Exploring the Baltic on the Prinsendam

Dear all,

as a travel and cruise enthusiast, one of my greatest joys - apart from travelling and cruising - is reading fellow travellers‘ trip reports and blogs. So many of you on these boards have brightened many a dark and cold winter day with your reports from faraway lands, cruising the world on beautiful, elegant ships. A longtime lurker on these forums, I have decided it is payback time. I am going to try my hand at a live report on our upcoming Baltic and Kiel Canal cruise on the Prinsendam. I am not a native speaker (or writer), and based on past experiences I will be busy on the ship, so I hope for your understanding if my reports will not be as long or eloquent as you would like them to be. I‘ll do my very best, promise!

We will fly to Amsterdam on Saturday morning, spend the night in the Mövenpick Hotel across from the cruise ship dock, and board the Prinsendam on Sunday. Originally, we had booked a Guarantee OV, and a couple of weeks ago took an upsell to a Signature Suite.

Oh, there is one more thing I should mention, before I go and start thinking about packing. Not sure if „thing“ is the right way to put it. It‘s ... erm ... a duck. Mr. Duck, to be precise. Mr. Duck travels with us around the world. He is our selfie stunt-double, feelgood companion and graduate of many a mixology masterclass at sea. Be prepared to see him out and about on the ship with us, if I manage to get pictures uploaded.

That‘s it for now. One more day of work madness, and then we‘re off!

Danke schon, Anna!

Oh, there is one more thing I should mention, before I go and start thinking about packing. Not sure if „thing“ is the right way to put it. It‘s ... erm ... a duck. Mr. Duck, to be precise. Mr. Duck travels with us around the world. He is our selfie stunt-double, feelgood companion and graduate of many a mixology masterclass at sea. Be prepared to see him out and about on the ship with us, if I manage to get pictures uploaded.

 

That‘s it for now. One more day of work madness, and then we‘re off!

 

Well if your going to still be on the Prinsendam for the follow on cruise (8/19 - 9/2) Mr. Duck will have to meet Floppy Bunny. He's our been our travelling companion for well on 20 years now. I've uploaded a picture of him in one of his favorite hoodies. One of his fun past times in port is to run into all the stores and see what kind of new clothes he can find. If he finds something he likes (generally on another critter), its gets purchased and he strips if off the new one, who then becomes a member of 'The Naked Ones' pack once we get home.

Dear all,

 

as a travel and cruise enthusiast, one of my greatest joys - apart from travelling and cruising - is reading fellow travellers‘ trip reports and blogs. So many of you on these boards have brightened many a dark and cold winter day with your reports from faraway lands, cruising the world on beautiful, elegant ships. A longtime lurker on these forums, I have decided it is payback time. I am going to try my hand at a live report on our upcoming Baltic and Kiel Canal cruise on the Prinsendam. I am not a native speaker (or writer), and based on past experiences I will be busy on the ship, so I hope for your understanding if my reports will not be as long or eloquent as you would like them to be. I‘ll do my very best, promise!

 

We will fly to Amsterdam on Saturday morning, spend the night in the Mövenpick Hotel across from the cruise ship dock, and board the Prinsendam on Sunday. Originally, we had booked a Guarantee OV, and a couple of weeks ago took an upsell to a Signature Suite.

 

Oh, there is one more thing I should mention, before I go and start thinking about packing. Not sure if „thing“ is the right way to put it. It‘s ... erm ... a duck. Mr. Duck, to be precise. Mr. Duck travels with us around the world. He is our selfie stunt-double, feelgood companion and graduate of many a mixology masterclass at sea. Be prepared to see him out and about on the ship with us, if I manage to get pictures uploaded.

 

That‘s it for now. One more day of work madness, and then we‘re off!

 

Have a great time!

