in St Petersburg on 3rd & 4th August

 

Small group escorted tours seem to be the way to go to provide optimum flexibility (eg in relation to weather - Peterhof gardens & fountains not much fine in driving rain?) and convenience (eg choose a civilised depart & return time) but there seems to be a critical size of group needed to make this work so that it costs no more than a less flexible arrangement with Denus, Alla or Red October. We are looking at Alex's tour guides but need to find a few more to join us to make it viable.

[suzyluvs2cruise]

We used Alla Tours for a fantastic tour in St Petersburg last year. Alla was easy to work with, responsive to all emails and provided us with a great tour guide, Angie and driver, Dimitri.

 

We had a group of 12 that came from our Cruise Critic Roll Call. We did the Strenuous Tour and it exceeded everyone's expectations. If you don't have a group from your Roll Call you can post on the Alla website message board and try to put a group together from there. http://www.alla-tour.com/

 

Here's a link to the Roll Call for your cruise. http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=804510

 

There might be others who are looking to go on a private tour there or in any of the other wonderful ports you will be visiting.

 

If you have any more questions I'll be happy to try and answer them.

[Nancynurse]

We used Alla tours...we had a blast. We designed our own tour as we had teenage boys. Would use her again in a second!

 

Nancy

[room with a view]

RCI excursions are sooooo expensive.

 

I have looked at two companies who offer excursions - Denrus and Alla

 

Has anyone had any problems with these companies?

 

RCI state that they will wait for an excursion if it is late and has been booked by them - if you are on another tour they could sail without you !!!

 

Are these companies reliable ? thanks

[SomeBeach]

Used Denrus a few yrs ago in St Pete. They assisted the person that made our ressies to allow the right amount of time for all we wanted to do.

The guide and driver were very courteous and we had no trouble understanding the guide.

 

Learn how to say the word for thank you and they will be impressed. ;)

I know how to say it but I can't spell it for you, sorry.

[room with a view]

We are going on the July 16th sailing from Harwich and will be in St Petersburg 22nd & 23rd July.

 

I have added our names to the roll call - looking forward to hearing from other Baltic cruisers.

 

Apologies if you see a similar worded post - I duplicated the question ! - we are newbies on CC.

 

Thanks

[room with a view]

Thanks , Micki

 

We will probably go with Denrus - now we need more people to join the

 

roll call !! :)

[rdhnd]

Denrus was a great tour company.... two days of nonstop action.

Not sure the going rate now but I seem to recall it was about $350 PP for both days and the guide spoke great english and was college educated. The price included lunch also.

 

RDHND

[Cheerysmom]

Hi - Another vote for Denrus . . . We just returned a few days ago from Scandinavia/Russia and used Denrus. They were terrific and the itinerary was perfect. I would use them again in a heartbeat. We had Michale as our guide and he was awesome.

By booking their 2 day value tour we saved much time and money ... it was all-inclusive; visa, tickets, lunch - even the subway token!

 

Have a wonderful time.

Paula

[SomeBeach]

Thanks , Micki

 

We will probably go with Denrus - now we need more people to join the

 

roll call !! :)

 

That would be spaseebo. ;) If you break it down, that will tell you how to say it..... spa-see-bo.

I called my Russian friend for spelling.

[mickfoxland]

we used denrus

very good

we went on the value/budget tour for 2 days

2 days isn't long enough, and it's a rush to get it all in, but very worth it

we paid dollars when we got there

some pics on our webshot site if you want a look

 

http://community.webshots.com/user/mcahirst

[room with a view]

and thanks to mickFoxland - loved your photos.

 

Counting the days now .......:)

[Catcar]

Just back from 5/16 Princess cruise to the Baltic. Did Alla's Complete tour, which she put together for us with a driver and tour guide, both excellent. We were 14 on a small van, easy to manuever in the bad traffic. The "Complete Tour" gave us that hydrofoil ride back from Peterhoff and included early entry to the Hermitage. Head sets were included both days, a wonderful way to hear the guide without having to stick like glue. We were back in time for our 6 pm fixed dinner both nights. A Princess tour delayed our 6 pm ship's departure by over an hour. Strongly recommend Alla Tours.

