Must see in each Baltic Port

Hi everyone!!!!!

Cruising on Princess to the Baltics next month, We decided the only stop we would get a sponsored tour was St Petersburg.

We decided we would try and spend time at one or two attractions on our own fro the rest of the ports. From everyone's experiences, which attraction in each port, would you highly recommend seeing? Ease of getting to the attraction? The ports are: Copenhagen, Oslo, Tailinn, Helsinki, Stockholm, and Warnemunde.

Thank you for all your help and suggestions!!!

Oslo= Akerhaus Fort walk across the road from the port

Warnemunde = walk along the seafront to the city centre

Tallin =take the bus or walk to the walled city

I would do some research & see what interests YOU

 

I would do some research & see what interests YOU

Totally agree. Each port you have mentioned is heavily discussed here, it just takes some effort to look around and do some reading.

"Must do" is what interests you, not what we tell you it is. So do what interests you!

Hi everyone!!!!!

 

Cruising on Princess to the Baltics next month, We decided the only stop we would get a sponsored tour was St Petersburg.

We decided we would try and spend time at one or two attractions on our own fro the rest of the ports. From everyone's experiences, which attraction in each port, would you highly recommend seeing? Ease of getting to the attraction? The ports are: Copenhagen, Oslo, Tailinn, Helsinki, Stockholm, and Warnemunde.

 

Thank you for all your help and suggestions!!!

Very subjective of course but IMHO:

Stockholm: Gamla Stan & Vasa (there are HOHO boats)

Warnemunde - take the train over to Rostock (train station is right next to cruise port) Molli Steam Train and/or Schwerin Castle are also easily reached and are quite nice

Tallinn - Old Town - easy to walk to the walled city from port (15-20 mins max)

I think it's legit to ask a list of people's favourites so that you have a starting point for your own research. Sometimes things are more interesting than they sound at first mention (the Vasa Museum? really? it's an old ship) and you need to be encouraged to go take a closer look. Sometimes it's things that get glossed over or even not mentioned because they're slightly further from the main tourist loop (Seurasaari in Helsinki or the Seaplane Harbour in Tallinn). Etc.

Copenhagen - National Museum of Denmark, specifically the prehistory exhibit; runner-up: canal boat tour

Oslo - Vigeland Sculpture Park; runner-up: Viking Ship Museum

Tailinn - walking tour of the Old Town; runner-up: Seaplane Harbour

Helsinki - Seurasaari Open-Air Museum; runner-up: Temppeliaukio Church in the Rock

Stockholm - Vasa Museum; runner-up: Gamla Stan

Warnemunde - Schwerin Castle; runner-up: walk along the waterfront

Most sights are easy to get to via public transit or HoHo (or walking), the exception being Seurasaari. (We went there with a guide.)

Thank you to all those so far that have responded. We have been extensively researching these ports for the last 6 months. As most of you know who are on these boards, you can be looking through threads for hours even days to get information. So I wanted to touch base with everyone trying to garner from those who have been there, what 1 or 2 things are a must to see before we go back and make the final decisions. Ease of getting to the attractions are also a concern. Thank you thank you!!!

Plus there might be some off the path place that someone has found and no one has talked about it. (thank you Trosebery!!!!)

I highly recommend the Rick Steves book, "Northern European Cruiseports". I found a wealth of information and a treasure trove of places to see by reading this book.

Anyway, here are the two top things I enjoyed in each of those ports:

Copenhagen - Copenhagen Free Walking Tour (Grand Tour) and Rosenborg Castle

Tallinn -- Rick Steves Walking Tour (in his book) and the Sweater Market at the city wall

Helsinki -- Suomenlinna Island via ferry and eating a korvapuustit at a sidewalk cafe

Stockholm -- Vasa Museum and the Free Walking Tour Stockholm

Warnemuende -- Renting bicycles to ride on the bike path to Kuehlungsborn and the Stasi Museum in Rostock

While all are worth seeing, St. Petersburg is a must! ;)

We did the Vigeland sculpture park then had a local guy pick us up to go fishing back in the fjords. It was so cool and so fun I highly recommend it

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You probably started the wrong way by "looking through threads for hours even days to get information". That should have been your last stop for specific info rather than your first for general info. It isn't the best use of your time IMHO.

We start with the shorex listed for our itinerary, not because we want to book them all, but because they give an initial overview of options.

We also use Tripadvisor (a partner company of CC) with lots of suggestions, photos and useful tips from those who visited sights/sites.

Other travel sites such as Fromer's. Rick Steves is a favourite if you are in the USA.

By the time you read these you should have an idea of what might interest you, not what might interest others.

On CC itself, look at the top for RESEARCH and scroll down to DESTINATIONS. They do not list every destination, but for those they do, you wil find info on where you are docked, what there is there, travel, what to do and see.

And WHATSINPORT again for info on where you are docked, what there is there, a handy calendar of cruise calls as the number of ships in that day can influence your decisions, and more.

And Tom's Port Guides. He has a number of port guides for cruise pax and although not a huge list, the info he shares is informative.

As for "hidden" or "off the beaten track" tips, try googling these words with the name of the place you will visit. There are usually lots of results to read through.

Once you decided what your plans will be, you can turn your attention to the forums to ask for or look for more specifics.

Hope these suggestions help. I know others will have different methods and resources for trip planning, but some of these could get you started with less time lost searching boards for generalities.

