Looking for excursion recommendations for the 12-night Celebrity Apex Scandinavian itinerary.

[dreamboat43]

Hello!  Celebrity is having a great Labor Day sale on excursions.  We are traveling on Apex in mid June on the Scandinavian itinerary.  We have never been to this area so everything is new to us.  What excursions would you recommend for first-timers?   Which ports can you just do your own thing without being on an excursion?  We want to experience the uniqueness of each port.  Any advice would be appreciated!  

[hallasm]

If you ask this question in the Celebrity Forum or Roll Call, others will undoubtedly know the itinerary but in this Forum there are very few people who can answer your question without knowing the itinerary - list the ports off call - alternatively search for the ports in this forum - already a lot information.

[CruiserBruce]

Agree with @hallasm. Plus, we don't know your interests, abilities or limitations, so difficult to recommend for you. So, some reading here, and comparing with the excursions will tell you the prime sights to see and things to do. Then, if you want ask a much more specific question or two, that will make things work a little smoother.

[kaisatsu]

I can only find one 12-night sailing on Celebrity Apex in June 2024, and I’m not coming up with any for June 2025. The 2024 sailing I found calls at Copenhagen, Helsinki, Tallinn, Stockholm, Visby, and Skagen. Since four of those are in Scandinavia, I guess that’s the sailing you’re talking about?

 

If so, they’re easy ports to explore on your own, so I wouldn’t bother with excursions in any of them. Maybe Skagen, but I haven’t visited, so I don’t know. And maybe Stockholm if the ship is actually docking at Nynäshamn instead of Stockholm proper.

[Joanne G.]

Theoretically, you could do something on your own in any of those ports, depending on your comfort level with public transportation and/or arranging a tour with a local driver as you get off the ship.  But as others have noted, it matters what your interests are and what kind of experience you are looking for.

 

I recently returned from a Baltic cruise on Carnival.   It's true that the main parts of Tallinn, for example, are easy to explore on your own, assuming you wouldn't have mobility issues with the hills and cobblestones.  If you are reasonably fit, you could even walk to the city center from the dock (assuming you dock at the same place my ship did).    My choice was a ship-sponsored walking tour, and I enjoyed learning about the country's history and culture from a local guide.   Without the guide, I would have just been looking at old buildings and walls, without knowing the background.   Being on your own with a guidebook could provide a similar experience if you are interested in history.   What is your preferred way to explore?   I think this example could be applied to your other ports.   

 

A friend and I had a port stop in Skagen on a cruise in 2019.  My recollection is that it is a small town, without much to see nearby.    We took a ship's tour to Voergaard Manor House and to the town of Saeby.   It was a very enjoyable excursion.   There is a waterfront area near Skagen at the tip of the peninsula, which some people like to see and which I believe can be reached by public bus, but I don't have any specific information on that.  

 

I suggest checking out what excursions Celebrity offers to see if anything interests you.  An appealing activity might be some distance from the port and/or not easily reached by public transportation. A friend and I visited Fredricksborg Castle from Copenhagen on a Princess excursion.   And while I took a guided walking tour in Helsinki last month on Carnival, some people I met onboard took an excursion that included feeding reindeer, which they got a big kick out of.  

 

Celebrity's current sale on excursions is great!   I saved a lot by canceling mine for a 2024 Mediterranean cruise and rebooking at the sale price.   The excursions are refundable if you later change your mind.

 

Rick Steves has written a guidebook for Scandanavian cruise ports which may give you some ideas.   He pretty much focuses on independent exploration using public transportation.   Nothing wrong with that, but he kind of assumes a first-time visitor will be as comfortable with public transportation as he who has spent, by his own description, a third of his life in Europe.

 

Try this site also: www.whatsinport.com

 

Make sure you know find out exactly where your ship will be docking.   Often there are multiple docks in a port city, and where your ship will dock will be a factor in how easy it is to plan activities on your own.

 

Edited September 2, 2023 by Joanne G.