[Maksim]

Catcar,

 

Did you have any problems disembarking in St. Petersburg since you took a private tour? We are booked on the July 25th sailing on Emerald and also doing private tour with SPB. There are several postings advising that Princess is trying to push through the passengers booked on the cruise ship tours first and delay those booked with private tours. Some advise came through to be aggressive and don't listen to the cruise ship directions, ect. etc. Please share your experience. Anyone else welcome to provide feedback. Thank you. Helen from Los Angeles.

[DomerCruisers]

We just returned from the May 9, 2009 Celebrity Century Baltic cruise that had a 2 day stay in St Petersburg. A CC group of 15 took a 2 day tour from SPB Tours. We were very satisfied with the tour experience.

 

 

We docked at the new cruise terminal, new but empty. Russian officials were proper, but not quick. The first exit took time for them to process our visas. The return back to the ship at the end of the first day was also slow.

 

 

Our tour, however, was wonderful. Luba, our tour guide and an art history major, was exceptional. Once she got used to our group’s (American) humor, she was able to interact with lively discussions and kept the tour on time, without anyone feeling rushed. She was able to show us the major points of interest at the fascinating palaces and was able to teach us all more about Russian history along the way.

 

We had a tour of the Winter Palace, Hermitage, the Peterhof, a subway ride, and the Youssopov palace. Unfortunately, high water kept us from the hydrofoil trip. The coach was mid-sized, clean, and very secure. We left our extra valuables in the coach. The driver stayed with the coach at all times.

 

 

Rather than spend way too much time at lunch, we ate at cafeterias with light sandwiches - nothing heavy. Be prepared to exchange about $10-18 USD into rubles for lunch (per person per lunch). These little places did not take credit cards. The ship was able to do the exchange. Most of the souvenier stores took euros, dollars, or rubles (and cards).

 

 

Rather than the typical shopping trip, we asked Luba to take us to a regular Russian supermarket. I think she thought we were somewhat crazy, but we all had a wonderful time. We were in a very modern big box store on a very busy Saturday, but Luba was able to navigate our group from vodka, to caviar, to candy, and St Petersburg sparkling wine - all with good humor – and her raised flower. What a great time.

 

Our two day tour was the highlight of our cruise. We received great value for the money. We highly recommend SPB tours. She also does tours of Berlin.

[mandy girl]

Helen fro Los Angeles + catcar

We are leaving June 14th and are also wondering how the disembarkment proceeded in St petersburg. we booked with Denrus.

Mandy Girl

[Badly Drawn Boy]

Hi,

 

We are going on RCI Jewel of the Seas Baltic cruise in July.

 

The RCI excursions are very expensive. Has anyone used Alla tours?

 

Recommendations ? Problems ?

 

thanks:)

 

HI Room

 

We are on the same cruise but dont have the pack showing excursions yet , i think i read it can be 20 to 50 days before you sail

 

This is our 4th cruise and as far as i remember , they always arrived well in advance

 

Will come back on when i see whats what

 

R

[room with a view]

Hi our sailing date from Harwich is July 16th - are you travelling that date ?:)

[Lanalei]

How strenuous is the DenRus two day value tour? My husband walks at a moderate pace and has trouble climbing stairs. Do you think it would be doable for us? We don't have a group and a think DenRus quoted somewhere around $1100 for a private two day tour.

 

Thanks for any info.

 

Lynda

[ellie109]

Dear Domer Cruisers,

We too are going on the Celebrity Century. How was the ship? And what days are the formal nights? I want to make a reservation in Murano, but don't want to miss anything in the dining room. Also, did you stay in St. P for the folk show at night? Or do they have anything on the ship at night? I'm looking for someone to share a trip in St.P on Aug 7 & 8, but can't seem to find anyone!!

Thanks,

Ellen

[United Danney]

2 adults 2 kids (11 & 14) looking into alla, Anastasia, SPB & Denrus. Besides all the good I've read, is there any 'not so good' experiences with any on my list?