I forgot to mention the official Tourist Info websites for each location.

They often have a huge range of info on sights, local transport, maps and much more and are definitely worth checking out.

How did you set this up? This sounds so much fun!

We did the Vigeland sculpture park then had a local guy pick us up to go fishing back in the fjords. It was so cool and so fun I highly recommend it

 

 

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How did you set this up? This sounds so much fun!

It was one of the most fun things we did. I found them on trip advisor https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g190479-d8627955-Reviews-Oslo_Fjord_Boat_Fishing-Oslo_Eastern_Norway.html

the only bummer was that we couldn't keep the fish but it was a good time

one other thing that we didn't do but wished we had was an electric bike tour in Talinn. Some people that were on a Celebrity cruise did this and they said it was one of their best excursions. They went to the beach and weren't in town much but they said it made their trip

one of the highlights of our trip to the Baltics was the trip to Schwerin.

the town and the castle were very picturesque.

we caught the train after 9.00 am from Warnemunde to Rostock....had a quick look around Rostock and took the 11.00 am train to Schwerin.

lovely city and the castle gardens were also very nice.

took the 3.00 p, train back to Warnemunde and had time to walk around Warnemunde before boarding the ship.

Here is my proposal for a Day in Royal Copenhagen

Start the day with a Royal Copenhagen walking tour....

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... followed by the Guard Change at the Royal Castle at noon.

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Have your lunch in Nyhavn.....

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....and then a Canal Tour

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If time permits end your day in Tivoli Garden

rMPD-tVboWk

:D

Thank you!!!!

Here is my proposal for a Day in Royal Copenhagen

 

Start the day with a Royal Copenhagen walking tour....

PGQ-j39Kwng

 

... followed by the Guard Change at the Royal Castle at noon.

BKPTCLltnk4

 

Have your lunch in Nyhavn.....

9AonAQjtk-4

 

....and then a Canal Tour

scteUC-p-Kg

 

If time permits end your day in Tivoli Garden

rMPD-tVboWk

one of the highlights of our trip to the Baltics was the trip to Schwerin.

the town and the castle were very picturesque.

we caught the train after 9.00 am from Warnemunde to Rostock....had a quick look around Rostock and took the 11.00 am train to Schwerin.

lovely city and the castle gardens were also very nice.

took the 3.00 p, train back to Warnemunde and had time to walk around Warnemunde before boarding the ship.

Next month we will be staying at a Rostock hotel 1½ day before boarding our Baltic cruise in Rostock. We plan to spend ½ day in Rostock, and spend the next day (full day) in Schwerin. The train station is supposed to be less than 5 minutes’ away from our hotel.

I have a few questions:

• How long was the train ride from Rostock to Schwerin?
  
• Many stops in between?
  
• How often is there a train from Rostock to Schwerin?
  
• Is Schwerin’s train station a short walking distance to town? Much to do in town?
  
• How far walking distance from train station to the castle? Much to see in the castle?
  
• Can you use credit card to purchase the train ticket?
  
• How much was the train ticket?
  

Any input will be greatly appreciated!

* How long was the train ride from Rostock to Schwerin?

About 1 hour

* Many stops in between?

Yes

* How often is there a train from Rostock to Schwerin?

Not that often so need to check timetable especially if on a cruise port day

* Is Schwerin’s train station a short walking distance to town? Much to do in town?

Yes

* How far walking distance from train station to the castle? Much to see in the castle?

Perhaps 20 -25 minutes. Castle interior was closed on Monday but we enjoyed the gardens and the city

* Can you use credit card to purchase the train ticket?

Yes

* How much was the train ticket?

Check the Mecklenburg-Vorpommern-Ticket for this area .

you pay for one person and the others in your group pay additional 3Efor each person for an unlimited day pass on the trains after 9.00 am. the group must travel together.

Thank you so much for the information!

Of all the places I have been to in the World, one I had never even heard of but proved to be one of the most memorable. You have to see it to believe it - but you may not be able to understand it. I am certain that it could never be created today in the current PC climate Vigeland park in OSLO http://www.vigeland.museum.no/en/vigeland-park

Of all the places I have been to in the World, one I had never even heard of but proved to be one of the most memorable. You have to see it to believe it - but you may not be able to understand it. I am certain that it could never be created today in the current PC climate Vigeland park in OSLO http://www.vigeland.museum.no/en/vigeland-park

I'm curious why you think that. Is it because of the lack of ethnic diversity among the figures? Or because of the problematic history of Vigeland's German sympathies during WWII?

(The nudity wouldn't be an issue, since it's not such a taboo in Norwegian culture*, and there have been several more recent installations of nude statuary around the city.)

*as recently demonstrated by another thread

I'm curious why you think that.

It's not the nudity itself - it is the juxtaposition of nude old men with nude children!! Don't know about Norway - but I can imagine an artist in the country where I live approaching local authorities for some place to display his sculptures - which seem to mostly consist of naked old men and children :) I don't think it would fly at all!! :) On a similar note I am always amazed that Gaudi was able to start his Cathedral in Spain in the 20's - given the Conservative nature and Catholicism of that time. I am also not sure that would fly elsewhere today either. :)

But regardless- Vigeland Park is a must see in Oslo for all IMO . It was a wet cold and windy half day ship's tour in May that introduced me to him - would love to go back with more time on a nice day.