North Europe/Baltic: Which Ports to do on your Own?

[ConstellationJune3]

Taking the 6/3/06 sailing of the Celebrity Constellation and I am having a hard time trying to figure our which ports to do on my own and which to book a shore excursion for, as of right now we plan on taking the Moscow tour out of St. Petersburg and the concentration camp tour out of Gdansk.

 

My main question is, which ports are doable on your own and which ports are difficult to do on your own?

 

Stockholm, Sweden

Helsinki, Finland

St. Petersburg, Russia

Tallinn, Estonia

Klaipeda, Lithuania

Gdansk (Gdynia), Poland

Berlin (Rostock), Germany

Copenhagen, Denmark

Oslo, Norway

 

Thank You

[Andee]

We found Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallinn, Copenhagen, and Oslo very easy to do on our own.

[42trvl]

I think it depends on the kind of traveler that you are and whether or not you've been to any of these places before. While we are fairly independent, there is also something to be said about a short introductory tour to a city that you've never been to before. While many of the cities on your itinerary are fairly easy to get around on your own, we enjoyed a comprehensive city tour that included a couple of points of interest to us in Stockholm and Oslo, then spent the rest of the day on our own. We also had the luxury of a few days in Copenhagen and Stockholm at the beginning and end of our cruise, respectively. Helsinki I would leave on my own, unless there is something you especially want to see. And Tallinn was very easy to do alone. We stopped in their tourist information office and were provided with a good map and walking tour idea that covered a lot of ground. St. Petersburg is one I prefer to have a guide (but a private one v. the ship's), even with having been there a couple of times.

 

The other advantage of tours is that some places may be more difficult to get into if you just walk up to the door. For example, we really wanted to go into the city hall in Oslo and while we were there they were not offering any more tours to "walk-ups." It's okay if you've got the time to go back, but if you're only there one day with a cruise, then you have less flexibility and may not want to miss certain things.

[mycruz]

The only cities we did not do on our own were St. Petersburg (used Red October) and Oslo. We decided to use the ships excursion for Oslo because were were not there very long and wanted to make sure we got as much in as possible without wasting any time. Gdansk we had another private company take us to Stutthoff concentration camp, downtown Gdansk, the Solidarity Memorial and Sopot. All the others, used Rick Steves walking tour. Have fun!

[BeBeReader]

Mycruz,

 

What was the name of the private company you used in Gdansk?

[cruisemom42]

Other than St. Petersburg (and possibly Berlin, if you want to see a lot in one day), I think it's easy to do these cities on your own, because 1) most of the people speak English, and 2) transportation is very reliable and inexpensive. You do have to do your research ahead of time though.

 

We did Helsinki, Gdansk, Stockholm, Talinn, and Copenhagen on our own. The only disappointment we had was in Stockholm where we were unable to get inside the City Hall building (where the Nobel prizes are awarded) due to a special event. Everything else went as planned. Just be prepared to do a lot of walking.

[dbh62ark]

Just be prepared to do a lot of walking.

All of the points made on this thread are great, but I just wanted to reiterate this one. My husband and sailed the Baltics for the second time in 2005 and enjoy going out on our own. So we gave some advice to fellow travelers on how to do that and didn't think about some things that came natural to us that might not be so easy for others. For example, I think we told our friends from the ship that the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo was uphill from the ferry, but apparently the walk was much harder than they anticipated, and I got the impression that they wished they had known that in advance. Going out on your own is not without challenges but the rewards are great for us, so I would suggest that you do a search for each of your ports on these boards and read comments prior to making your decision. I do think the ports in the Baltics are much easier to go on your own than some of the ports in the Med for the reasons noted above.

 

Have a great trip,

Donna

[emeyers]

BeBeReader:

 

We are using http://www.toursinpoland.com for our tours in Gdansk and the Stutthof Concentration camp. Hopefully Danuta (Donna) Misiuda can help you. She has arranged the day for our party of 8 on the Constellation.

 

Ellis

[balipadma]

"Berlin (Rostock), Germany"

 

From Rostock to Berlin it is to far for one day only! It takes min. 2.5 h / way by car or 3 h by train, spend your time in Warnemünde or Rostock. You can make a excursion by train to Bad Doberan. From there starts a nostalgic steam train ("Molli") to the Baltic Sea coast.

 

German train company: http://www.bahn.de/

Steam train: http://www.molli-bahn.de/

[BaltiGator]

All of the points made on this thread are great, but I just wanted to reiterate this one. My husband and sailed the Baltics for the second time in 2005 and enjoy going out on our own. So we gave some advice to fellow travelers on how to do that and didn't think about some things that came natural to us that might not be so easy for others. For example, I think we told our friends from the ship that the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo was uphill from the ferry, but apparently the walk was much harder than they anticipated, and I got the impression that they wished they had known that in advance. Going out on your own is not without challenges but the rewards are great for us, so I would suggest that you do a search for each of your ports on these boards and read comments prior to making your decision. I do think the ports in the Baltics are much easier to go on your own than some of the ports in the Med for the reasons noted above.

