nycfa

Awesome!!  Can't wait to follow along!  Have a wonderful cruise  (Also excited to see someone NOT in YC reviewing!  Thanks)

Thanks for the review!   We go in July.  🙂

Following along....

Question:

Did you change your clocks at all during the cruise or did you stay on "ship time" aka Miami time the whole cruise?  

Trying to book some independent excursions and wanted to make sure I had the times correct   Thanks!

Going in July.......wondering.....how was getting the tenders in Grand Cayman?  

We need to be off early (not a cruise ship excursion) and wondering how efficient they are with tender tickets etc.....

Used TJ Travel last July and the Visa's were taken care of by the tour company......we were able to get early admitted to Hermitage thankfully cause the lines were SUPER long!

Also on the NCL Breakaway and they did let off Ship Tours first but TJ knew that so they adjusted our start/end times so we got off later.     Customs took about 30-40 minutes to clear once you were off.    

FYI your tour ticket serves as your Visa for customs.  

St. Petersburg is amazing and was one of the highlights of our trip!

We went in July and toured with TJ Travel.      Took NO rubles and never needed any.

Paid either with Credit Card or US Dollars.

My husband even bought a Soda off at cart in front of St. Catherine's Palace with US Dollars.    Said they guy didn't even hesitate when he asked.  No issues.  

What about the menus... at complimentary restaurants? Do you have pics of them?

 

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Sorry no....we ate at the buffet for almost every meal but one.

nycfa

 

I just started reading your review as we will be doing the same cruise next year on the Getaway leaving July 13. I haven't read everything yet but for any of the countries did you need to get visa's? Great review.

Thanks

 

Bob

We did not need Visa for anywhere.

However in Russia you MUST be booked on an organized tour either thru the cruise line or a licensed Russian tour operator (we used TJ Travel). The tour ticket is your “Visa” for getting on and off the ship.

If you wish to just get off and explore on your own in Russia (not really recommend) you would need to apply for a Visa for that (pricey and time consuming).

Does delta fly nonstop from jfk to copenhagen? If so, is it on a code share airline like air france or klm?

Or is it a regular delta flight?

Delta flies Non Stop JFK - Copenhagen seasonally ( basically all of cruise season)

Not a code share flight...it’s on Delta Metal. 767 or 757 depending on the day of the week. :)

hi nycfa,

 

 

thank you for your trip report!

My kids and I loved the trip, as well. What a lot to see in such a short time! We are home now, needing a vacation to recover from our vacation. It was definitely a busy itinerary with a lot to see and do. Amazing!

 

I am in a bit of hot water, though, so wondered if you might be able to help..

 

Did you happen to buy the embarkation photo that had the map, itinerary, ship facts around the small photo taken at embarkation?

 

I was supposed to do so, but when I got home, it saw it was not included in the 20 picture package that I bought. My traveling companion was quite disappointed. If I could get a copy of the surround, I could replace the inset photo with one of ours. If I could get it from the ship, I would, but there is no communication channel to the onboard photographers, so I thought I would see if a fellow cruise-critic member could hep me out and send me a digital version of it.

 

 

Thanks!

Julie

Hi Julie!

I know which one you are talking about but we didn't purchase that photo. I'm sorry what a bummer! Good luck finding it!! Maybe google image search?

So how much rubles do you recommend getting? We usually don't shop but may get a souvenir or two. I like drinking beer so how much does a beer cost typically? Most of the time in other ports I usually bring around $50 to $100 or so. Is that amount converted to rubles typically enough? Are things crazy expensive there?

We brought NO Rubles and never needed any. We either paid by CC or they took US Dollars.

 

We really packed totally wrong, I only had 1 pair of shorts, the others 2, I had packed light jackets and raincoats for all and we never used them. I needed more shorts and tank tops or sleeveless tops. People were dressed as if it were the Caribbean. the heat was really something plus the humidity...we are not used to the humidity here in CA, so it was really hard to tolerate....

So we are from New York so its interesting how coming from CA you felt it was humid and I have been telling everyone how yes it was hot but thankfully it wasn't humid. LOL Guess its all relative to what you are use to!

All that being said...yes bring shorts! Thankfully we had brought plenty on our trip the week before...my fleece jacket never came out of the suitcase! LOL

Great review! We are going in 3 weeks! Your review is helpful! We are doing the FoD in Warnemunde, Tallin DIY, using Alla Tours for St Pete and Stockholm. I plan to do the Escape Room too!

