Recent St. Petersburg Experience

[reiken]

My wife and I just returned from a 12 day Baltic cruise (RC, Jewel of the Seas, departed Harwich, UK, May 29). We booked a private tour for St. Petersburg and, like many other Cruise Critic members, were apprehensive about the possibility of the cruise line interfering with our private tour in favor of their own excursions. I wanted to recap our experience so that others headed there this season may rest easy!

 

Everything went incredibly smooth and Royal Caribbean did not give any indication of interfering with guests on private tours. We arrived in St. Petersburg at 7am and had passed through immigration and met our guide by 7:20am. In reality, St. Petersburg worked like any other port with a small number of us gathering near the exit while they tied up the ship. As soon as it was cleared, the staff politely told us to have a nice day in town and we were off the boat before we knew it.

 

RC did give priority to their Moscow excursion. However, this group (less than 20 people) was escorted off the ship prior to clearance and they were through immigration and gone before we got there. They did not slow us down at all.

 

In addition, it appears Russian immigration processes have changed (for the better) this season. Here I will present only the facts of our experience as I have not been able to verify any official changes:

 

1. Both our ship and tour operator told us we would need tour tickets and copies of our passports. However, we only needed to present our passports with our completed immigration cards. Immigration did not require a copy of our passports or evidence of a tour booked with an authorized provider.
   
2. Our passports were stamped and we were given reusable cardboard "cruise passenger shore pass" cards. These cards did not mention any restrictions (i.e. the need to stay with our guide, etc). Subsequent entrances/exits through immigration were very fast as the agent just looked for the stamp and issued us a shore pass.
   
3. Our tour guide told us recent changes in Russian immigration regulations allow cruise passengers to enter the country without a visa. However, I can't confirm this through any official source. If anyone has info please post it so others may get the scoop.
   
4. Taxis were waiting outside the terminal looking for business. Previous forum posts indicated this would not be the case at this port.
   

I hope this helps those of you planning for this wonderful destination. Please feel free to post any additional questions.

[Nancipants]

One question regarding disembarking: were the procedures the same every day you were in port?

[reiken]

Generally, yes. After we went through the first time and we received our stamp, we would pretty much move freely through immigration for the rest of our time there.

 

We came back to the ship for dinner, went out to the ballet at night, came back at midnight, left again at 7am. Each time it took about 5 seconds for the agent to flip through our passport and verify it had been stamped. It looked like they were stamping the back page if possible so the agents all knew where to look in order to speed up the process.

 

Hope this helps.

[GuideDiva]

The local policy requires a ticket or voucher, although they are seldom inspected except to notice which logo it has so as to tell them which tour operator list to look on for the matching passport name and passport number. If you did not offer or at least show it to reveal who was sponsoring you, that is quite unusual.

 

The copy of the passport had been needed for several years to speed up processing allowing the immigration officials to enter your information regarding your entry without while you are off on your tour. It is still required in the Cargo port but not in the new V.O. passenger terminal. The result is the cargo port with fewer inspection booths are faster in clearing passengers.

The reason you are strongly advised to have the copy is because local policies change often and also ships get rerouted with little notice so you might be arriving at the cargo port and need it regardless of where the dock schedule says.

 

No the card does not list restrictions, the laws are well known and you are bound by them regardless of whether a little card lists them. It is not for you, it is for officials if you are stopped to tell them you are a cruise passenger and have definite restrictions.

 

Of course you have to stay with your guide, you did not have a visa and were not tourists in the conventional sense according to current and historic laws. You were a conditional supervisioned guest. If you were found wandering alone and having no visa you would probably be detained or arrested for being an illegal immigrant.

 

No, there have been no changes in immigration law pertaining to cruise ship passengers. There has been a new law passed that given similar visa free entry to ferry passengers arriving in St Petersburg to that that cruise passengers have. The only problem with that is there are no ferries currently serving St Petersburg. The new law should encourage ferry service to start up again. I've taken overnight ferries from Helsinki that were like very nice cruise ships with modern comfortable cabins, spas, swimming pools, night clubs and restaurants but those stopped serving this port a few years ago.

 

You are confusing the passenger terminal with the cargo port concerning taxis. Taxis can approach the new V.O. passenger terminal but not the ships/docks at the cargo port, which is still restricted in access as a high security area.

[reiken]

Thanks for the clarifications - this makes senses. I think our guide offered us confusing information when she said that immigration laws had changed this season.

 

Regardless of whether our experience was related to recent changes or not, I wanted to highlight that it was not nearly as bad as we were told to expect!