Sent from my Moto G (5) Plus using Forums mobile app

Well if your going to still be on the Prinsendam for the follow on cruise (8/19 - 9/2) Mr. Duck will have to meet Floppy Bunny. He's our been our travelling companion for well on 20 years now. I've uploaded a picture of him in one of his favorite hoodies. One of his fun past times in port is to run into all the stores and see what kind of new clothes he can find. If he finds something he likes (generally on another critter), its gets purchased and he strips if off the new one, who then becomes a member of 'The Naked Ones' pack once we get home.

 

Floppy Bunny seems to be quite the fashion victim! Mr. Duck would be very excited to meet up, but unfortunately we have to go back to work after two weeks on the ship. Nasty four-letter word, work...

Looking forward to your reports and thank you so much for doing them:)

I hope you enjoy the Prinsendam and the Kiel Canal (guessing you are doing the Kiel Canal (yn) )

Looking forward to your reports and thank you so much for doing them:)

 

I hope you enjoy the Prinsendam and the Kiel Canal (guessing you are doing the Kiel Canal (yn) )

Thank you! Yes, we are on the Kiel Canal cruise. For anyone interested, this is our itinerary.

We did the Baltic on the Prinsendam and really enjoyed it, hope you also enjoy it.

Allan

I am interested! Looking forward to the reports. Enjoy your cruise Anna!

Thank you everyone for your kind wishes!

Day 1 - Travel to Amsterdam

The day started early, and with the unwelcome news that our first flight leg from Hamburg to Frankfurt was delayed indefinitely (wait for an update at 10am). Fortunately Lufthansa managed to take us on an earlier flight, and Mr. Duck was able to have a little breakfast at the lounge in Frankfurt. If you ever pass through there, he highly recommends the cookies!

Landing in Amsterdam, we were able to collect all of our luggage (always a relief), and headed out to the taxi rank. The geek in me got quite a thrill out of our Tesla taxi - my first Tesla ride ever. I have a little science-crush on Elon Musk, if you must know. I got to enjoy the Tesla for quite some time, the trip to the Mövenpick hotel was slow going. The main reason for this was the Annual Gay Pride parade, moving through the canals of Amsterdam with thousands of colourful participants and spectators crowding the streets.

Our room was not ready, so we spend some time having lunch and enjoying the scenery. It was quite hot and humid outside, and the mix of seasoned Holland America cruisers, arriving by the busload, and Gay Pride paraders made for some interesting people watching. And yes, the Philly Cheese Steak sandwich was delicious!

After lunch, we did a little exploring. We have been to Amsterdam many times, and didn‘t feel the need for a lot of sightseeing. But the Costa Mediterranea parked right next to the hotel was boarding her passengers, and the parade boats were going through the canal on the other side of the hotel, so there was lots to see in the area.

The afternoon ended with nap time, dinner in the hotel restaurant, and a beautiful sunset in a cloudy sky. When we wake up tomorrow, we should be able to see the Prinsendam and the Koningsdam parked right next to our room. Boarding a ship always makes for a special day, can‘t wait!

If you are interested in seeing pictures, please visit my Facebook page. I have posted them publicly - less hassle than dealing with pics on here...

https://facebook.com/profile.php?id=1786490386

Day 2 - Boarding our ship

Sailing day! With our hotel so close to the cruise port, the first thing I did was check on the ships - and there they were, the Koningsdam and Prinsendam nose to nose. Getting ready was a breeze, motivated by the ship being so close. Checking out of the Mövenpick, not so much. The lobby was a veritable zoo, cruise passengers checking in and out in long lines at the same time. The hotel was at full capacity, the receptionist telling me she had never seen it this busy.

But it was all worth it when we walked our luggage the 50 or so meters down the street to the passenger terminal. There were two separate baggage drop off lines for the Koningsdam and Prinsendam, and there were double and triple checks to make sure that no suitcase or passenger got onto the wrong ship. Check-in had no wait, and right afterwards we were allowed to go through security and board the ship. We were on the Lido deck finding a nice table in the shade at 11:30, just as the buffet opened for lunch. Perfect!

