Port times in St. Petersburg

[Windsailer]

I know this sounds strange but it appears to be true. The NCL Getaway will be in SPB for 2 day - arriving at 7am and then leaving at 11:30am the next day. If we want to do a quick tour the second morning (authorized company with visa support) how soon will we be able to get off the ship? Anyone had any experience with this? Please let me know your experiences. Thanks!

[dogs4fun]

1 hour ago, Windsailer said:

I know this sounds strange but it appears to be true. The NCL Getaway will be in SPB for 2 day - arriving at 7am and then leaving at 11:30am the next day. If we want to do a quick tour the second morning (authorized company with visa support) how soon will we be able to get off the ship? Anyone had any experience with this? Please let me know your experiences. Thanks!

That is really strange - what a bummer! I've never had such and experience but ...

Going through immigration is much quicker on the 2nd day - not hectic like the first day through immigration where your documents are carefully checked. You should be able to get off the ship very early in the morning. However, you will not have much time to do anything - most venues (museums, etc.) don't open until 10 am and you will be docked about 25 - 30 minutes from the city center. So, the latest I would want to be back on board the ship would be 10:30 am. Really no time to do much of anything. You could, of course, go into the city and do some browsing on Nevsky and maybe grab breakfast.

Edited January 11, 2019 by dogs4fun

[kitkat343]

Dogs4 fun is completely correct about customs on day 2.

 

There are several reputable private tour operators in St. Petersburg (Alla, SPB, Denrus, Best Guides and others).  I would start by emailing all of them and asking them what their recommendation would be as to how to spend the second morning.

 

One possibility to consider (and you'd need to run this idea by someone who is much more familiar with the logistics of St. Petersburg since traffic can be a nightmare) is that I believe early admission at the Hermitage starts at 9:30.  This wouldn't be a good plan for a serious art lover, but it might be something to consider if you had only intended to spend an hour at the Hermitage.  Please note that on the day we were there, the exhibits opened as docents arrived during the early admissions period.  Therefore, there would be no guarantee that the specific exhibits you'd want to see would be open exactly at 9:30.  Again, the tour operators might be able to advise if random exhibits open first or if there is a normal set schedule.  Please note that whenever you visit the Hermitage, I'd highly recommend carefully planning exactly which paintings or genre of paintings you want to see ahead of time, since there is so much incredible art you could spend weeks there.  We were lucky and during our visit the Hermitage was completely empty at 9:30, and packed an hour later so we were able to quickly see everything we wanted (Renaissance art and Impressionists).  

 

I would also strongly encourage you given your situation to book a private tour for just your family.   You are really going to need to maximize your time on the ground given the limited port time.  If you can control the itinerary, you can move quickly through certain museums (we had a 3 year old with us, so we flew through the middle rooms of Catherine's Palace, as the beginning and Amber room are the highlight.)  I'd review all the major attractions online ahead of time, since some of them are more likely to appeal to you than others (I love the exterior of the Church of the Spilled Blood, but don't love mosaics so I could have skipped the interior altogether if we had less time.  Lots of other travelers love the interior, so looking at pictures ahead of time will help you get a sense of what are the absolute highlights for you that you shouldn't miss). 

 

And Stolle's is  a great chain all over St. Petersburg, where you can get really yummy sweet and savory pies.  It's really quick and inexpensive so you can have a nice lunch without losing too much time.  

 

Have a great trip!

Edited January 12, 2019 by kitkat343

[fabnfortysomething]

what a horrible itinerary

we did Baltics on sister ship Breakaway last year and had 2 full days

arrive 7am and left 7pm next day

St Petersburg is the highlight of the trip so why on earth have they cut the port times so drastically

 

[Windsailer]

I really don't know why NCL did this. I don't think we will get off the ship the second day, especially since the port is so far from the city center. Thanks for all the information - it was very helpful.

[dogs4fun]

1 hour ago, Windsailer said:

I really don't know why NCL did this. I don't think we will get off the ship the second day, especially since the port is so far from the city center. Thanks for all the information - it was very helpful.

Just wondering ... is it possible to change your cruise date? It appears that the June 25th sailing of the Getaway is NCL's only 2019 itinerary that departs the second day at 11:30 - all other Getaway itineraries have the ship in port the second day until 7 pm.

[Windsailer]

Unfortunately we are locked into that specific cruise. We will have a very long first day!

[angie7911922]

I've heard that a few times now - that is so weird. It used to be two full days in SPB. With the short time you have, I would recommend getting a private tour guide. We used Anastasia's Travel, and they were able to get us through the lines faster, tailor the itineraries to what we wanted to see, and focus on our tour exclusively. They may be able to get you out and back for a short tour that second day, where a ship tour wouldn't be able too. I'd look into something like this, so you an maximize the time you have in port.

[KittyloverCA]

That’s a big bummer to have such a short visit, but make the best of it. Book a private tour and customize your itinerary, make a full day of it! We used TJtours and loved them

[Lagerta]

15 hours ago, maddocfamilyu said:

I would suggest to see as much as possible on the first day. Book a full day program plus some evening activities - a Folk show or Faberge museum, get a dinner in a local restaurant and after it get night boat tour. If you book with Best Guides the Night Boat Tour will end at 2.30. I mean at 2.30 am you will be already back at the ship. It will be much better than try to see something on the second morning.

 

This is a good suggestion. Alternatively, you can leave somethig like a city tour or a boat ride for the morning on the second day, so you are back on the ship at 10.30. No one understands the reasons of early sailing, that seems to bу a new thing for NCL. God knows why they decided to do that, but looks like we just have to accept it and adjust.

Enjoy your cruise!