Getaway Baltic Cruise Highlights With Photos

[marbleski]

Hi my friend and i doing this cruise leaving on the in September , can you suggest which are the best excursions to book on . :):)

 

With the exception of St. Petersburg, we toured on our own. In St. Petersburg we booked a two day tour with another family for a group of 8. We used a company called "Best Guides". I didn't look much at the NCL shore excursion options - way too many to read through. Rick Steve's Guide book is a great starting point. He does a great job of highlighting the major attractions at each port. Your ship should have a roll call. Sign on and connect with your fellow passengers. They are wonderful people who are only too glad to share ideas and tours.

[EllieinNJ]

I'm no photographer but I got to say that your pictures are fabulous. They are one of the most vivid and colorful ones I have ever seen on cruise critic. Also, thanks for the info on the train into Copenhagen. I am also considering flying into Oslo and taking a ferry to Denmark. And then again, I'm thinking about doing the Epic 7 day the week before and flying from Barcelona. Decisions, decisions.

[marbleski]

St. Petersburg, the big day is finally here.

 

I’m sure the Getaway sneaked a wee bit of Caribbean weather through customs. Two more pleasant days. At each port the locals indicted we arrived on the finest day of the season. They were correct. We followed the weather app before our trip and there were some nasty cold temperatures before our ship sailed in.

 

Based on past experience we decided two families of four would be the ideal group size for our two days in St. Petersburg. I contacted a couple of tour companies early in the New Year and Best Guides was the best fit. We confirmed our four person tour in February with the option of adding up to four others if we decided to do so later on.

 

As our cruise date came near I posted my tour details on our roll call and hooked up with another family of four, two student included. After speed dating via phone calls and emails we had ourselves a match. Our group is now 8. Thanks to the CC roll call we are two for two playing the speed dating game.

 

We travelled in a 16 passenger van. Everyone had a window or aisle seat, their choosing. This made for a comfortable two days. Our guide lucked out, she only had two families to keep in line. The outcome, we covered a lot of ground and when necessary we were able to move quickly and efficiently through the major sites, traffic, road closures etc.

 

Our astute guide really shined at the major sites. She knew everything about everything. Most importantly her navigation skills through and around the larger groups was outstanding. Being among the first to arrive at The State Hermitage allowed us see the popular exhibits and rooms before the crowds arrived.

 

The two day tour included most of the usual sights (except the Faberge Museum) as well as a subway ride, the hydrofoil and canal boat tour. Both water transits provided relaxing down time. Most of the group caught a wink or two on the return hydrofoil from Peterhof.

 

Back to the guides, St. Petersburg has great guides. They are well trained and certified. Most are highly educated with master degrees in various disciplines. It is more lucrative for them to work as a guide than their field of study. The great ones seem to be in high demand. As soon as we confirmed our booking with Best Guides they immediately contacted our guide to book her for the tour. TIP: book private tours early, it might improve your odds of getting the “Best Guide”.

 

Our guide was born and raised in St. Petersburg and she travels extensively in the off season - making for great conversation. She loves her job, and it sure showed. Overall, the tour was great and I would use them again. Due to a major event taking place at the Peterhof we were delayed in traffic. Our guide and driver did a great job tweaking the itinerary to make up for lost time. One of the benefits of travelling with a small group.

 

At the 8:30 pm OS did an evening pub crawl. He also watched the opening of the draw bridge around 1:00 am or so. He had a great time and a late night. "Russian vodka tasted in Russia" now has a tick on his bucket list.

 

TIP: Spend a few hours brushing up on your Russian History. Some knowledge about the Romanov’s, Bolshevik’s, Russian Revolution,Lenin, Stalin, WWI, WWII and the Cold War will enhance your touring experience.

 

TIP: Customs is very slow on the first day. Some lines move faster than others. We happened to choose a slow line. Be among the first off the ship or expect a good 45 minutes or so in the immigration line. Usually our family of four proceeds through customs together. Not here,one at a time. It may have been faster if our group of 8 had split up among a few different lines. Here are a few pics from The State Hermitage. I will look over the rest of my pictures over the weekend and post a few more. from the other sites.