Staterooms were ready soon after, and it was pretty much love at first sight with our wonderful Signature Suite. Spacious, with a walk-in closet and a nice balcony. We will be very comfy for the next two weeks! Our luggage arrived shortly, and we were unpacked 15 minutes later - packing cubes ftw!

After a little reading time on the balcony came the muster drill (Don the pastry man was quite pleased with his life vest donning skills - pun intended...). Then the ropes fell, and we were off amidst a big horn-tooting extravaganza between the sister ships. The weather was lovely and sunny, and the port was crowded with small ships carrying Sunday revellers, plus some left-over gay pride paraders, looking slightly hung over.

We were making our way down the Ij, scenic cruising, so it was high time to introduce Mr. Duck to the mixologist on board. The cucumber lime martini went down well, followed by a cranberry ginger drop for good measure. When we reached the lock leading out to the North Sea, Mr. Duck was fascinated with the local seagulls, throwing huge shadows in the evening sun. We named them gull-zillas...

Dinner found us sharing a table with two couples, one from Australia, and one from New Zealand, both on a grand tour around Europe. We learned all we ever wanted and more about river cruising, and had a very nice evening. Coming back to our room, Mr. Duck met a new friend, of the towelly sort, Mr. Crab. They seem to be plotting to raid the mini bar just now, so I better sign off for today. Nighty-night!

following...and enjoying your reports!!

Day 3 - Day at Sea

Today‘s report will be a short one. We slept in, had a lovely Cappuccino from the Java Café, and some breakfast on the Lido pool deck. The Cruise Critic Meet & Greet had a good turnout, around 25 people met in the Crow‘s Nest and we had a very nice chat with Gail and Marty from San Francisco.

Mr. Duck was looking forward to the highlight of the day: mixology class. Unfortunately he was the only one, apart from the bartender. Losing his chance at a higher education, Mr. Duck still enjoyed his complimentary martini (consolation price for showing up).

Being much less tipsy than anticipated, I decided to spend the afternoon at the cinema. I was probably the only woman left on this planet who had not seen „The Greatest Showman“ - this has now been remedied. My husband decided there was too much singing involved, and Wolverine probably wouldn‘t show up. Even the promise of free popcorn couldn‘t lure him. I on the other hand had a great time with the singing Mr. Barnum!

I‘m sure there was lots of exciting stuff happening on the ship, games, presentations, even a line dance class (The Cupid Shuffle and The Wobble). All lost on us, we chilled in our cabin and had nothing more important to do than gazing out at sea. We did however get dressed up for gala night, only to return straight back to the room after dinner. Tired from doing nothing! Tomorrow will be more active, as we visit Copenhagen.

Day 4 - Copenhagen

What a wonderful day! We visited the capital of „The little Kingdom of Happiness“ (as per Denmark‘s tourist board).

I woke up to the first rays of the sun rising over Sweden, as we passed the narrowest part of the sea between Helsingör (Denmark) and Helsingborg (Sweden). We then slowly made our way into the port of Copenhagen, where we docked at Langelinie, quite close to the sculpture of the Little Mermaid, a fairytale figure made famous by the Danish writer Hans-Christian Andersen.

We started our walk through the city from the terminal. The sun was shining, but it wasn‘t too hot (yet). Exploring the new harbourfront area, which reminded us a lot of our own HafenCity district in Hamburg, and passing the old fortress Kastellet, we reached the area of Nyboder. This 17th/18th century development of yellow row houses was originally constructed for naval military personnel and their families. It is a well-preserved historic area, that is still used as housing today. I couldn‘t help but wonder if it is haunted by many a naval ghost, with interesting stories of daring nautical adventures to tell?