Couple of questions: (1) Did you use credit cards to buy things in various ports or did you get local currency? (1) We have OBC we want to use and was thinking of the HOHO Bus option in Helsinki offered by NCL. Did you notice if they were crowded? were there several buses at port ? Otherwise we will do Helsinki DIY.

Thank you!

 

Thank you!

Not OP but was on this a week before her: Currency....I used a Visa Card everywhere. The only place I used local currency was in Berlin at lunch we used some Euros. Otherwise it was all CC. In Russia my DH did use american dollars to buy a soda at a food cart by Catherine's Palace.

Hello! I was intrigued by your comment about mobility issues in Tallinn. I have bad knees, mostly manifested in difficulty navigating steps without handrails. I’m planning to do just as you did, take transportation to the top and walk down. I am taking walking sticks to be used as needed. Am I dreaming to think I’m going to be fine?

Thanks for your insight.

It's all cobblestone which makes for uneven ground....so that may or may not be an issue for you?

Walking sticks will help and going down is definitely easier then going up......

We were just there July 17/18 and it was very crowded at Catherine's Palace......

We had timed tickets but still had to wait to get in and then once in you had to wait to go from room to room.....

Luckily we were a private tour (4 plus Guide) so we were able to slip past some of the larger groups (our Guide would ask)

So I can totally understand the issues they are having....

Disappointing if you can't go but there are many other wonderful places to visit in SPB I'm sure whatever you see instead will be wonderful as well!

Thank you so much for your amazing review. We have a Baltic cruise booked for next year on the Sky leaving out of Stockholm 14 day ending in Southampton. We have never sailed any NCl big ships, so we opted for the SKY. My only reservation is that we have to fly one way to Stockholm , and one way form Southampton back to N.Y. Have you sailed any of NCL's smaller ships and could compare the Breakaway to one of their smaller ships. I would prefer to go and leave from same port. Any suggestions or comments appreciated. Again thank you for your photos and review.

So I went to look this up: It's the Spirit not the Sky but yes it's a smaller ship.......IMO looking at the itinerary I don't think the ship matters....you are in port every day but one sea day. Its a super port heavy cruise (I"m super jelly!). So the ship is a place to sleep/breakfast/dinner....not much time for much else! In a good way!! I have been on both large and small ships...I actually prefer the smaller ones. But mainly I look for where we are going vs the ship itself. :)

Also regarding flights: when you look for flights book multi city tickets vs. one way. It's usually (but not always) cheaper then two one way fare. Make sure to shop around and try out both ways to see what works.

Sounds like a wonderful trip!! :)

Thanks! We got the walking thing down. Been traveling since March and averaging 2.5 miles a day which is typically achieved by 5 miles every other day. We have asked the MIL to start walking but not sure whether she is or not so we shall see how she does.

 

Thanks again!

 

 

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Good plan!! My kids didn't listen to me and their feet paid for it! :')

We walked on this trip 8-10 miles a day.

Thanks fab, we have an excursion booked so we need to get out asap, any suggestions on how to get in that first group?

I booked a time on the Kiosk around 8;30 pm on the Germany day. I was able to get Group B at 8 am.

We went down to deck 7 around 7:30 am when they started letting people enter the theater.

NO ONE checked to actually see what letter you had.....

They just had you file inside and fill up all the rows and then let us out one row at a time.

We were off by 8:10 and in the van for our tour by 8:45 am.

Thanks for a super review. Were on the 27th August sailing and can't wait. We're also staying at the wake up in Copenhagen and your photos confirmed my fears on how small it is and that the bed is up against the wall! Hate that. Will have to suck it up for one night I guess!

Yes it was small but I'd totally stay there again. The bed was comfortable and it was VERY clean. Location is amazing! Plus the price...I got two rooms for two nights for what I would have paid for one room for one night at a different hotel.

Does the ship sail past the little islands i.e Stockholm archipelago even when it docks in nynashamn port. Really hope it goes past those islands it will be lovely to watch. Have booked for next year. The ship is supposed to dock in Stockholm but it seems it does not mostly. Thanks in advance

Not really. Thought I wasn't really paying attention when we set sail.

