hallasm

As long as you have a proper russian visa for entry in St. Petersburg you can take the ferry from Stockholm or Helsinki. Alternative is a flight - same rules will apply.

No cruise line - only ferry lines !

St Petersburg ferry port in Russia is served by a number of ferry routes from Helsinki, Tallinn & Stockholm
Sailing durations range from 13 hours from Helsinki to 40 hours from Stockholm.

ETIAS is not a visa - it is a travel authorization system  similar to other visa waivers like the well-known US ESTA. And the '90 days rule' will not be changed however the ETIAS will be valid for three years and cost is €7 - much more favorable that ESTA!

When Europeans (and others) are traveling to USA today we need to apply for an ESTA prior to arrival into US and pay $14 - Form 2021 similar system will be in place for Europe (Schengen Area to be more specific) - It will not impact cruising industry and I doubt that cruise lines have to care at all - might be if cruises are starting outside Schengen (UK is not part of Schengen) and visiting ports in the Schengen Area- but not sure.

You just need to apply for your ETIAS prior to traveling  and pay the €7 - then you can travel to Europe for three years before you need another authorization - but not more that 90 days within 180 days window.

Not yet for Ålesund.

New legislation is proposed for 2020 for reduced emissions and discharges and a cleaner environment in the heritage Fjords: Nærøyfjord, Aurlandsfjord, Geirangerfjord, Sunnylvsfjord and Tafjord.

I were sailing January (Hurtigruten) but probably not any difference. Saw the lights three times from the ship when sailing.

57 minutes ago, Globaliser said:

For years, SeatGuru was warning about possible limited recline in the last row of World Traveller Plus (premium economy) cabins on British Airways.

Several examples where SeatGuru not being accurate - likely limited recline but for sure no extra leg room and close to galley and lavatories - anyway row 60 IMO is a bad options.

Not a problem if you stay at a hotel accessible by taxi and go to the Cruise terminal by taxi.

 - problem only if you want to take the water bus and/or staying at a hotel In Venice only accessible by boat.

Yes, this will be the end of ‘cruise ships of today’ sailing all the way to Geiranger and probably also to Flåm.

Norwegian Cruise companies operating along the Norwegian Coast (Hurtigruten and Havila Kystruten) will have ships with a combination of liquefied natural Gas and battery propulsion by 2021 - likely to set the standard for other cruise ships allowed to sail in the Norwegian Fjords after 2026.

Singapore is great place to start a Southeast Asia cruise. Singapore is a nice city and close to Indonesia, Cambodia, Vietnam, Malaysia, Thailand and India.
I have done a number of cruises out of Singapore - Below links to reviews from two of my cruises as well as a link to a cruise from Singapore to Hong Kong end of March.
My favourites are Penang in Malaysia. Bali and all Vietnam ports.
Hope you can find some inspiration.

Celebrity Millennium cruise from Singapore
Links to videos and pictures from all ports of call and Celebrity Millennium.
Cruise Ports:
Departing from Singapore; Lombok, Indonesia; Komodo, Indonesia; Benoa, Bali, Indonesia; Port Klang, Malaysia; Penang, Malaysia; Phuket, Thailand; Singapore.

Repositioning from Singapore to Barcelona  - Spice route and Suez Canal.
The ports of call did include Singapore, George Town, Penang, Malaysia; Cochin and Mumbai in India; Dubai; Cruising Suez Canal; Piraeus, Greece; and Valletta, Malta; and Barcelona.
Review has  links to additional information about sights, and shopping in ports of call.

Eight night Singapore to Hong Kong cruise with Voyager of the Seas.
Four stops in Vietnam: Ho Chi Minh City (Phu My), Nha Trang, Hue/Danang (Chan May) and Hanoi (Halong Bay).
I hope to update my blog daily with with my daily activities, photos and videos.
After the cruise I will make a full review with pictures and videos.
 

Yes, Aarhus is easy walkable- from the pier to Den Gamble By is 20 minutes - entrance fee to Den Gamle By is $20 - same for Aros. So 50$ is a good deal. 