Further on our walk, we reached Kongens Nytorv (the King‘s New Market), from where the main shopping area Stroget leads to the Tivoli Gardens. Next was crowded and touristy Nyhavn, where the sightseeing boats start. The midday sun was becoming hot at this point, so we moved onwards and kept in the shade of Amalienborg Palace‘s huge inner yard. I can only hope that the Danish Royal Family is enjoying the beautiful summer on one of the many islands of their happy kingdom. Their household Guard, however, was out in full uniform, including their huge black fur hats. We stayed for the Changing of the Guard ceremony, grateful that we didn‘t have to wear those uniforms.

Making our way along the water, we passed the beautiful Gefion Fountain (very tempted to jump right in and cool off), and finally reached the Little Mermaid. She had lots of Asian company, but Mr. Duck still managed a selfie with her. Interestingly, very close to our ship was a second incarnation of little Arielle. This one looked like it had been given a makeover by Picasso. Not sure if the original would approve.

Back on the ship, we had a late lunch with 3 liters of ice tea each. And we discovered that one of our status perks as returning cruisers is a 25% discount on mini bar purchases. We better keep this little nugget of information from Mr. Duck, otherwise all the mini bottles of liquor will be 25% emptier ...

Shortly after sailaway, we passed across the tunnel leading from the Danish side to the Öresund bridge. Lots of sailing boats were enjoying the beautiful evening sun and Bft 4 perfect sailing conditions. What a summer we are having in Europe! A farmer‘s nightmare, but a holiday maker‘s paradise!

Fabulous posts. Sounds like you are having a great time. :)

Make sure that Mr. Duck doesn't raid that mini bar without permission ;)

Fabulous posts. Sounds like you are having a great time. :)

 

Make sure that Mr. Duck doesn't raid that mini bar without permission ;)

Thank you! Fortunately he has no hands, otherwise we would be in trouble... ;)

Day 5 - Rønne, Bornholm

Among all the ports on this trip, Bornholm is the only one I‘ve never been to before. So today was the day for me to discover new territory. But first: tender tickets. If you have never been on a cruise, let me share some wisdom I once learned from a Cruise Director: there are good ports, great ports, and tender ports.

Tender ports mean that you cannot leave the ship via the gangway, but get to take a little boat ride from ship to port. Sometimes in local boats, more often on the ship‘s tender boats, driven by crew members who go from ship to shore and back again all day long.

Naturally, not all passengers fit onto the tender boats at the same time. Rules of priority say that guests booked on a ship excursion get to go first, and everyone else has to queue for tender tickets, and wait until their ticket number is called. There are some exceptions: guests of high-level status and luxury suites get to cut in line whenever, the rest of us mere mortals have to wait our time.

Fortunately Rønne is the only tender port on this trip. And I actually do enjoy the ride on the small boats. Today we even had a little motion of the ocean - the lady with the seasickness patch behind her ear sitting next to me didn‘t look too thrilled. But after ten minutes, terra firma had us back.

Rønne is a quaint little town, with small, comfy looking houses lining quiet streets. If it weren‘t for the couple hundred cruise ship passengers, you could believe Sleeping Beauty would feel right at home. The main attraction are glass making and ceramic workshops. As is the case across the globe, the artist communities of every country seem to hog the nicest places to live, be artsy and sell the products of their artsyness to visiting tourists. Unfortunately, I am quite lacking in the creativity department, so that lifestyle is not for me...

After we walked around for an hour or so, the leaden-looking skies started to drizzle. We escaped into the local supermarket and upgraded our stash of cabin snacks with some Danish delicacies. Returning to the tender dock, we didn‘t have to wait long for the next boat. We really enjoyed Rønne, but next time I will probably rent a car to see more of Bornholm‘s country side.

A good part of our afternoon was spent chilling in the hot tub on the aft deck, gazing out at sea and doing nothing. And the evening ended with Wiener Schnitzel, Blueberry Mango Crisp, and a towelly peacock keeping Mr. Duck company.

Really enjoying your posts! I think Mr Duck should have a mini-bar beverage. They are just his size!

