St Petersburgh Advice

[hun]

We'll be traveling to the Baltics next September 2017 and will also appreciate hearing about your reviews of Insider Tours for SPB and Berlin - it's a new name to me! Thanks!

[Floridiana]

I went with a company whose website was informative and well structured. It was recommended here on cruise critic like many other companies. I thought if they had their act together online and in their e-mail communication, they should be good and I was right. It was TJ travel and Irina was our great guide. Excellent English skills! Great personality.

In the end, I did not compare the price of all the companies, only TJ and one other which was unable to accommodate our wish to pay in Euros. TJ had no problem with that. The other company did.

[JHLH821]

Hi

Going on our first cruise( Very Excited !!) in Aug round the Baltics and looking forward to exploring places we haven't been to before.

 

At St Petersburgh we obviously need a tour guide and have narrowed it down to 2 (Main factor was light tour,limited time at museums as 2 kids would be moaning and price) but I can't find many reviews.Does anyone have any experience ( good or bad) with Smart Free Tours ( they have given us a private Itinerary at a cost) and Inside Tours ?? Is it normal for tour companies to request that you scan and email the front page of your passport?

 

Sorry for all the questions but really want to make the right choice.

We recently returned from the Baltics and contracted with Insider for SPB. There were a total of 4 in our group and we arranged a private tour. While we saw all of the main sites that everyone else does, there were several items on the itinerary that were missed (a walk down Nevsky Prospect, a visit to a Farmer's Market). At times it was difficult to understand our guide- we asked her several times not to use the microphone in the van as the mic feedback was earsplitting. She got us in to the palaces and museums without any wait and was very protective of us while navigating through the massive crowds as several of the sites.

 

She took us to a store where we wasted over an hour on shopping (all items were extremely overpriced- I get the idea that her tour company received a kick back for every time her clients purchase).

 

What was disturbing to us were comments she made about the Jewish community in Russia (past and present). As we drove by the Grand Chorale Synagogue she began her explanation of what she called "The Jewish Revolution). My tour mates looked at each other in surprise. The guide continued on regarding the Jewish influence in Russia and made some outrageous comments regarding Jewish control of businesses in the US and that the entertainment industry is just "propaganda". As much as we tried to correct her, she did not believe us.

 

We arranged for dinner at Tsar, which served outstanding Russian cuisine. Our reservation was for 5:30pm and we were back on the ship by 9pm. Overall, we enjoyed the city but feel our guide's personal sentiments tainted an otherwise enjoyable visit.

 

Before dropping us off, the guide gave us two forms to fill out, they were actually review forms. I would have preferred to receive an e-link post tour, I felt that any critical comments we had written would not have been forwarded to the tour company.

[sonia2509]

Hi

 

Going on our first cruise( Very Excited !!) in Aug round the Baltics and looking forward to exploring places we haven't been to before.

 

 

 

At St Petersburgh we obviously need a tour guide and have narrowed it down to 2 (Main factor was light tour,limited time at museums as 2 kids would be moaning and price) but I can't find many reviews.Does anyone have any experience ( good or bad) with Smart Free Tours ( they have given us a private Itinerary at a cost) and Inside Tours ?? Is it normal for tour companies to request that you scan and email the front page of your passport?

 

 

 

Sorry for all the questions but really want to make the right choice.

 

 

We used Inside Tours on our cruise just last week. I have not yet submitted a review, but I can highly recommend Inside Tours. Very professional and efficient your guide and they worked around on what we wanted to see

 

 

Sent from my iPhone using Forums mobile app

[Pet Nit Noy]

We recently returned from the Baltics and contracted with Insider for SPB. There were a total of 4 in our group and we arranged a private tour. While we saw all of the main sites that everyone else does, there were several items on the itinerary that were missed (a walk down Nevsky Prospect, a visit to a Farmer's Market). At times it was difficult to understand our guide- we asked her several times not to use the microphone in the van as the mic feedback was earsplitting. She got us in to the palaces and museums without any wait and was very protective of us while navigating through the massive crowds as several of the sites.

 

She took us to a store where we wasted over an hour on shopping (all items were extremely overpriced- I get the idea that her tour company received a kick back for every time her clients purchase).

 

What was disturbing to us were comments she made about the Jewish community in Russia (past and present). As we drove by the Grand Chorale Synagogue she began her explanation of what she called "The Jewish Revolution). My tour mates looked at each other in surprise. The guide continued on regarding the Jewish influence in Russia and made some outrageous comments regarding Jewish control of businesses in the US and that the entertainment industry is just "propaganda". As much as we tried to correct her, she did not believe us.

 

We arranged for dinner at Tsar, which served outstanding Russian cuisine. Our reservation was for 5:30pm and we were back on the ship by 9pm. Overall, we enjoyed the city but feel our guide's personal sentiments tainted an otherwise enjoyable visit.

 

Before dropping us off, the guide gave us two forms to fill out, they were actually review forms. I would have preferred to receive an e-link post tour, I felt that any critical comments we had written would not have been forwarded to the tour company.

 

Some very troubling feedback about this company, but you've done such a good job detailing the specifics that your criticism is highly credible. Your specific objections would be a show stopper for me.

 

There's a sub-set of cruisers who want/need to customize their port call in SPB. Unfortunately, the lead five companies want nothing to do with small groups who want atypical visits. That's why we turn to the tour companies rated 6-10 on Trip Advisor. (Insider is rated #11, but considering #6-10 is a somewhat arbitrary cut off and Insider actually has more reviews than the company ranked at #10). Others on this board have used Insider Tours with happier results. For the "customizers" who find their options are limited and have to consider using Insider, please provide the name of your unsatisfactory guide so your unpleasant experience won't be repeated.

 

I know you said you would have preferred an e-link to post a review, but it appears you've managed to post your important dissenting experience on Trip Advisor.

[JHLH821]

the mention of posting via e-link was referencing the tour company, not on this forum.

We received a piece of paper at the tour's conclusion which was their version of a review form. In my view, not professional and not secure.

 

Thank you

[Pet Nit Noy]

the mention of posting via e-link was referencing the tour company, not on this forum.

We received a piece of paper at the tour's conclusion which was their version of a review form. In my view, not professional and not secure.

 

Thank you

 

I'm sorry to be so dense, but you seem to be referring to something so unusual that I didn't process it correctly when you first wrote. You appear to have been asked to fill out a form for the company's internal quality control. Is this correct?

 

I've been asked to do this when we tour with Context Travel, an excellent company offering tours on five continents but no Russian branch a yet. We haven't toured with Context in a while, and, until you followed up, I'd completely forgotten about those internal evaluations. I was thinking about the more typical practice when people are asked to asked to post on review on Trip Advisor.

 

My comment was that you appear to have used your own initiative to post a review on Trip Advisor. Given the guide's unacceptable commentary, your posts here and on Trip Advisor are greatly appreciated.

Edited August 31, 2016 by Pet Nit Noy

[JHLH821]

I apologize if I was not clear initially. My synopsis included a review of their post tour survey process- suggesting that the company investigate the option of e-links in lieu of distributing paper forms. The owner of the company has been in contact with me, where I further explained, privately, several other issues and perceptions experienced. I am not sure where we will end up- I would hate for someone else to experienced what we did.

 

Thank you also for your comments and overview