Taking food from the ship?

[crazy4cruisn]

I see where some posters are planning on taking food from the ship for their St Petersburg tour to save time. Seems like a good idea, but I thought I heard that either the ship or the Russian gov't did not allow taking food off the ship.

Anyone had experience with this???

[cbee]

Absolutely no problem taking food from the ship. Just be somewhat discrete. You can order the complimentary room service the night before, ask to "hold the mayo" and bring along some foil or baggies and take what you want. . .I put our "lunch" in a tote bag. Sandwiches, chips, cookies. Also, I brought lunch for the guide and the driver. I avoided the fresh fruit but others brought fruit. . .again, no problem. Some just put together a sandwich from the breakfast buffet. . .and added hard boiled eggs. Cruise didn't ask questions and neither did immigration.On one of our tour days, we ate at a Russian restaurant and it was delicious! Others have eaten with a Russian family and spoke highly of the experience. A friend who visits Russia yearly told me "you will have the best lunch with the Russian family". Unfortunately, I did not have this experience because other members of the tour did not want to do this as it usually requires walking up several flights of stairs to the apartment.