Going Ashore Independently - Transport?

[billyboysouth]

Going on the Baltic Cruise in late June and we wanted to do our own thing and possibly go on the Red Bus open top tours in Copenhagen, Stockholm etc.

 

Also maybe one of the walking tours in Copenhagen which takes around 3 hours.

 

Can you walk in to these places or is there a bus to take you in and back again without having to go on an organised tour?

 

I know in St Petersburg you have to go on an organised trip because of the visa needed.

[Colo Cruiser]

Going on the Baltic Cruise in late June and we wanted to do our own thing and possibly go on the Red Bus open top tours in Copenhagen, Stockholm etc.

 

Also maybe one of the walking tours in Copenhagen which takes around 3 hours.

 

Can you walk in to these places or is there a bus to take you in and back again without having to go on an organised tour?

 

I know in St Petersburg you have to go on an organised trip because of the visa needed.

 

 

Have you joined the roll call for your cruise?

[Essiesmom]

Get a copy of Rick Steves' Northern Europe Cruise Ports to see what you can do on your own, and how to do it. EM

[dockhl]

Get a copy of Rick Steves' Northern Europe Cruise Ports to see what you can do on your own, and how to do it. EM

 

Also check out Tom's port guides.... they are wonderful. http://www.tomsportguides.com/

 

As for Copenhagen..we were on the Baltic cruise on the Emerald last August. Walking off the ship and into the heart of the city is very easy and picturesque. It is a very easy city to get around in. May I also suggest that you take a canal boat tour see: http://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g189541-d523562-Reviews-Canal_Tours_Copenhagen-Copenhagen_Zealand.html

 

Mike

[Bogof1]

A lot depends which ship you on and which area of the port you dock in. If on the carribean princess June 27th there is an active roll call with lots of suggestions for tours. An organised trip in Russia is advised but you do not have to take the ship tour there are many others listed

[Hlitner]

As one who has spent over forty years doing independent travel (on both many cruises and land trips) I can assure the OP that there are options in every port (in the Baltic and Europe) to do it "on your own." In some ports (such as most docking positions in Copenhagen) you can simply walk from the ship to public transportation. In most ports there is also some kind of shuttle bus option (sometimes free and sometimes with a fee) to get you from the port to the city center. And every port in the Baltic has public transportation (i.e. buses, metro, trams, etc) that can be accessed by independent travelers....generally at a huge cost savings over excursions/tours. Just about all the major (and some less then major) cities in Europe also have Hop on Hop Off options (at a price) which are popular with some independents.

 

So my advice is to do some homework on your ports before making decisions. Some good places to look are right here on the CC Ports of Calls boards (where you can also ask specific questions), the internet, your public library, etc. And we also think a good guide book (with maps) can be very helpful (we personally recommend the Rick Steves books).

 

As to St Petersburg, there are some excellent local tour companies that provide the necessary Group Visa as part of their service. One can also go through all the hassles (and cost) of obtaining their own Russian Visa (this can be a daunting process) prior to the cruise and then going off independently. In fact, DW and I did just this on our first visit to SP and had a fantastic experience.

 

Hank

Edited March 3, 2015 by Hlitner

[caribill]

Going on the Baltic Cruise in late June and we wanted to do our own thing and possibly go on the Red Bus open top tours in Copenhagen, Stockholm etc.

 

 

 

Can you walk in to these places or is there a bus to take you in and back again without having to go on an organised tour?

 

 

Depends on which ship you are on. The Royal and Regal cannot get to Stockholm and dock miles away from the city. The other ships go to the city and it is a short walk to public buses.

 

In Copenhagen they may now dock at an area further away from where they used to dock. From the old area, it was about a 10 minute walk to the trains. From the new area it is much longer. There is a public bus from the new area, but it does not run on weekends and has a limited schedule on weekdays.

[GradUT]

In Copenhagen they may now dock at an area further away from where they used to dock. From the old area, it was about a 10 minute walk to the trains. From the new area it is much longer. There is a public bus from the new area, but it does not run on weekends and has a limited schedule on weekdays.

 

Can you tell me the name of this "new area"? I just started reading the Copenhagen section of Rick Steves' book and he mentions 3 possible ports in Copenhagen. I'd like to have some idea of where our cruise ship (HAL Eurodam) will be located.

[Bogof1]

Pls ignore this

Edited March 3, 2015 by Bogof1
Mess up sorry

[Bogof1]

Sorry tried to edit post didn't work its cmport.com

[Bogof1]

Can you tell me the name of this "new area"? I just started reading the Copenhagen section of Rick Steves' book and he mentions 3 possible ports in Copenhagen. I'd like to have some idea of where our cruise ship (HAL Eurodam) will be located.

 

Go to cmport.com, if that doesn't work type in a search engine cruise ships arrival for whatever port you want a bit of search and error will find the answer to where you docked

[Bogof1]

Sorry folks made a mess up, I pad went wally and I typed too many times. Apologies to all

[Thrak]

Also check out Tom's port guides.... they are wonderful. http://www.tomsportguides.com/

 

Mike

 

Many thanks for the link to the port guides. I didn't know about the site. I just looked and snagged guides for our Panama Canal transit next September. They look to be quite informative and helpful.

[jagsfan]

Our Roll Call a couple of years ago used a wonderful Russian tour company in St Petersburg that has offices in the US. There are several good companies to use, actually.

Ours handled the group two day visa, and let us choose what we wanted to see. Small group, English speaking guide in a private air conditioned van.

We were able to see Peterhof ahead of opening time so we could be outside when the fountains came on. St Petersburg us the most amazing city I've ever visited, and I'm so grateful to have had the opportunity. The entire Baltic cruise on Emerald was like a gift from heaven.

[caribill]

Can you tell me the name of this "new area"?

This may help http://cruiseportwiki.com/Copenhagen

Edited March 4, 2015 by caribill

[GradUT]

Thank you, Bogof1 and Caribill

[billyboysouth]

Have you joined the roll call for your cruise?

 

Not yet but will do so.

 

Thanks for the replies.

[Franky Cruiser]

Hi Billy Bob try http://www.whatsinport.com I found it very interesting.

[arizonaperson]

Going on the Baltic Cruise in late June and we wanted to do our own thing and possibly go on the Red Bus open top tours in Copenhagen, Stockholm etc.

 

Also maybe one of the walking tours in Copenhagen which takes around 3 hours.

 

Can you walk in to these places or is there a bus to take you in and back again without having to go on an organised tour?

 

I know in St Petersburg you have to go on an organised trip because of the visa needed.

 

Way back in 2010 we did a Baltic cruise on Princess. We almost always do our own tours,because I enjoy doing the research to find out how to do it on our own time. In St. Petersburg we did take 2 Princess tours and enjoyed them. In Gdansk we did a tour, but found out just doing the Princess bus would have been better,no tour needed,but transport is. I did a review under the member review section of CC,but it has been quite some time since our cruise.(Star Princess) Perhaps you can find it, I do pretty thorough reviews

Julie

Edited March 4, 2015 by arizonaperson
oops

[caribill]

John Lawrence, a former Cruise Director and port lecturer on Princess Baltic cruises, put together a great DVD which covered all the Baltic ports including what sights there were and how to get to them on your own.

 

It seems to no longer be available new on the Internet, but maybe somehow you can get a used copy.

[brian1]

hi,we done the baltic last year on the emerald and at most ports the hoho buses park right outside the ship,cheers brian.