facs2010 Posted April 15, 2011 #1 Share Posted April 15, 2011 besides STP and Berlin are there some good experiences to recommend for the other stops? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RetiredFL Posted April 15, 2011 #2 Share Posted April 15, 2011 We did the Baltic cruise about 5 years ago. If you can, arrange a private guide through Red October or another agency. it is so much better and if you can find two others to join you it is less expensive than Oceania and well worth it. We did not do Berlin and those that did were exhausted after the trip and said they only had a little while in Berlin and really did not see that much.(other poster may disagree) We really enjoyed our visit in Warnemunde and had a nice walk around and some shopping. Not sure hat ports you are going to but we really enjoyed Talin and it is doable on your own with a taxi to the old town. Oceania's tour spends some time taking you to a ruined church and the song festival theater which we did not find that interesting. We also enjoyed Helsinki, especially the waterside market place and Stockmann dept store just to see the good design. Basically it is all good and interesting. Can't think of any port we were disappointed in! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neepawa Posted April 15, 2011 #3 Share Posted April 15, 2011 We really enjoyed Tallinn which you can do on your own. In Helsinki, we took the street car which does a loop around the city allowing you to get off at various sites including the church in the rock. Don Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bebbi Posted April 15, 2011 #4 Share Posted April 15, 2011 The Baltic cruise with Oceania is fantastic considering the beautiful cities you will visit as well as 3 days in StP. and the pre-cruise port stay in Stockholm. We stayed at hotels prior to the cruise in Stockholm & Bruges. In Stockholm, don't miss the VASA Museum, Gamla Stan (Old Town), City Hall (Nobelprize Dinner) and the Golden Hall. Time permitting, Drottningholm Palace outside city limits. The cruise through Stockholm's archipelago during evening hours was sheer magic....we could hardly leave the rails to go eat.:) Thanks to the small size of the Regatta, we were moored opposite the Yacht Club in Helsinki, practically downtown. It was very easy to visit the city's sites on the HOHO tram. We also visited the Stockmann Department store, and enjoyed the best gravlax at the store's restaurant; lovely park and farmers' market at the waterfront. Tallin is a well-preserved historic town and Gdansk has been rebuilt and restored with great care. We also decided against the long day trip to Berlin from Warnemünde. Instead we went by train to Schwerin to visit the Castle and Garden Show, which took place there in the summer of 2009. The passage through the Kiel Canal was most interesting. Having been to Amsterdam before, we stayed onboard and packed as we disembarked the following day in Bruges. Bruges is a photographer's paradise. The ship went on to London and we continued eventually by train towards Germany & Switzerland. One of our best trips ever! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorkiemomjn Posted April 16, 2011 #5 Share Posted April 16, 2011 besides STP and Berlin are there some good experiences to recommend for the other stops? We are going on a Baltic cruise on the Marina on June 11. Go to the Ports board, then to Northern Europe and the Baltics. Lots of good information there. Also, be sure to check our the Roll Call for your cruise. Welcome to Cruise Critic. You are going to love it here!:D Judy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yorkiemomjn Posted April 16, 2011 #6 Share Posted April 16, 2011 besides STP and Berlin are there some good experiences to recommend for the other stops? We are going on a Baltics cruise on the Marina on June 11. Go to the Ports board, then to Northern Europe and the Baltics. Lots of good information there. Also, be sure to check out the Roll Call for your cruise. Welcome to Cruise Critic. You are going to love it here!:D Judy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruin Steve Posted April 16, 2011 #7 Share Posted April 16, 2011 besides STP and Berlin are there some good experiences to recommend for the other stops? I guess my first question is which itinerary you will be on...there are a few different ones... We've done three Baltic cruises now, the most recent this past July... We've booked a few private tours in places, done some shore excursions and wandered some towns on our own... I could get more detailed if I knew your specific ports...but, here are some general notes on some ports: Bruges: An absolutely beautiful city, you are lucky if your cruise stops here...We've been here many times (I have family there) ...but, this last summer, we didn't bother the cousins, instead took a Segway Tour...Lots of fun...Be wary if