Thanks for all the details on your cruise. We leave on 9/8 for BA’s 9/14 departure. Now that you’re back home what are your thoughts on what to do? What not to do? Things you wished you’d taken or things you wished you hadn’t. In other words advice for Us future Breakaway Baltic Cruisers!

 

Thanks again!

 

 

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You will have a great trip but be ready to be TIRED! Its a fun be exhausting trip with a lot of walking involved.

Make sure you start walking NOW so your legs and feet are ready. Break in any shoes you will be wearing BEFORE you leave.

Bring Band Aids for blisters and I wish I had brought Bio Freeze or Tiger Balm for sore muscles. My kids had achey legs.

Don't expect to have too much time of the ship.....I feel like I barely saw it as the port days were long. By the time we finally got on the ship I just wanted to kick back and relax. :)

I am loving your fantastic review. You have confirmed that I chose right with TJ tours. I AGONIZED for weeks as to which tour would be the best. Now for a few quick questions. Most important, did you go to the ABBA museum in Stockholm?!! I'm on the fence regarding a hop-on-hop-off tour in Stockholm now after reading about the long lines to get into the museums. How far away is the port from Stockholm? Did you need any currency in any of the ports? (I've read that SPB doesn't take CC).

We had a great time with TJ and highly recommend them!

ABBA Museum: No we did not. It was not included in the tour we took

HOHO Bus in Stockholm: One did come to the port to collect pax as I saw it BUT it's a 50 min ride to Stockholm plus the lines were super line everywhere we went Honestly with out a tour getting into museums is going to be a challenge. The tour groups had a separate entrance.

Currency: I used a credit card (Visa) everywhere. The only place us used local currency was Berlin for our lunch. SPB took CC everywhere we went. My husband did buy a soda at a stand outside Catherines Palace and they took his american dollar no problem.

About 10:20 am we saw the Delta Check In had been set up so we made our way over and managed to be one of the first in line. After answering security questions and showing our passports to the personal in line we made our way to the luggage drop.

We checked in our bags and made our way to security. Security was busy and it took awhile to get thru, Shoes can stay on but liquids and electronics must be pulled out separately.

Now depending on where you are flying to you may or may not have to go thru passport control. Flying back to the states we did have to go thru passport control which involved another line which again was quiet long!

So watch your time so you don't have to run to the gate if the lines are long at passport control.

Soon we made our way to our gate and boarded the plane:

Real Looks of Sadness to go home :')

Untitled by Sis, on Flickr

Our Ride:

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Our Goofy Family Shot on Board:;)

Untitled by Sis, on Flickr

Too soon our cruise was coming to an end!

After much research and internal debated I decided to purchase the NCL Cruise Transfers to the Airport prior to departing on our cruise. Taxis are sometimes an issue at the port. Some reports say there are plenty of them....some reports say up to an hour wait. I decided skip the stress and just take the NCL bus and call it a day! It was $25 per person so $100 for the 4 of us and its about a 45 min drive to the airport.

We had received a letter and our bag tags (Brown 2) the night before stating we would be called to get off the ship around 8 am.

Before 11 pm we put out all the luggage minus our backpacks and anything we needed in the morning (Don't forget to leave out clothes! :'))

One of the nice things with the NCL transfer you don't have to collect your baggage at the pier. It's taken direct to a the airport and placed in a large white tent where they drop you off, you collect it and make the short walk over to the terminal. Luggage carts are available there and lots of folks to help direct you.

FYI regardless of how you get to the airport or hotel or where ever you are doing there is NO CUSTOM in Copenhagen when the ship arrives back into port. Yup you just walk right off!

In the morning after breakfast at the Garden Cafe we went back to our stateroom to wait for the call for Brown 2 which came around 7:30 am. We made our way off the ship with the sad final ding as security swiped our key card. :(

We walked out to the buses to the airport which they just fill as pax arrive and once it's full the send it on its way to the airport. We were the last 4 pax on our bus so we left as soon as we sat down.

It was a Sunday morning so traffic was quite light and we arrived at the airport quickly.

We made our way over to Terminal 2 where you could check in at a Kiosk if you hadn't already done so. We asked and found out where the Delta check in would be and what time it would open....3 hrs prior to departure which was at 1:30 pm so 10:30 pm. We had 2 hrs to kill.

We went out the side entrance in the shade with our luggage (the check in terminal was warm and crowded). We made a little camp and hooked up to the Airport Wifi and waited..

Untitled by Sis, on Flickr