A different question about St. Petersburg visas

[knippsel]

At least, I think I haven't seen the answer to this yet.

 

When visiting St. Petersburg from a cruise ship "Visa Free", i.e., touring with a tour company who obtains the necessary paperwork for you, must you stay with the same company for all your touring in order for the visa to be valid?

 

We're on the Koningsdam, making a 2-day stop this September. First time (and probably only time) in St. Petersburg, and just now getting started on planning sightseeing...

What we're thinking of is: Doing an extensive daytime sightseeing tour with one of the major companies, not sure which yet, but like Alla, DenRus, Insider, etc., then returning to the ship and in the evening taking the ships "Hermitage by Night" tour. (Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I've only seen the cruise line offer this, not any of the Russian Tour Operators.) Then the next day doing more touring with the original operator. The operator of the daytime touring would have to do the visa paperwork for us, but then would we be allowed to be on the ship's paperwork to do the nighttime tour with the cruise line? And then back on the paperwork for the daytime tour operator for touring on Day 2?

 

Am I making this too complicated? Why would we want to do this? We usually avoid the ship tours, preferring DIY or smaller groups, but we were hoping the "Hermitage by Night" tour would be a little less crowded:D And seeing the Hermitage in the evening would free up some time during the day for seeing other things.

Can anyone explain how the visa business might actually work in a situation like this? Happy for all input.

Thanks much. Kathy

[dixieagle]

At least, I think I haven't seen the answer to this yet.

 

When visiting St. Petersburg from a cruise ship "Visa Free", i.e., touring with a tour company who obtains the necessary paperwork for you, must you stay with the same company for all your touring in order for the visa to be valid?

 

We're on the Koningsdam, making a 2-day stop this September. First time (and probably only time) in St. Petersburg, and just now getting started on planning sightseeing...

What we're thinking of is: Doing an extensive daytime sightseeing tour with one of the major companies, not sure which yet, but like Alla, DenRus, Insider, etc., then returning to the ship and in the evening taking the ships "Hermitage by Night" tour. (Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I've only seen the cruise line offer this, not any of the Russian Tour Operators.) Then the next day doing more touring with the original operator. The operator of the daytime touring would have to do the visa paperwork for us, but then would we be allowed to be on the ship's paperwork to do the nighttime tour with the cruise line? And then back on the paperwork for the daytime tour operator for touring on Day 2?

 

Am I making this too complicated? Why would we want to do this? We usually avoid the ship tours, preferring DIY or smaller groups, but we were hoping the "Hermitage by Night" tour would be a little less crowded:D And seeing the Hermitage in the evening would free up some time during the day for seeing other things.

Can anyone explain how the visa business might actually work in a situation like this? Happy for all input.

Thanks much. Kathy

 

My feeling is that you're overthinking this.

 

We will be in St. Petersburg off the NCL Getaway in early June, and have booked a two-day custom tour with Best Guides, as they were willing to do a tour which catered to our interest in WWII history, the Siege of Leningrad, active Orthodox churches, along with the usual top attractions. (They also had access to pretty reasonably priced tickets to the Mariinsky Theatre for ballet; other tour operators did not. The driver will bring us to the theatre at the end of our first day's tour and then take us back to the ship.)

 

We have our tour tickets already, and it was imperative that everything on them (names, dates, etc.) was absolutely accurate, as that is what will get us through customs/immigration both days of our tour. You will get similar tour tickets from whatever operator you choose. You would then have a separate tour ticket for the ship's Hermitage excursion, which will get you off the ship that evening. Not as complicated as you think! Have a great cruise!

[Huntingdon1701]

I agree - each provider will give you a visa covering that particular section, and it doesn't matter at all that you are doing the other bits.

 

Just as an aside, several of the tour companies appear to get early access to the Hermitage, before the ship's tours, so it shouldn't be that crowded if you go with them. But seeing it at night does sound pretty impressive.

 

I'm on NCL's Getaway in less than a week and have my tours booked with Alla. I've found them incredibly helpful in every respect.

[John Bull]

Your tour ticket with the local operator will get you through immigration for their tours, ship's tour ticket will get you through immigration in the evening.

Simple :)

 

But best to check the timings. If there's little or no gap between tours you might be able to arrange to be dropped at (or a bar near) the Hermitage & be collected from there - easy with the same operator, but perhaps not possible with ship's evening tour.

 

If you find that another local tour operator offers a "Hermitage in the evening" tour it's probable that it's available only for those who take that operator's day tour - so that would mean changing your main tour operator.

 

JB :)

[dogs4fun]

Agree with previous posts - you can tour with an independent company during the day and your ship during the evening.

Just a note - I would pay special attention to John Bull's post regarding checking the timings.

When would your day tour end and your evening tour begin? Traffic in St. Petersburg can be quite chaotic and sometimes impacts the timing of your return to your ship. If you plan on returning to your ship after the end of your day tour, I would recommend that you have at least a 1.5 to 2 hour cushion between the end of your day tour and beginning of your evening tour.

[murfturf]

I would like to add to this question - because I think it is closest to my own question!

 

If we purchase a ship tour for maybe a 6 hour tour, are we then required to return to the ship or will the visa allow us to be on our own at all in the city or area near the cruise port? thanks!

[murfturf]

I would like to add to this question - because I think it is closest to my own question!

 

If we purchase a ship tour for maybe a 6 hour tour, are we then required to return to the ship or will the visa allow us to be on our own at all in the city or area near the cruise port? thanks!

 

 

I think I found my answer... "You have to be accompanied on land at all times by a licensed tour guide (with a specific state license for accompanying cruise passengers without visas) and you have to sleep on the ship."

[dogs4fun]

I think I found my answer... "You have to be accompanied on land at all times by a licensed tour guide (with a specific state license for accompanying cruise passengers without visas) and you have to sleep on the ship."

Correct.

You can book evening options though - for example, Alla Tours offers a free content program called "Saint Petersburg Anyway you Wish". Such options will provide you with the visa waiver (i.e., tour ticket) and flexibility to do whatever you want in the evening. I would suggest that you check with the provider of your day tour to see what is offered as an evening add-on.