you need a taxi into town (the port is 10 miles away)...Taxis are limited so reservations are good to have...The Segway tour company is caled "Moment"... Amsterdam: This last cruise, we had the best tourguide we've had anywhere...a guy named Edwin who goes under the business name "The Dutch Travel Advisor"...He put together a great tour for our party with a canal boat cruise, the Van Gogh Museum, Rijksmuseum, Jewish Museum and Portuguese Synagogue and Great Synagogue, Private tour of a Canal House, Red Light District and Anne Frank House...everything prearranged and managed like clockwork with extra guides for Jewish Museum/Synagogues and for City tour and Canal House... Berlin: We did the tour--with the 3 hour ride each way--a little exhausting and not all that thrilled with Berlin...but when else were we going to go? We've done it once and that is enough for us...but we're glad we went the once...Did it with SPB Tours--who we also used for St Petersburg...our guide in St Pete was much better than the one we got here... Copenhagen: One of my favorite cities...We've done tours, we've done "on our own"...we've done a multiple day pre-cruise here in 2001...Do not miss doing a Canal Boat tour here...IMHO, Tivoli is a bit overrated...There is a guy named Richard Karpen who does tours here who is very good...We used him for a tour of Rosenborg Palace once...My wife loves the Glyptotek (Art) Museum...Nyhavn is a great photo opportunity... Stockholm: Another favorite of mine...We did a multi-day pre-cruise here in 2008...Yes, the Vasa Museum is not to be missed...Absolutely Facinating...it's a grand Royal Warship that sunk on its maiden voyage almost 400 years ago until being pulled up from the sea bottom after 350 years completely intact and in beautiful shape...The Museum is built around the ship...The old town--Gamla Stan is quaint and charming...The Stockholm Synagogue is one of the most beautiful we've visited...Hopefully, you have one of the itineraries that starts or ends here...We stayed at the Hilton Slussen--which was very convenient--just a walk across the bridge into the heart of the Gamla Stan and right across the street from the Slussen Tunelboro (subway) station...Buy a "Stockholm Card" for unlimited bus and subway travel and free entrance to most museums... Tallinn: One visit, we did the walking tour outlined by Rick Steves in his Scandinavia book--not a bad way to see the town...This last visit, we took the shorex to Rakvere...interesting, but Tallinn is better...The shorex didn't leave us enough time in Tallinn... Helsinki: We went to Porvoo this last visit...eh...Helsinki itself can be well covered on the Hop-on-hop-off bus tour...You can buy tickets at the kiosk on the Esplinade...The Rock Church is a highlight...Not one of my favorites on this route... Riga: We just took a shorex from the ship...covers it... Gdansk: Unexpected really beautiful city...We've done a couple of shorex city tours here...First time, we had a terrible guide, second time, the guide was even worse--made us miss the first one...loved the city anyway... Oslo: Not all that exciting a town...Most tours (we did a shorex) give you some combination of the Sculpture Park, the Ski Jump, the Viking Boat Museum, the Open Air Museum...There is also a fortress one can tour on one's own right next to the dock... Saint Petersburg: We used SPB Tours here this last time (used Red October in 2008)...both are very good...Do not miss Peterhof, Hermitage, Yusopov, Catherine's Palace...With 3 days, they can get all of this in and more...We also did a subway ride (interesting, believe it or not), visited the Grand Choral Synagogue and the Church off the Spilled Blood--both also very good--St. Peter and Paul Fortress (where we were on the anniversary of the execution of Nicholas and Alexandria and were "treated" to the memorial service--our guide got us in as a "special" favor...We really enjoyed the night time canal boat tour...These companies will design a complete itinerary for you...We did the ship's excursions in 2001 and no way I would ever go with the big bus tour here again... Hope this helps... Have fun... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bornfreenowexpensive Posted April 16, 2011 #8 Share Posted April 16, 2011 Thanks for the comments, Steve. We are doing that same itinerary in 2012. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mura Posted April 16, 2011 #9 Share Posted April 16, 2011 I'm sorry Bruin Steve wasn't enthralled with Berlin because it has become one of our favorite cities. Then again, we had a week on our first visit and 4-5 days on our second. I am one of those who argues against trying to do Berlin from a cruise port because it just takes too long to get there and go home again. I once convinced someone to do Luebeck instead, but even that is about 2 hours each way. (But much more doable in a short period of time!) Our Baltic cruise was on Renaissance back in May 2001 and we didn't have exactly the same ports but mostly the same. No Gdansk or Warnemuende, for example. In Helsinki we did the ship's tour and discovered that we could have done exactly the same thing (without the commentary of course which wasn't all that spectacular) on the HOHO bus. And I agree with Tallinn is eminently do-able on your own. Many passengers walked into town, dispensing even with a taxi. They have lovely machine made hand-made sweaters for sale in town ... I would object to their being machine made rather than truly hand made except for the great prices ... Agree about seeing the Vasa in Stockholm. There is another interesting folk-art (as I recall) museum across the street from the Vasa which is worth seeing as well if you have the time. In Oslo we like to take the ferry to Museum Island -- depending on time. There are about 5 museums there, including the Kon Tiki and Viking, which are well worth seeing. If you have a full day, you can also do Vigeland Park which I consider essential to any Oslo visit, especially on a nice day. Agree with everybody else that this is a great itinerary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Citizen Posted April 16, 2011 #10 Share Posted April 16, 2011 We had three days of fabulous touring with Alla in STP back in 2005. There were 6 of us on the tour and that made the cost very reasonable. We were able to work with Alla in advance and insert everything we wanted to do along with all of the must-see sights (like visit a local market, have lunch at a great restaurant where Putin celebrated one of his birthdays, visit the State Museum, etc.) Our guide spoke English perfectly and she and our driver were wonderful. We also loved Tallin. Gdansk was nice too---except we were taken by a taxi driver (doubled the price after we were mid-way back to the ship). Berlin was very, very interesting. We put it on our bucket list to re-visit and, after 6 years, we are actually going there for 4 days! We had the best tour guide ever in Berlin. One of our fellow passengers asked him where he learned his impeccable English and he said "Seattle." He was an American who worked in civil service in Germany and decided to stay after he retired. He was a wealth of knowledge and he told us he didn't have a preference for the West vs East Berlin view on the rejoining of the city. He gave us the facts, told us why the West and East Berliners were upset/pleased with the situation. BUT, it is the luck of the draw. This was an Oceania tour. There were about 8 buses that went into Berlin from Warnemunde. Some other O passengers were quite unhappy with their guide either because of the difficulty in understanding his/her English or because the guide gave a very slanted view on the rejoining of Berlin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tropicalkerry2002 Posted April 16, 2011 #11 Share Posted April 16, 2011 for your detailed report and guide info. Makes me even more excited to get there in 2012! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NC Garden Traveler Posted April 17, 2011 #12 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Unless your determined to do Berlin, my recommendation for Warnemunde is to book a tour at http://www.friendsofdavetours.com. We were on Regatta in early June 2010 and took Dave's tour of Wurnemunde and Wismar. He give you a great tour of both cities and stopped for lunch at a restuarant in Wismar that had fresh white asparagus that made me understand for the first time why German are so excited about asparagus season. We were delighted with the tour and happy to avoid siting on a bus for 6 hours. We also had a great time in Riga walking through town on our own with other Regatta passengers (no guide). The art neuveoux (spelling?) building that are in the center of town and on Elizabeth St. were fascinating. NC Garden Traveler Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LAexNY Posted April 17, 2011 #13 Share Posted April 17, 2011 We also used Dave for Warnemunde/Wismar and highly recommend him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lalique Posted April 17, 2011 #14 Share Posted April 17, 2011 Agree with Bruin Steve and most of the posters. The Baltic Cruise if fabulous. We used Alls Tours for our group of 6 and they were wonderful. We saw all the major sights in our 3 days plus they arranged an evening at the ballet (Swan Lake) and also one night at a Russian Folkloric Show for us. Tallin and Gdansk are really charming. as is Bruges. Loved all the cities. We did do the Berlin tour which turned out to be great. Had never been there before and figured we might never go back there so why not take advantage. We had a great guide , Heather, who is with Original Berlin Walks. Would recommend her highly. She is actually an American who has lived in Berlin for many years and is extremely knowledgable. Lots of history there - not all good, but interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs_Duffy Posted April 17, 2011 #15 Share Posted April 17, 2011 We did do the Berlin tour which turned out to be great. Had never been there before and figured we might never go back there so why not take advantage. We had a great guide , Heather, who is with Original Berlin Walks. Lalique, did you take the train into Berlin? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lalique Posted April 18, 2011 #16 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Lalique, did you take the train into Berlin? No. Our guide, Heather, had a driver from Original Berlin Walks pick us up at the ship (in Warnumunde) and drive us into Berlin. We stopped about halfway for a snack and bathroom stop (actually at a Mc Donalds) and then right into Berlin where we met up with Heather. The driver stayed with us all the time taking us to each place and he waited while Heather and the 6 of us did our touring. We did do walking where places where fairly close together and the driver was always there to pick us up when we were done and take us to the next place. It was wonderful because we really got to see so much having our personal driver and guide. We had actually requested Heather as our guide since we had great reviews of her from people who had used her on previous cruises. Would use them again if we ever returned. You can review Original Berlin Walks on the internet and see their tours. They will also customize it to anything you want to see or do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lalique Posted April 18, 2011 #17 Share Posted April 18, 2011 Meant to also tell you that when our tour was over, the driver took us back to the ship. It was all pre-arranged and went off without any problems!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
facs2010 Posted April 19, 2011 Author #18 Share Posted April 19, 2011 thanks so much for all the good advice - we are on the June 21 cruise on Marina and will do most of the ports mentioned and Visby and Bornham,which no one mentioned. Your enthusiasm for the area is revving me up even more - I'm still on the fence about Berlin and the 6 hrs on the bus and appreciate the info!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lalique Posted April 19, 2011 #19 Share Posted April 19, 2011 thanks so much for all the good advice - we are on the June 21 cruise on Marina and will do most of the ports mentioned and Visby and Bornham,which no one mentioned. Your enthusiasm for the area is revving me up even more - I'm still on the fence about Berlin and the 6 hrs on the bus and appreciate the info!! We were not on a bus. The 6 of us were driven in a lovely air-conditioned Mercedes van and it was a very comfortable ride. Our cruise did not go to Visby or Bornham. Not sure what those 2 places replace that we went to . We did go to Gdansk and don't think that is on your itinerary. Our ride into Berlin was less than 3 hours - about 2 1/2 hours. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oceanbabe Posted April 23, 2011 #20 Share Posted April 23, 2011 Dear Steve: As you have mentioned visiting several synagogues during your previous Baltic cruises,u may be the person who can answer this. I have been reading about people being refused taxi to synagogue in Oslow. Read about incidents against Jews there and other areas. Should we be afraid to seek taxi to synagogue? Did you write in advance to request inside visits to synagogues?Any info would be appreciated, thanks so much Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruin Steve Posted April 23, 2011 #21 Share Posted April 23, 2011 Dear Steve: As you have mentioned visiting several synagogues during your previous Baltic cruises,u may be the person who can answer this. I have been reading about people being refused taxi to synagogue in Oslow. Read about incidents against Jews there and other areas. Should we be afraid to seek taxi to synagogue? Did you write in advance to request inside visits to synagogues?Any info would be appreciated, thanks so much I haven't heard that... We've never visited the Synagogue in Oslo... If you think getting a cab might be an issue, maybe just give them an address or location NEAR the Synagogue... In St. Petersburg, Amsterdam and Berlin, we hired guides for private small group tours and requested these as part of the itinerary. The guides made the arrangements, if any. Our Amsterdam guide actually arranged for a specialized guide just to take us through the Synagogues and Jewish Museum... In Copenhagen, we did not visit inside, only the outside... In Stockholm, there are regularly scheduled tours, Monday to Thursday, 11 and 1, Friday at 11: http://www.jf-stockholm.org/english/ We just showed up... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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