 

 

 

This room hosted many Grand Balls

 

 

 

To the right you can see the guide who knows it all.

 

 

 

 

Michelangelo - The Crouching Boy

[marbleski]

The State Hermitage Images #2

 

The Getaway 8 on tour at the Hermitage

 

 

 

OS enjoying the composition of light in Rembrandt's Descent from the Cross

 

Leonardo Da Vinci - Madonna and Child (The Benois Madonna)

 

Rembrandt - Danae

[marbleski]

I'm no photographer but I got to say that your pictures are fabulous. They are one of the most vivid and colorful ones I have ever seen on cruise critic. Also, thanks for the info on the train into Copenhagen. I am also considering flying into Oslo and taking a ferry to Denmark. And then again, I'm thinking about doing the Epic 7 day the week before and flying from Barcelona. Decisions, decisions.

 

Appreciate the comments. I am no professional either but the boys are growing up and I be must aging. I purchased my camera to capture action shots of the boys playing sports. I never thought the day would come and they would be grown up and I would be reduced to capturing stationary objects. LOL.

[Kebenarans]

Appreciate the comments. I am no professional either but the boys are growing up and I be must aging. I purchased my camera to capture action shots of the boys playing sports. I never thought the day would come and they would be grown up and I would be reduced to capturing stationary objects. LOL.

 

May I know what camera do you use? :D

[pr0pel]

May I know what camera do you use? :D

He uses a Nikon D7100. It's a DSLR -- pretty much all DSLR's will shoot very nice pictures. Some better than others, depending on what lens you put on there but a DSLR with a stock lens will shoot plenty fine pictures unless you're a pro and need better ones for studio shots, fast moving objects, etc.

[stp108]

Great photos and great review. Thank you. Hubs and I are on this cruise in September. I can't wait. We found flying to CPH from Houston to be very expensive. So we are flying into Brussels and then from BRU to CPH. About $200 less per person total and we get a couple of days in BRU.

[Seminole1975]

I am really enjoying your review! Beautiful pictures!! I too am going in September. So glad you had great weather!! Thank you. Diane

[Doughboy139]

Great photos and great review. Thank you. Hubs and I are on this cruise in September. I can't wait. We found flying to CPH from Houston to be very expensive. So we are flying into Brussels and then from BRU to CPH. About $200 less per person total and we get a couple of days in BRU.

 

If you are spending a few days in Brussels make sure you visit Brugge it is a very lovely town, you will feel like you are back in the 1940's

[pr0pel]

Did NCL offer transfers to city center before disembarking? I'm seeing some conflicting info.

[marbleski]

May I know what camera do you use? :D

 

Hi Kebenarans;

 

I used a Nikon D7100 for most of the images posted. A few of were taken with my iphone. The iphone is always with me while the D7100 gets used on vacation.

We did and seen a lot over three weeks. All us recall a few special moments. Two of my favourites were captured on my 4 year old iphone 5.

 

This picture was taken during my best meal on our trip. Freshly prepared Czech food paired with a Czech beer in a gorgeous dining car riding the rails through the beautiful Elbe river valley between Prague and Berlin. This photo captured the experience - great views, better company. What did I eat. I don't recall.

 

 

This one is a selfie I took of myself relaxing on our balcony with the feet up, ocean breeze on my face, sunshine and nothing but blue sky and Baltic Sea as far as the eye can see. Vacation at its best.

Make a mental note of these feet and on your next NCL adventure, look down every now and then and if you see these feet be sure to say hi.

[marbleski]

Did NCL offer transfers to city center before disembarking? I'm seeing some conflicting info.

 

Pr0pel;

 

The only shuttle I recall was to the airport. I don't think they offered one to the City center but I could be wrong. As seen in one of my earlier photos the bus stop is only a short walk once you depart the port terminal. Buses 25 and 27 depart on a regular basis.

