Kiel Canal/Shore Excursion Question

[HiroPro]

My wife and I are taking a Cruise on Azamara Journey in June. As we head from Amsterdam to Copenhagen we are scheduled to spend one day traversing the Kiel Canal.  However, I noticed that the website offer shore excursion that day, which I thought was strange.  I’m assuming that these are land-based point-to-point tours offered as an alternative to staying on the boat, but none of that is clear in the descriptions. 

 

The tours are:

  - Medieval Luebeck 

  - Panoramic Hamburg 

 

Who can tell me if they think doing one of these tours is worth it over whatever I might see just staying on the ship?

 

Thanks!

[Wayfairers]

On 2/20/2019 at 3:22 PM, HiroPro said:

My wife and I are taking a Cruise on Azamara Journey in June. As we head from Amsterdam to Copenhagen we are scheduled to spend one day traversing the Kiel Canal.  However, I noticed that the website offer shore excursion that day, which I thought was strange.  I’m assuming that these are land-based point-to-point tours offered as an alternative to staying on the boat, but none of that is clear in the descriptions. 

 

The tours are:

  - Medieval Luebeck 

  - Panoramic Hamburg 

 

Who can tell me if they think doing one of these tours is worth it over whatever I might see just staying on the ship?

 

Thanks!

What did you do?  How was it?  Any recommendations?

[HiroPro]

We stayed on the ship and traversed the canal and I'm glad we did.  I don't think the point to point land trip on a bus would have been as relaxing or enjoyable.   The canal is a unique experience that's worth doing.  

 

Just my two cents.

[GradUT]

On our Baltic Cruise, the ship stopped in Kiel but did not traverse the Canal.  We got off the ship and traveled by train to Luebeck and that town was one of the highlights of our whole trip.  It’s a gorgeous town architecturally and has an amazing history (Old Hanseatic Town).   I would seriously consider a tour to Luebeck as opposed to watching the ship go through a canal.