Hop-on and Hop-off Tours in Copenhagen and Helsinki

[spajke]

Can anybody suggest a site where I can get some info regarding this transport. I need to know the routes as in Copenhagen there seems to be 4 different routes and I would like to see which route is best

[IRIS FAYE]

I have been looking for the same information. Hope someone gets info. to us. Iris

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=FFA000&cdt=2004;7;8;21;00;00&timezone=GMT+0200[/img]
Cruising fool

[canyousayvacation]

Try this link. This gives a little more detailed information about the hop-on hop-off in Copenhagen.

[url="http://www.shop.viator.com/brochure/product_show.jsp;jsessionid=aXSP2fQhUhv4?ID=1010&PRODUCTID=1016&CODE=2065CPH"]http://www.shop.viator.com/brochure/product_show.jsp;jsessionid=aXSP2fQhUhv4?ID=1010&PRODUCTID=1016&CODE=2065CPH[/url]

[spajke]

Thanks for your help but that site only mentions the red line.

[IRIS FAYE]

Don't want to sound like a retard, but I looked at the web site and think it's great; one thing--where does the ship "Grand" dock? And how do I get from the ship dock to one of the 15 choices? Also, is it important for me to purchase the pass now prior to beginning the cruise? I want to enjoy every bit of the Copenhagen dock and am not quite sure when and where to begin this off and on bus trip. Also, if I begin the off and on trip; can I get off at one particular spot for however amount of time and then jump on again to complete my excursion? How do I get this bus to take me right back to the ship? Do I need a cab at any certain spot? Any helpful info is greatfully appreciated!!!!!!!!!!

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=FFA000&cdt=2004;7;8;21;00;00&timezone=GMT+0200[/img]
Cruising fool

[canyousayvacation]

[quote name='IRIS FAYE']Don't want to sound like a retard, but I looked at the web site and think it's great; one thing--where does the ship "Grand" dock? And how do I get from the ship dock to one of the 15 choices? Also, is it important for me to purchase the pass now prior to beginning the cruise? I want to enjoy every bit of the Copenhagen dock and am not quite sure when and where to begin this off and on bus trip. Also, if I begin the off and on trip; can I get off at one particular spot for however amount of time and then jump on again to complete my excursion? How do I get this bus to take me right back to the ship? Do I need a cab at any certain spot? Any helpful info is greatfully appreciated!!!!!!!!!!

[img]http://escati.linkopp.net/cgi-bin/countdown.cgi?trgb=000000&srgb=00ff00&prgb=FFA000&cdt=2004;7;8;21;00;00&timezone=GMT+0200[/img]
Cruising fool[/QUOTE]

Here are two more sites you can look at for the hop-on/hop-off buses in Copenhagen. Unfortunately, the one website is only in Danish, but you can see where the stops are on the routes.

[url]http://www.sightseeing.dk/regado.jsp?type=page&id=96[/url]

[url]http://trafikinfo.hur.dk/9ca65fe7-794e-433e-8d17-bcb1163e4be0.W5Doc?mid=3F0C54BC-9C28-4E94-B315-12EB238BF8F4[/url]

Here are the useful bus routes listed in the Rough Guide:
#5 Bellahøj, Assistens Kirkegård, Nørrebrogade (near Skt Hans Torv and Blågårdsgade), Nørreport Station, Gammel Torv and Nytorv, Rådhuspladsen.
#6 Experimentarium, Østerbro (near Parken Stadium), Kastellet, Marmorkirken, Nyhavn, Slotsholmen, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Tivoli, Central Station, Vesterbro, Frederiksberg Slot and the City Zoo.
#8 Holmen, Christiania, Christianshavns Torv, Slotsholmen, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Tivoli, Central Station, Åboulevard Ågade, Bellahøj.
#16 Grundtvigs Kirke, Assistens Kirkegård, Nørrebrogade (near Skt Hans Torv and Blågårdsgade), Rådhuspladsen, Tivoli, Central Station, Istedgade, Carlsberg Brewery, Valby.
#28 City Zoo, Frederiksberg Slot, Vesterbro, Central Station, Tivoli, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, National Museum, Slotsholmen, Christianshavns Torv, Amager.

Hope this helps!

[GoldenRetriever]

try this site:

[url="http://www.city-sightseeing.com/"]http://www.city-sightseeing.com/[/url]

they appear to have 2 different routes in Copenhagen, one is the Mermaid and the other is the Carlsberg and it shows where route map of each. I don't think this company has a Helsinki tour though but they do Oslo.

Christine

[FeegleGirl]

[quote name='IRIS FAYE']where does the ship "Grand" dock? And how do I get from the ship dock to one of the 15 choices?[/QUOTE]
The Grand Princess docks at the Freeport (Nordhavn), not at Langelinie. From there you will have to take a train into the City centre, but it only takes 10 minutes and costs 17.50K.
Regarding a hop on-hop off tour, I would recommend the waterbus instead of the bus. Sightseeing boats leave from Nyhavn and stop at Holmen, The little Mermaid, Langelinie, Trekroner, Amalienborg, Christiana and Gammel Strand. A one day ticket is 45K and allows you to hop off and stay for as long as you like before catching another boat. The first boat leaves at 10:00 from Gammel Strand or at 10:15 from Nyhavn.The last boat leaves at 4:45pm. See [url]www.canaltours.com[/url].

[FeegleGirl]

Regarding tours in Helsinki, the only tour buses I found when I was there were:

1. Helsinki Expert Audio City Tour: has recorded commentary in 11 languages and leaves from the Esplanade Park at 10:00, 11:00, 12:00, 13:00 and 14:00 from June 12. It stops at Temppeliaukio church and Sibelius monument and costs 20 euros. It lasts 1.5 hours.