 

I think our walk through the airport was much further. Our plane was assigned the furthest departure gate possible.

[pr0pel]

Pr0pel;

 

The only shuttle I recall was to the airport. I don't think they offered one to the City center but I could be wrong. As seen in one of my earlier photos the bus stop is only a short walk once you depart the port terminal. Buses 25 and 27 depart on a regular basis.

 

I think our walk through the airport was much further. Our plane was assigned the furthest departure gate possible.

 

Thanks. I'm guessing the 25/27 take you directly to the city center right?

[aSiAnRiCk]

Thank you for sharing your journey with us and looking forward to see the rest.

 

Question for ya - we have a 11AM flight out of Copenhagen on disembarkation day. We plan to be one of the first people out ... heck we'll even help them drop anchor if necessary. How was your experience with the customs in CPH when disembarking?

 

Our cruise is in two weeks!

[marbleski]

Thanks. I'm guessing the 25/27 take you directly to the city center right?

 

The bus will get you to the city center but it might involve a transfer, but I'm not 100% sure. Check out the CC Baltic port page, lots of helpful tips there on Copenhagen.

[marbleski]

Thank you for sharing your journey with us and looking forward to see the rest.

 

Question for ya - we have a 11AM flight out of Copenhagen on disembarkation day. We plan to be one of the first people out ... heck we'll even help them drop anchor if necessary. How was your experience with the customs in CPH when disembarking?

 

Our cruise is in two weeks!

 

 

Customs was a none event for us. Little to no line up. Four of us walked up together and the agent looked at our passports and we were on the way.

[marbleski]

Peterhof - Due to a major event taking place 2:00 pm at the Peterhof the traffic was slow and our trip took at least an extra 30 minutes. The ceremony started just after we arrived. It must have been an important event as it was packed (I think it was a re-opening of the fountain ceremony). There was some sort of honour guard surrounding the ceremony. I assume it was for both pageantry and security as we had to be careful not to step on their feet walking down the crowded stairs. There were big banners on display, dancers and speeches.The speeches were interesting as they were full of passion. Too bad we didn’t understand a word.

 

On the plus side it was great to be there to experience the local celebration but on the downside we could not get near the main fountains, which I was looking forward to the most. We spent a couple of hours touring around the gardens and visiting the Boat House Wing of the Monplaisir Palace. We had to put slipper covers on before entry. The Copper Bath Tub was interesting.

 

By the time we finished the Boat House Wing tour the ceremony was over and we circled toward the main fountains for a family photo. We did not have time to walk immediately next to the fountains as we had to catch the hydrofoil, which was in the opposite direction. Our guide purchased the hydrofoil tickets and we were grateful she managed to talk them into holding the boat for us. We were stopped and individually photographed before boarding. Must be for security purposes.The ride was smooth but it flies. Most the group had wink or two.

 

 

 

 

Big crowd watching the music, dancers and speeches.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Copper Bath Tub. Getting a bath was a major event!!!

 

 

[marbleski]

Peterhof Pics page 2

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kids were sure having fun with the fountains. There lots and lots of families around.

[willma]

We had this guide. She was outstanding. Highly recommended.

[marbleski]

We had this guide. She was outstanding. Highly recommended.

 

Hi Willma

 

She was outstanding indeed.

[marbleski]

Next up Catherine Palace - Summer residence of the Russian tsars

 

The palace is about 30 km outside St. Petersburg. Pleasant drive and it didn't seem like we drove 30 km as the drive was busy with interesting conversion as our guide answered our questions about her childhood memories before and after the fall of communism, current day to day life in Russia and so on. Very interesting indeed.

 

A few pictures at Catherine Palace and grounds. I only took a few inside but here they are.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[marbleski]

The Catherine Palace - Pics #2

 

 

 

 

 

 

[CasaDeM]

Loving your report.

[TSUmom]

This is an awesome review - so detailed and informative plus excellent pictures. Looking forward to more and a Great big Thank you!