Change of itinerary Baltic

[silversurf]

We booked this cruise over a year ago, specifically because it DID NOT visit Tallin. I use a wheelchair which my partner pushes. I know Tallin is impossible for wheelchairs due to large cobbles and hills.

Today I received the new Saga Cruises brochure showing that they only spend one day in Stockholm instead of two then on to Tallin.

We have had no communication from Saga informing us of this. Yet we get post of some sort from them nearly every week, or more.

We are not happy about this as it wasn’t what we signed up for.

[nosapphire]

1 hour ago, silversurf said:

We booked this cruise over a year ago, specifically because it DID NOT visit Tallin. I use a wheelchair which my partner pushes. I know Tallin is impossible for wheelchairs due to large cobbles and hills.

Today I received the new Saga Cruises brochure showing that they only spend one day in Stockholm instead of two then on to Tallin.

We have had no communication from Saga informing us of this. Yet we get post of some sort from them nearly every week, or more.

We are not happy about this as it wasn’t what we signed up for.

They usually do tell you about itinerary changes, maybe the letter has gone astray in the post - although seems odd that this is the only one to go missing.

Have you asked them why? perhaps you can switch to another Baltic that would suit more.

(When is it due to go? -  there is every possibility that you may not be able to get off independently anyway).

[Kentish Lass]

This has happened to us as well. We are booked to go to the Fjords in June (hopefully).   I noticed in the brochure we received this week that we are now visiting Bergen and instead of an overnight stay in Flam we are just there for the day. We have received no notification from Saga about this change. In our case it doesn’t really matter as we have no problem with the change but I can appreciate your concern about Tallin and a wheelchair. 

[Wacktle]

I am surprised that Saga have not informed you of the itinerary changes. We had a phone call a couple of weeks informing us that our "Hamburg to Holland" cruise this October will no longer be visiting Hamburg. The reason given was that past passengers had reported being bored there! We booked this specifically for Hamburg and the overnight stay there and were looking forward to exploring the city, particularly the Beatles trail. Instead, the cruise will call at Rotterdam and Bruges. Rotterdam may have been interesting but, having done Bruges and Amsterdam to death, we accepted a refund of the deposit. We were very disappointed, this being a re-booking from a previously cancelled cruise. 

[Kohima]

Just in case anyone gets the wrong idea, Hamburg is definitely not boring. We really enjoyed cruising there on Oceania Marina a couple of years ago. Firstly the sail in and out along the River Elbe is really picturesque and interesting, especially seated on your balcony with a complimentary drink in hand! We moored by the new concert hall with an underground railway stop close by. Within a short walk was Miniatur Wunderland, the world’s largest model railway, which is well worth a visit even if you are not a train buff. We took the short train trip into the centre where we enjoyed a cruise around Alster Lake. There was a major cycle race going on so many of the central roads were closed but watching the race was an experience. We didn’t have time to visit the Reeperbahn but will look forward to that on our next visit......which looks as if it won’t be on Saga!

[Wacktle]

21 hours ago, Kohima said:

Just in case anyone gets the wrong idea, Hamburg is definitely not boring. We really enjoyed cruising there on Oceania Marina a couple of years ago. Firstly the sail in and out along the River Elbe is really picturesque and interesting, especially seated on your balcony with a complimentary drink in hand! We moored by the new concert hall with an underground railway stop close by. Within a short walk was Miniatur Wunderland, the world’s largest model railway, which is well worth a visit even if you are not a train buff. We took the short train trip into the centre where we enjoyed a cruise around Alster Lake. There was a major cycle race going on so many of the central roads were closed but watching the race was an experience. We didn’t have time to visit the Reeperbahn but will look forward to that on our next visit......which looks as if it won’t be on Saga!

Kohima, Thank you for your comments. We are fairly certain that the cancellation of Hamburg, with its overnight stay, is for financial reasons. Had Saga given us the real reason, we may well have stuck with the cruise because Rotterdam has always appealed. However, we object to being lied to. Also, as I said previously, the agent made no attempt to retain our custom, either by sweet-talking or an incentive.

 

Interestingly, a letter arrived yesterday from Saga informing us that our 2022 Fjords cruise itinerary is now changed too! Although we will visit the same ports, an overnight stay in one is cancelled, time spent in Bergen is slightly shorter, and Haugesund is added. 

 

Re-reading the comments above, plus our experiences, all changes involve the removal of overnight stays in port. Is this financial? Is it to prevent passengers wandering off to do their own thing? I'm really hoping that by late 2022 the Covid restrictions will no longer be with us. 

Edited January 20, 2021 by Wacktle
typos

[Denarius]

 I suspect that the dissappearance of overnight stays may be another (hopefully short term) side effect of Covid19. The selling point of them was that you could do more ashore - perhaps take a tour one day and explore independently on the other - and enjoy a night on the town. The ship's tour only policy will put paid to the latter two options, and organised socially distanced tours may be limited. So better to stay only one day and avoid having everyone confined to the ship unable to go ashore for most of the stay. In a way it makes sense.

Edited February 19, 2021 by Denarius