[ellie109]

reiken, out of curiosity, which tour company did you use in st. P , and were you happy with them?

[reiken]

We used Red October and, like many other people on the boards, had an excellent experience with them. I'd specifically like to commend Anastasia, who coordinated our itinerary; Marina our guide; and Vladimir our driver.

 

I would highly recommend RO.

[Caseydown]

Your experience brings to mind something I saw while surfing, namely that rules were changed so that passengers both entering and leaving by cruise ship, and staying fewer than 72 hours, would be permitted entry without a visa. This is similar to the rules in Turkey, for instance. As we've arranged guided excursions I did not follow up to verify. Anyone else pick this up?

[LHT28]

Your experience brings to mind something I saw while surfing, namely that rules were changed so that passengers both entering and leaving by cruise ship, and staying fewer than 72 hours, would be permitted entry without a visa.

 

It was for people arriving by ferry from Scandinavian countries not cruise ship passengers.

 

Lyn

[Cruise Addicts]

We also had a good experience in St Petersburg, however, a representative from Celebrity did try and make us wait in the longer line of "independent tours" even though they had put a sign for "Celebrity tours" on another immigration counter that didn't have people in it. Someone in our group confronted them about it, and then went in the shorter line. The Russian immigration people just smiled and passed him through. So I guess it depends on your cruise line.

[room with a view]

Thanks for the information. I am sure it will help others who are sailing into St Petersburg over the next few weeks.

 

Which tour operator did you use ?

 

thanks

[room with a view]

Sorry about that - I did not scroll down to Red October !!!:o

[cruiser4242]

I am planning on this cruise next year. Did you have a balcony cabin? I wonder if it's worth it, since you are in a city almost everyday. Did you tour on your own, except for St. Petersburg? Do you have a report on your cruise anywhere?

Any info you can give me would be greatly appreciated!! Thank you. :cool:

[LucyH]

A new law gives similar visa free entry to ferry passengers arriving in St Petersburg. The only problem is that there are no ferries currently serving St Petersburg.

 

I'm keen to know how the new law will work. If and when cruiseferry services begin, will their passengers have to be accompanied by licensed guides at all times?

 

If they are staying for the full 72 hours permitted by the new law, the passengers will presumably be staying in hotels, because cruiseferries sail away again as soon as possible.

[Dave and Micha]

I am planning on this cruise next year. Did you have a balcony cabin? I wonder if it's worth it, since you are in a city almost everyday. Did you tour on your own, except for St. Petersburg? Do you have a report on your cruise anywhere?

Any info you can give me would be greatly appreciated!! Thank you. :cool:

 

The balcony cabin is definitely worth it, but do not bother paying for concierge class! For example, sailing into Stockolmand sitting on your blacony sipping coffee is one of the highlights of our cruise experiences! As we sailed from STP it was so cool to stand on our balcony with a glass of wine and realize we were sailing past Peterhof. Even though it is port intensive, it is so nice to have your own little oasis. Hint, get a balcony on the port side.

 

Some cities are great to tour on your own, others, you will get a great benefit by booking a tour. There are super offers from independents and you will get better deals than by booking thru the cruise line. The major thing you should ask yourself for each city is...will I see and experience more alone or with a group? There are cities like Stockholm or Copenhagen where there is no language barrier... some of the other cities are different. There are so many possibilities from Warnemünde, for example, that having someone knowledgable could enhance your experience.

 

Be sure to check the length of tours to their costs and make sure that the fee includes admissions, food, taxes, etc. A good company will have 1 price for everything. It is a good rule of thumb to avoid people who ask for deposits ahead of time. Most good companies trust you and make payment upon arrival. Alla tours, the company we used in St Petersburg collected payment at the end of the second day. They are really super!!!! Hope that helps.

[fuzzyviews]

Great news

Now how did you get your guide? Did you have a car and driver as well?

What did all this cost

Thanks

Steve

[scooter1122]

we just returned from our cruise and we used Alla Tours in St.Petersburg.....we had a wonderful 1 day tour with Katherine...about 12 hours......just my husband and myself. it included a driver

We saw a lot

City Tour with a few stops and shopping

Spilt Blood (toured outside only as it is closed on Wed)

Catherine's Palace including the Amber Room

Peterhoff outside to tour the Fountains

Hydrofoil ride back to the city

Hermitage

Canal Boat Tour

 

We were on the go from 7:30 am to 7:30 PM

It was the highlight of our cruise!