Oslo, Copenhagen, Tallin, Helsinki

[SPacificbound]

I am having difficulty finding tour guides for the above ports. What we are wanting is driver guides for just the two of us or I can offer extra places to those on rollcall.

 

I appreciate any info.

 

Thank you.

[FraudBroad]

I am having difficulty finding tour guides for the above ports. What we are wanting is driver guides for just the two of us or I can offer extra places to those on rollcall.

 

I appreciate any info.

 

Thank you.

 

Any of the larger Saint Petersburg tour operators (Alla, SPB, TJ's) all offer tours for other Baltic ports. Just go to their websites and you can see what they have to offer. And they all offer private options.

 

Hope that helps!

[kaisatsu]

Oslo doesn't have much of a private tour industry, due to the high cost of labor.

 

HMK offers bus tours of the city, but they can also provide customized tours for smaller groups. You might contact them for an estimate.

 

You might also check what's offered on toursbylocals.com, since independent guides would have lower overhead costs and might be less expensive.

 

In general, most visitors to Oslo go DIY using the easy-to-navigate public transit system (included in the Oslo Pass along with museum admissions) or use the Hop-On Hop-Off bus service.

[SPacificbound]

Thank you. :)

[GradUT]

And Rick Steves had good, detailed self-guided tours for each of those places in his guidebook, "Rick Steves' Northern European Cruise Ports". We photocopied these self-guided tours to take with us and did them in Copenhagen, Tallinn and Helsinki. (Our cruise did not go to Oslo.) In addition to the Rick Steves self-guided tour of Copenhagen, we did the Free Walking Tour Copenhagen (3 hours) and it was fabulous.

 

Even if you don't think you'd like to do self-guided tours, I recommend reading the Rick Steves guidebook. He gives recommendations for other tour guides and other ways to tour these ports (e.g. HO/HO buses).

[SPacificbound]

And Rick Steves had good, detailed self-guided tours for each of those places in his guidebook, "Rick Steves' Northern European Cruise Ports". We photocopied these self-guided tours to take with us and did them in Copenhagen, Tallinn and Helsinki. (Our cruise did not go to Oslo.) In addition to the Rick Steves self-guided tour of Copenhagen, we did the Free Walking Tour Copenhagen (3 hours) and it was fabulous.

 

Even if you don't think you'd like to do self-guided tours, I recommend reading the Rick Steves guidebook. He gives recommendations for other tour guides and other ways to tour these ports (e.g. HO/HO buses).

 

That's a great idea, thank you. :)

[Splinter]

I can also recommend the Oslo Pass (you can purchase at the train station and at many mini-marts and hotels). Great public transportation; all covered by the Pass, as well as entry to all the museums. If you buy at the train station (in the Tourist Center) there are staff who can advise on routes to take and sights to see as well.

 

Be wary about the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus in Oslo. Lots of bad reviews on TripAdvisor.

Edited February 20, 2016 by Splinter

[Mr. Click]

Tallin is very walkable. There is a great walking tour PDF floating around the internet that we planned to use last June but DW damaged her knee and walking was not a great idea so we hired a cab at the pier and he took us up to the top of the old town and when we were done we hired another cab to take us around for the rest of the afternoon. Plenty of cabs ready willing and able. Just ask for a price before you go.

[jpcello]

And Rick Steves had good, detailed self-guided tours for each of those places in his guidebook, "Rick Steves' Northern European Cruise Ports". We photocopied these self-guided tours to take with us and did them in Copenhagen, Tallinn and Helsinki. (Our cruise did not go to Oslo.) In addition to the Rick Steves self-guided tour of Copenhagen, we did the Free Walking Tour Copenhagen (3 hours) and it was fabulous.

 

Even if you don't think you'd like to do self-guided tours, I recommend reading the Rick Steves guidebook. He gives recommendations for other tour guides and other ways to tour these ports (e.g. HO/HO buses).

 

Thanks for the idea. Does the guide talk at all about accessibility?

[GradUT]

I don't know for sure how much is in the Rick Steves guide on accessibility since that was not an issue for us. However, I do recall his inclusion of remarks about the cobblestones in Tallinn and how to see that city and avoid the steep streets. So I would expect to find even more about accessibility--his books are pretty thorough on most aspects of sightseeing.

[Keith1010]

Be sure to also check out trip advisor.

 

Keith

[Alaskanb]

We were DIY in all these ports except Tallinn. We used the local travel card for each place and had a terrific time.

[Kryssa]

We did private walking tours for all 3 of these ports (did not go to Oslo) -

 

Copenhagen - Guided Tours Copenhagen (Grand Tour)

 

Tallinn - Traveler Tours (2 hours)

 

Helsinki - Happy Guides Helsinki (Tram & Rail Sightseeing)

[klrcruises]

We did private walking tours for all 3 of these ports (did not go to Oslo) -

 

Copenhagen - Guided Tours Copenhagen (Grand Tour)

 

Tallinn - Traveler Tours (2 hours)

 

Helsinki - Happy Guides Helsinki (Tram & Rail Sightseeing)

 

Do you recommend the Helsinki tour? This is the only port I don't have anything planned out.

[GradUT]

Do you recommend the Helsinki tour? This is the only port I don't have anything planned out.

 

If you like DIY touring, it's easy to do in Helsinki. We took the tram/walked to Market Square where we caught the ferry to Semolina Island. We did a self-guided walk around the island (thanks to Rick Steves) and then caught the ferry back. We perused the stalls in the market and then caught a bite to eat along the Esplanad. We then took the tram to the Church in the Rock and walked a bit downtown. Then it was time to take the tram back to the ship.

 

There is also a tram (2/3) which goes to most of the tourist sites in the city and you can use it as a HO/HO tram. All-day tickets to use any of the teams only cost €8.

[Kryssa]

Do you recommend the Helsinki tour? This is the only port I don't have anything planned out.

 

 

It was fun, but if we did it again I might just do the walking tour rather than the tram tour. I would recommend heading out to the Rock Church - it's something really cool to see :)

 

 

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