For one day in Aarhus I’ll not consider Moesgaard except if they do have an exhibition of certain interest to you.

I have not been sitting at row 60 - doubt  there is more space - Seat Guru is rating row 60 as bad seats -

51 minutes ago, suzyluvs2cruise said:

We will stay 1 nt post cruise in Dubai and would appreciate any recommendations on a good area to stay in Dubai. 

I prefer to stay close to the old souks and the Creek in the Deira area. Usually at the JW Marriott.

52 minutes ago, suzyluvs2cruise said:

Also any private tour recommendations are appreciated.

I normally book ship excursions in that ‘part of the world’ - have experienced being delayed return  - don’t want to have that experience at a private tour.

I do always explorer Dubai on my own - taxi, walking and crossing the Creek by the Abra’s

Unfortunately “married to Marriott” so I have not stayed at Hotel Flora - however, should be a great hotel located in a nice area. Recommended to study the instructions well - easy to get lost in the very narrow straits.

Even better. Yes, 1:20 from San Marco - we did once take the Waters Bus from Ospedale  - missed the 'bus' at San Marco - 20 minutes walk from San Marco - then it was only 40 minutes to airport - might be too long with luggage after a cruise.

Enjoy Venice. Don't miss a Traghetto ride across the canal.

On 2/27/2019 at 4:22 PM, ApolloBeachRetiree said:

I have pretty much decided to take an Alilaguna.

My preferred way of travel - just remember that it will take 1 hour 45 minutes. Alilaguna stop is next to the cruise terminal 

1 hour ago, CruiserBruce said:

And, no, cruise line excursions will not always get you back on time. They can be late as well, and the ship will make every effort to wait. But they aren't "always" on time.

We were almost two hours late at a Lombok excursion - one of the first cruise ships to visit Lombok at a day with extremely bad traffic.

I have also been several hours delayed out of Santos,, Brazil due to a late tour.

45 minutes ago, sumiandkage said:

but unless there's a mechanical emergency, you can't just get a quick permission to reroute to the north in their territory. 

As long as there is an armed conflict between India and Pakistan and fighters are being shot down in the area, I do not expect civilian airplanes to overfly the conflict areas - i hope they have learned the lessons from  when Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 (MH17) from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur was shot down on 17 July 2014 while flying over eastern Ukraine,

It’s an easy  walk from airport arrival to the pier - if you hotel is located close to a Alilaguna water bus stop it might also be an option - quite fun ride for €15 pp.

Thank you so much for sharing your experience.

Know that waters - Stadthavet Sea from Måløy to Torvik and  Hustadvika Sea between Molde to Kristiansund - just south and north of Ålesund can be rough if stormy weather - for planning it's good to know what the consequences of stormy weather might be.

3 hours ago, FlyerTalker said:

Not really, I would think.

 

Flights are already avoiding Afghan airspace, and the Pakistani closures shouldn't really be affecting flights into BKK or SIN.

 

You might want to look at the Great Circle Mapper for more info on great circle routings between points on the globe.  Very informative and entertaining.

 

www.gcmap.com

 

 

I'm soon flying to SIN myself and would not rely on gcmap information in the current situation. My advise is to contact the airline if you are flying from Europe to either BKK or SIN (or other Southeast Asia airport) today or during the weekend.

Below some Singapore and Thai Air examples from February 27 - sure airlines will resume operation to/from Europe very soon however some delays could be expected.

Singapore Air to London
SQ308 operating from Singapore to London on 27 February 2019 will stop in Dubai for re-fuelling before proceeding to London.
SQ318 operating from Singapore to London on 27 February 2019 will stop in Mumbai for re-fuelling before proceeding to London.

Singapore Air to Frankfurt
SQ326 operating from Singapore to Frankfurt on 27 February will stop in Mumbai for re-fuelling before proceeding to Frankfurt.

Thai Airways

Three flights operate though Pakistani airspace February 27 areas as follows:

- Flight TG916 from Bangkok-London
- Flight TG974 from Bangkok-Moscow
- Flight TG926 from Bangkok-Frankfurt

The above-mentioned flights were returned to Bangkok and arrived safely at Suvarnabhumi Airport February 27.