Day 6 - Kaliningrad, Russian Federation

In 2005, I got this idea into my head to travel once round the Baltic Sea, by car. All in all, it was a wonderful journey, discovering many fascinating places, with a special focus on the Baltic States and Russia. This cruise is covering many of the same regions we visited then. And one city that has stayed in my memory from that trip, both good and bad, is Kaliningrad.

The good: the area now known as Kaliningradskoje Oblast (any spelling mistakes are mine, I don‘t share) was part of Germany for more than 600 years, before it went to the USSR in 1945. It was part of East Prussia, the city of Kaliningrad then known as Königsberg. It must have been a beautiful, thriving city in the twenties and thirties of the twentieth century. My paternal grandfather was born there. Travelling there in 2005, when the city celebrated its 750th anniversary, was very emotional for me. Much more so than I had anticipated. It was, after all, part of my family history. (So is, by the way, my Sami great-grandfather on my mother’s side, who used to herd reindeer in the Swedish north, before he met my great-grandmother. But that is a different story...)

The bad: crossing the border into Kaliningrad at Tilsit, with our own car, was a nightmare. There was a problem with our double-entry visa, the officials took our passports and my then husband, no one spoke a word of any language I knew, and I was left alone in our car on a chaotic, crowded border crossing between trucks, cars and Russian officials crammed in the tightest of spaces. I locked the doors, hoped for the best and waited for the longest 30 minutes of my life. In the end, all was sorted, and we didn‘t end up in a Russian prison.

Compared to that adventure, today‘s immigration procedure was a breeze. Two very friendly female Russian border agents entered our bus, collected all passports, and returned them about 30 minutes later, neatly stamped. They were only slightly irritated by the American gentleman who had left a couple of dollar notes in his passport when handing it over. That‘s what I call taking tipping one step too far, sir!

We proceeded on our drive towards Kaliningrad from the port of Baltiysk. The hour passed by quickly, greatly helped by the excellent commentary of our guide, Eduard. Should you ever find yourself in need of a great guide or interpreter in Kaliningrad, Eduard is the man for you!

In the last 13 years, the infrastructure and general look and feel of the region and the city has improved a lot, to my western eyes. As Eduard explained, there are three types of architecture: old German, old Soviet, and modern. The old German buildings and fortifications are visible all across the city. Oftentimes now used for very different purposes than originally envisaged, they seem lovingly maintained, a solid pointer to the past.

We visited the Amber Museum, housed in one of the old fortifications. Some beautiful specimens of very unfortunate insects, spiders, and even one tiny lizard sat encased in the petrified resin. There was also a lot of Amber artwork. And like with all art, tastes are diverse. But Mr. Duck did enjoy some fantastic photo ops.

After a drive through the city center, we reached the Cathedral (the Dom), housing the gravesite of Immanuel Kant, as well as Europe‘s largest organ. We were able to listen to a brief concert, while contemplating the Categorical Imperative. All in a day‘s work! On the way back to the bus, I succumbed to one of the many dealers in Amber jewelry, and bought a beautiful pendant for a very good price.

On the drive back to Baltiysk, Eduard happily answered all of our obscure questions about life in this Russian Exklave. The border procedure again was painless (no tipping involved), and we soon said goodbye to this fascinating part of the world. I was happy to see that the German past has not been obliterated, but is an essential part of Kaliningrad‘s everyday life. Apparently, young people even say „I am from König“ as in Königsberg, talking about their city.

To end our day, we watched a beautiful sunset from our balcony, with lots to think about after a full day. Apologies for the longish post, but this city has a special place in my heart.

Day 7 - Klaipėda, Lithuania

Rain, the forecast said. A very rare commodity these days in Europe. Sailing into the port of Klaipėda this morning, we were greeted with an interesting show of dramatic grey skies, lightning and thunder over the Curonian Spit. But no rain.

