St. Petersburg tour

[fabacoon]

We're booked on the Norwegian Sun Sept. 7-14 out of Copenhagen with a St. Petersburg Russia port call. We've been told by friends we would be better off booking a tour there other than through the boat. I have my visa, but my wife doesn't. Is there still time to get hers, or can a preferred tour company expedite it for us? Also, appreciate any recommendations for preferred tours at other ports: Warnemunde, Tallinn, Helsinki, Stockholm.

 

Thanks.

[LTC]

We're booked on the Norwegian Sun Sept. 7-14 out of Copenhagen with a St. Petersburg Russia port call. We've been told by friends we would be better off booking a tour there other than through the boat. I have my visa, but my wife doesn't. Is there still time to get hers, or can a preferred tour company expedite it for us? Also, appreciate any recommendations for preferred tours at other ports: Warnemunde, Tallinn, Helsinki, Stockholm.

 

Thanks.

Hi, You don't need a visa in St Petersburg if you book a tour...your tour ticket is the visa. We did the Sun Baltic cruise in May and used SPB tours in St. Petersburg and Stockholm and highly recommend them. They also do a tour to Berlin and a walking tour in Tallinn. Enjoy the cruise and ports!

[MagnoliaBlossom]

Please read my review from the Sun, its a few years old but the info will still be pertinent.

 

Tallin, no need for a tour. Get rick steves book and follow his walking tour

 

sPB, many operators. All seem good but we chose Anastasia and were well pleased.

 

Check the port of call board and there is a motherlode of info there.

 

Great trip, weve done it twice!

 

Enjoy!

Georgia

[newtocruise123]

I just got back on Saturday from a trip on Holland America Ryndam. We booked our trips with Alla Tours (recommended on our cruise roll call and I subsequently checked them out on tripadvisor) and despite my earlier fears it worked out very well. They don't take payment until the second day in St Petersburg so I took the view that if they did not get me off the ship then they got no money so was sure for that reason that they would indeed get us through.

 

I booked the 5 cities tour with them at a cost of $570 per person and we had a great time with knowledgeable guides. Went to Berlin from Warnemunde then had tours in Helsinki, 2 days in St Petersburg (the comfort tour which has a couple less visits but made the difference for either children or older visitors), walking tour in Tallinn plus a tour in Stockholm which also took us to the Vasa museum. Many people on our ship were pretty envious both re the cost and the fullness of our itinerary.

 

It was great with the smaller groups on a mini bus as you avoided a lot of queuing which people on the ships tours mentioned to us.

 

I emailed several companies only a couple of weeks before we went but Alla Tours came back most quickly and their correspondence was answered promptly. I think they were the only company to offer the comfort tour as well as the grand tour and I know that was why some of our companions chose them.

 

I hope that is of some help.

[HokiePoq]

We booked Red October in StP and were pleased. They were recommended by folks in our church who had used them previously.

Did our own walking tour in Talinn and had a wonderful day. Loved it!

Doing our own thing did not work out in Copenhagen due to a deluge but I'm thinking the ship now leaves from there rather than Dover as we did two years ago. Had to take a cab into Stockholm as we did a private tour. Would do ship's tour if I was doing that again due to where the ship docks. Loved seeing the Vasa there. Did ship's tour in Helsinki and that worked out fine, especially seeing the Rock Church.

Enjoy your trip!