2. Guided City Tour: As above but with live commentary in English and Swedish. Leaves at 10:30 from Olympia terminal and at 10:45 from Katajanokka terminal. Bearing in mind where the Grand Princess shuttle leaves you (opposite Stockman's department store) this is not a good option. You can walk to the Esplanade park in a few minutes, but these 2 stops are too far.

3. Helsinki sightseeing tour: This is a red double decker bus that leaves from Keskuskatu 3, opposite Stockman's department store, at 11:00 (every day), 10:30 (Sat and Sun) or 1:30pm (Sat and Sun). The tour lasts 2 hours, it stops at Temppeliaukio church and Sibelius monument and costs 25 euros. It has live commentary in English and Swedish.

If you are going to spend the whole day in Helsinki I would recommend the bus tour followed by a boat tour. There are 3 companies that you can use and they all leave from the dock at the Market Square. The companies are: Royal Line, Sun Lines and Iha-Lines. The boats depart from 10am to around 6pm every 15 or 30 minutes. The trip costs 14:50 euros and lasts 1.5 hours. Warning: It can get very windy on the boat, but you can stay in the lower part which is covered. If you want to take photographs you will be better off outside, in which case you are likely to need a good jacket and even a hat.

Note: You can save money by booking both the Helsinki Expert Audio Tour and the Royal Line Waterbus cruise. The price is 28 euros for both. This combined ticket can be purchased at the Tourist office or the Sightseeing kiosk at the Esplanade Park. However, I have to say that the Helsinki Expert Tour stops at Temppeliaukio church for just 5 minutes, whereas the Helsinki sightseeing tour is supposed to give you at least 15. I would have loved to spend more time there, especially because at the time there was a piano concert going on and the sound was amazing. Entrance to the church is free, by the way.

[IRIS FAYE]

[quote name='FeegleGirl']The Grand Princess docks at the Freeport (Nordhavn), not at Langelinie. From there you will have to take a train into the City centre, but it only takes 10 minutes and costs 17.50K.
Regarding a hop on-hop off tour, I would recommend the waterbus instead of the bus. Sightseeing boats leave from Nyhavn and stop at Holmen, The little Mermaid, Langelinie, Trekroner, Amalienborg, Christiana and Gammel Strand. A one day ticket is 45K and allows you to hop off and stay for as long as you like before catching another boat. The first boat leaves at 10:00 from Gammel Strand or at 10:15 from Nyhavn.The last boat leaves at 4:45pm. See [url]www.canaltours.com[/url].[/QUOTE]
If I choose the hop on and hop off bus; does the bus pick us up at the port where the Grand docks? If I choose the bus instead of the waterbus, does the regular bus allow you to get off for unlimited time and hop on the next one? Also, if I were interested in the walking tour, will I have to go into town via the train to meet the group? Thanks Iris

[KruiznGal]

I found this site for hop-on and -off tours in Stockholm and Helsinki: [url]http://www.opentoptours.com/[/url]. The Helsinki tour is 20 Euros and looks pretty comprehensive.

[mek]

Just off the Grand last week. They have a shuttle for $4 per person each way from the ship to the center of town where the hop on-off busses are located. Very convienent.

[FeegleGirl]

[quote name='mek']Just off the Grand last week. They have a shuttle for $4 per person each way from the ship to the center of town where the hop on-off busses are located. Very convienent.[/QUOTE]

What was your itinerary on the Grand? In my cruise Copenhagen was the port where you left the ship, so they did not offer shuttles into the City. The only thing they offered was a transfer to the airport at $40 per person. If they had arranged a shuttle I would have taken it.

The hop-on hop-off buses in Copenhagen do not get near the Grand, so the best thing to do would be to take the shuttle into town. Walking tours leave from outside the Tourist Information Office next to the Central Station and Tivoli at 10:30 daily except Sunday from May to September. Tickets are 75K to 100K and the tours last 90 minutes to 2 hours. The guide we had was an American called Richard who dresses as Hans Christian Andersen. He was excellent and his tours cost 75K. The tours are different depending on the day of the week.

A basic public transport ticket in Copenhagen allows travel within 2 zones (from the pier to the City centre) and allows transfers between buses and trains within one hour. So, you could buy a bus ticket from the driver, get off somewhere and then take another bus or a train using the same ticket if you do this within one hour of the time stamped on it.

Regarding Helsinki, the open top tours must be pretty new because they do not appear in the Helsinki Expert guide provided by the Helsinki Tourist Office. They are probably the only true hop-on hop-off tours available and at 20 euros I would definitely recommend to go on one.

[IRIS FAYE]

Do most of the people speak English in Copenhagen? Is there a problem getting someone to understand me once I reach the hop on/off location?

[FeegleGirl]

[quote name='IRIS FAYE']Do most of the people speak English in Copenhagen? Is there a problem getting someone to understand me once I reach the hop on/off location?[/QUOTE]
Practically everyone in Scandinavia speaks English apart from their own language. You will not have any problems talking to people in Sweden, Norway, Finland or Denmark. In Estonia and Poland some people will speak English, especially if they have anything to do with the tourist trade, but in Russia things are different. Most people speak only Russian.

So, don't worry about Copenhagen. Everyone we met spoke very good English. Besides, we found that people in the Nordic countries were very helpful. In several ocassions we were approached by locals asking if we needed any help if they saw us looking at maps.