When we left the ship to explore the old town of Klaipėda, the sun was out in full force. The city is a nice mix of old and new, with some beautiful, well kept wood-frame houses, but also some corners that have seen better days. It has the feel of a well lived-in place, genuine, down-to-earth, homey. And its position right on the Curonian Spit makes it an excellent summer destination. The small ferry boats were busy bringing people and cars onto the Spit all day long.

Klaipėda is full of very interesting sculptures. We found a chimney sweep, sitting on the roof of a house (and a plaque on the street level that you could rub for good luck, as the sweep was out of reach). Two pigeons guarding a post box, and themselves from the unwanted advances of Mr. Duck. And a ghost, climbing out of the sea in the harbour, out for unsuspecting humans passing by.

Lunchtime found us on Theatre Square, the main square of Old Town. Between the omnipresent stalls of Amber and other souvenirs, and a small marching band, were a couple of very inviting looking open-air restaurants. We ordered the local specialty: big, zeppelin-shaped potato dumplings with a meat filling, accompanied by a bacon-sour cream sauce. Due to their shape, the locals call them cepelinai. Absolutely delicious!

We did the dumpling-roll back to the ship, and immediately needed a nap. At sailaway time, the sunny skies had turned a dramatic black again, and finally there was rain. For about five minutes. Afterwards, the sun came out again, and stole the show with another beautiful sunset. The temperatures have cooled down somewhat, and there is a little motion in the ship that will help us sleep well tonight.

This is a very interesting itinerary! I'm enjoying reading your postings. Thank you!

~Nancy

Anna, sounds like you are having an exciting adventure! Enjoy your next ports. Please tell a bit about the ship as you discover it.... the food, shows and other evening activities. Too bad the mixology class didn't work out for you as we really enjoyed it on the Zuiderdam. Cheers!

Anna, sounds like you are having an exciting adventure! Enjoy your next ports. Please tell a bit about the ship as you discover it.... the food, shows and other evening activities. Too bad the mixology class didn't work out for you as we really enjoyed it on the Zuiderdam. Cheers!

Thank you! I will write more about the ship tomorrow, as it‘s a sea day. I am also planning to do a ship‘s review at the end of the trip. We are loving the Prinsendam and her crew so far, even though the ship is at capacity, it never feels crowded.

Day 8 - Riga, Latvia

There once was a lady from Riga

Who smiled as she rode on a tiger.

They came back from the ride

With the lady inside

And the smile on the face of the tiger.

Enough with the limericks already! Riga, what a beauty! We started our day with a sightseeing tour by bus, to get the lay of the land. The city must be every architect‘s dream, with building styles from several centuries. Around each corner, there are new marvels to explore. For me, the main attraction are the wonderful Art Nouveau ensembles, complete with striking figurines and Medusa‘s heads. But there are also baroque, neo gothic and eclectic buildings. Red brick houses look familiar, the influence of the Teutonic Knights in this region is visible.

Can you tell I‘m a little infatuated with the city? Having been here once before, I mainly remember visiting the occupation museum, and seeing the elaborate spying technologies the Soviets used in the Grand Hotel, making sure that every foreign visitor got their stay in Riga well documented. Today was all about architecture. Michail Eisenstein created his best works here, with his take on the Russian Jugendstil. His other claim to fame is his son, Sergei, who directed the classic „Battleship Potemkin“, among others. Both great artists in their own right.

After our bus tour, we explored the Old Town, discovering many more hidden gems. And we had lunch, sauerkraut soup and elk stew, both delicious and just right with the cooler temps today. We slowly made our way back to the ship, deciding that we will have to spend some more time here very soon.

Dinner brought another highlight: we had prebooked the „Sel de mer“ dinner, a pop-up restaurant featuring French seafood. After a huge pile of fruits de mer, we each enjoyed the catch of the day, a beautifully cooked Baltic salmon filet. The meal came with an extra surcharge that was well worth the price to us. Chapeau Holland America, magnifique!