The following flights from destinations in Europe to Bangkok on 27 February 2019 have been cancelled:
-    Flight TG911 from London-Bangkok
-    Flight TG921 from Frankfurt-Bangkok
-    Flight TG931 from Paris-Bangkok
-    Flight TG941 from Milan-Bangkok
-    Flight TG945 from Rome-Bangkok
-    Flight TG971 from Zurich-Bangkok
-    Flight TG951 from Copenhagen-Bangkok
-    Flight TG961 from Stockholm-Bangkok
-    Flight TG955 from Oslo-Bangkok
-    Flight TG925 from Munich-Bangkok
 

All Pakistani airspace has been closed forcing many international flights between Europe and Southeast Asia to be re-routed.

Flights might be cancelled or delayed from February 27 - flights might also make refuelling stops en route before proceeding to their destinations.

Check you flights if flying to/from Europe and primarily Malaysia, Thailand and Singapore.

In view of the closure of Pakistani airspace, flights between Europe and Southeast Asia might be cancelled or delayed from February 27 - flights might also make refuelling stops en route before proceeding to their destinations.

Check you flights if flying to/from Europe and primarily Thailand and Singapore.

If you are leaving the Schengen Area to visit a country outside Schengen the clock will be stopped when outside the Schengen Area.

Remember that you’ll need a multiple entry Visa (if Visa required for Schengen)  if you are leaving Schengen and want to go back into the Schengen Area.

The 26 Schengen countries are: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.

The Schengen visa allows the holder to a total stay of up to 90 days within a period of 6 months for tourist or business purposes - you may leave and return any number of times within the 180-day period, but the combined stay within the region must not total more than 90 days.

An option might be to purchase a SIM card for data roaming - can be used all over Europe when ashore and great for WhatsApp- you - might also buy a Cruise ship WiFi plan.

in many locations you’ll also find WiFi available - cafes and cruise pier.

Vesselbo Emergency Codes is standardized to a certain extent 

• Alpha Team, Alpha Team, Alpha Team is the code for a fire emergency aboard Carnival Cruise Line ships.
• Alpha, Alpha, Alpha is the code for Medical Emergency aboard Royal Caribbean ships.
• Assemble at Muster Stations, seven or more short blasts on the ship's whistle and general alarm, followed by one long blast.
• Bravo, Bravo, Bravo, used by many cruise lines to alert crew to a fire or other serious incident on board without alarming passengers.
• Charlie, Charlie, Charlie is the code for a security threat aboard Royal Caribbean ships and the code for upcoming helicopter winch operations aboard c-bed accommodation vessels.
• Code Blue usually means a medical emergency.
• Delta, Delta, Delta is the code for a possible bio-hazard among some cruise lines.
• Echo, Echo, Echo is the code for a possible collision with another ship or the shore aboard Royal Caribbean ships. On board some cruise lines this means danger of high winds while at port. It alerts the crew responsible for the gangway, thrusters etc... to get into position and be ready for new maneuvers.
• Fire and emergency, continuous ringing of the general alarm bell for ten seconds and a continuous sounding of the ship's whistle for ten seconds.
• Kilo, Kilo, Kilo on Royal Caribbean is a general signal for crew to report to emergency stations.
• Mr Mob means man overboard. Man overboard can also be signaled with three prolonged blasts on the ship's whistle and general alarm bell (Morse code "Oscar").
• Mr Skylight paged over the PA system is an alert for the crew on board and means there is a minor emergency somewhere.
• Oscar, Oscar, Oscar is the code for Man Overboard aboard Royal Caribbean ships.
• Purell, Purell, Purell followed by a location is for cleanup (vomit) on Celebrity ships.
• Red Parties, Red Parties, Red Parties, used by Disney Cruise Line over the PA system to alert the crew of a fire or possible fire on board the ship. The message is immediately followed by information about where the fire is.
• Star Code, Star Code, Star Code is a code for Medical Emergency aboard Celebrity ships.
• Zulu, Zulu, Zulu is the code for a fight aboard most cruise lines.