Viking Homelands stop in Berlin

[CatGirl922]

Looking for feedback on the paid excursions to Schwerin Castle and Lubeck/Wismar.  I doubt if anyone has done both, but opinions please on either.  Definitely not going to Berlin and looking for the best way to see the most of that area of Germany.

[SantaFe1]

We enjoyed our trip to Schwerin castle very much this past June.  It’s a bit of a drive out there, but then a boat trip around the castle and its island and a brief tour inside.  It just beautiful!  The tour of Schwerin town was a bit slow for us so we broke off and did it on our own and stopped for coffee.  After we got back to the ship, we spent the late afternoon in Warnemünde having a beer and a snack on a glorious, warm afternoon.  We were so happy not to do the marathon Berlin trip!

[CatGirl922]

13 minutes ago, SantaFe1 said:

We enjoyed our trip to Schwerin castle very much this past June.  It’s a bit of a drive out there, but then a boat trip around the castle and its island and a brief tour inside.  It just beautiful!  The tour of Schwerin town was a bit slow for us so we broke off and did it on our own and stopped for coffee.  After we got back to the ship, we spent the late afternoon in Warnemünde having a beer and a snack on a glorious, warm afternoon.  We were so happy not to do the marathon Berlin trip!

 

Thanks for your feedback.  We'll be there at the very end of May.  Hope for lovely weather as well. 

 

[JenRonn1104]

We did the Lubeck/Wismar tour and we were very disappointed.  The description on Viking website was not completely accurate.  We would not recommend it.

[BluebonnetTexan]

1 hour ago, JenRonn1104 said:

We did the Lubeck/Wismar tour and we were very disappointed.  The description on Viking website was not completely accurate.  We would not recommend it.

What exactly disappointed you and what was inaccurate in the description? 

[JenRonn1104]

The best way to answer this is to copy from my blog I did of our Viking Homeland's Cruise:

 

"Explore two former Hanseatic powers.  Visit two of Germany’s most beautiful seaside cities, each a powerful part of the medieval Hanseatic League.  [Lubeck] today is one of the best preserved medieval tows in northern Germany and a UNSESCO World Heritage Site…

Unfortunately, not to spoil this post for you, the description of “most beautiful seaside cities” was not accurate.  In addition, we ran into some problems.  But overall, it was a nice day, and if not for the issues we had, we probably would have an even better feeling about this excursion."

 

" Unfortunately, the stress of the earlier situation put a damper on the day and definitely impacted how we felt about this tour and about Wismar.  In hindsight, we learned a lot about these towns and they were very interesting.  But they weren’t what we were expecting.  We were expecting quaint German seaside villages.  At no time on the tour did we see the sea and the cities were not quaint but a little depressing.  Depressing because they aren’t being well maintained.  As the young people and families continue to move to the big cities, these small towns are declining in population and therefore money to maintain them.  Most of the churches are not used as churches anymore but music venues, bars, etc.  It was a bit sad. "

 

As you can see we had some issues...not to bore you with all the details in short our tour guide miscounted and lost two people.  And we were 2 hours from the ship.  We eventually caught up with the lost couple but it was very stressful day which has probably tainted our view of the excursion.  I hope this helps.

 

[CatGirl922]

3 hours ago, JenRonn1104 said:

The best way to answer this is to copy from my blog I did of our Viking Homeland's Cruise:

 

"Explore two former Hanseatic powers.  Visit two of Germany’s most beautiful seaside cities, each a powerful part of the medieval Hanseatic League.  [Lubeck] today is one of the best preserved medieval tows in northern Germany and a UNSESCO World Heritage Site…

Unfortunately, not to spoil this post for you, the description of “most beautiful seaside cities” was not accurate.  In addition, we ran into some problems.  But overall, it was a nice day, and if not for the issues we had, we probably would have an even better feeling about this excursion."

 

" Unfortunately, the stress of the earlier situation put a damper on the day and definitely impacted how we felt about this tour and about Wismar.  In hindsight, we learned a lot about these towns and they were very interesting.  But they weren’t what we were expecting.  We were expecting quaint German seaside villages.  At no time on the tour did we see the sea and the cities were not quaint but a little depressing.  Depressing because they aren’t being well maintained.  As the young people and families continue to move to the big cities, these small towns are declining in population and therefore money to maintain them.  Most of the churches are not used as churches anymore but music venues, bars, etc.  It was a bit sad. "

 

As you can see we had some issues...not to bore you with all the details in short our tour guide miscounted and lost two people.  And we were 2 hours from the ship.  We eventually caught up with the lost couple but it was very stressful day which has probably tainted our view of the excursion.  I hope this helps.

 

 

Thank you so much for explaining what happened. Even without the two missing people, it sounds like the towns themselves weren't that special to you.  I never thought that those towns were "seaside" but more countryside.  I can understand why you felt misled.  Were you on a full size bus?  Was the trip there through the country worth seeing?  Still trying to figure out the best tour to do.  Thanks.

 

[Squigmond]

Might I suggest you look into a private tour for your day in Northern Germany.......specifically Friends Of Dave.   Check out the tour on the website and look at tripadvisor reviews.  We had a great day on this small group tour 2 years ago.  

[CatGirl922]

1 hour ago, Squigmond said:

Might I suggest you look into a private tour for your day in Northern Germany.......specifically Friends Of Dave.   Check out the tour on the website and look at tripadvisor reviews.  We had a great day on this small group tour 2 years ago.  

 

That was the tour (Friends of Dave) that we wanted to do.  Unfortunately owing to our times in port, they can't do it with us.  Trying to find an alternative other than Viking.  Haven't had any success yet.

[JenRonn1104]

2 hours ago, CatGirl922 said:

 

Thank you so much for explaining what happened. Even without the two missing people, it sounds like the towns themselves weren't that special to you.  I never thought that those towns were "seaside" but more countryside.  I can understand why you felt misled.  Were you on a full size bus?  Was the trip there through the country worth seeing?  Still trying to figure out the best tour to do.  Thanks.

 

 

Good afternoon.  I am glad my explanation was helpful.  It was a full size bus but it wasn't full.  I think we had about 20-25 people in our group if I remember correctly.   The country side was nice on the drive but it was a very long drive.

 

[jimgri]

Another alternative to Schwerin Castle and Lubeck/Wismar is Rostock, just 20 minutes or so away by train (S Bahn) from Warnemünde. It's a pretty little town with a lot of history and makes a nice contrast to Warnemünde. Dead easy to do and a return ticket costs about 5 euros if memory serves me right. My wife and I did a similar cruise on HAL two years ago and had a fabulous time. Pics on Flickr if anyone is interested. The photos of Rostock and Warnemünde are close to the beginning of the album, after Copenhagen.