 

Have a great trip,

Donna

 

This is a really great point! Too often those of us who can walk without difficulty and don't mind a bit of a challenging tour forget that not everyone is so fortunate or so inclined. On another thread one poster sort of chastised someone else who was asking about a bus tour by responding with a, "It's not a long walk, get out there and walk it" kind of reply. But for all that responder knew, the OP or someone traveling in the same group might not be in a position to "get out there and walk it."

[JLT]

Thank you for the hint about Oslo. We have been planning to go to the Folk Museum and Viking Ship Museum before going to the other museums and the ferry back so this confirms our plan as best for us. Any other hints?

[mycruz]

Mycruz,

 

What was the name of the private company you used in Gdansk?

 

Our group used Orbis Travel and arranged everything through email. They were able to customize our tour just as Red October did in St. Petersburg. We had a very knowledgeable tour guide as well as a very good driver. I have also hear of others using toursinpoland.com and have not heard any negative comments from either.

[dileep]

We did all our ports on our own except for St. Petersburg and Klaipeda and we could have done Klaipeda on our own too. Read my brief notes listed in the signature below.

[dbh62ark]

Thank you for the hint about Oslo. We have been planning to go to the Folk Museum and Viking Ship Museum before going to the other museums and the ferry back so this confirms our plan as best for us. Any other hints?

We went to the folk museum too and liked it very much. It's close to the Viking Ship Museum. My husband also went to the Resistance Museum while I did a Frommers walking tour with others from the ship, so that is all do-able in a day if you plan carefully.

 

Have a great trip,

Donna

[SaylorGirl]

We did every port on our own including St. Petersburg. I found them all to be easy to get around, public transportation is very good in all parts of Europe. And all of them are very walkable. To do this you do need to do your homework ahead of time. If you are the type of person that is afraid or uncomfortable on your own then take the excursions. It was the highlight of our trip to get off the ship in St. Petersburg and to be able to do everything we wanted to do.

[bpolan]

Has anyone simply rented a cab to do a tour of the scandinavian capitals? we are on the aug 2 sailing of the century, and are seriously considering doing the capital cities on our own. from the above postings, that seems quite reasonable. Did you have to take a cab from the port into the city in each capital? Were any within walking distance?

thanks in advance,

bpolan

[easy22]

we did all ports on our own except St Petersburg. Gdansk was the most challenging only for the fact that you had to get a cab to the train station, then change money at the atm and buy the train ticket and get on the train. it wasn't hard. just the most steps. we saved the atm step by changing money with our cab driver. also Polish people did NOT speak English as well as in all the other ports. anyway it was completely doable and we stopped at Sopot on the way back and had a lovely very short walk to the beach there. charming place. don't miss it. then got back on train to Gdynia and then to taxi again. look for fellow travelers to share cabs with you. they quote one price and it's for 2,3 or 4 people. we grabbed another couple both times and paid $8 total for all of us including his tip. the asking was $7.

 

the train is short walking distance from where the tenders leave you for visiting Stockholm. the ticket booth takes credit cards. it's really very easy to do on your own. there is also a bus from the ship to the train for $4 but they had to wait for it to fill up. we were at the train station way ahead of them.

 

Talinn is right in front of the ship and so is Oslo. no need for any taxi to get to town there.

 

Helsinki was a short bus ride to town. you could take the ship's bus for $4 and wait for it to fill or walk to the corner and get on the #16 city bus for E2.50 and beat the bus to town by a considerable margin again. the 3T circle tram in Helsinki was worth the money and we got to see everything a ship's tour would see just by following the map for about $9.

 

St Petersburg, i definitely would NOT advise doing it on your own. we have never done a tour before and I'm telling you, you need one here. you have such a short time to see so much. being independent often meant you couldn't get in to see things because they were officially closed and only opened for organized tours. and getting around is a nightmare. people do not speak English. the traffic is horrid. you need a guide who knows the ins and outs of each place to help you see as much as you can in such a short time. DO take an independent tour however. then there are just a few of you and you can still go and do whatever you want and still travel independently, you just have help. it's cheaper than the ship's tour too if you have 8. Denrus, Red October and Alla people were all VERY happy they had done the private tour. just getting to go to the front of the line was worth the private tour!

[Jana White]

We did all but St Petersburg on our own. We would have done that one on our own too, but the Visa cost was just as much as the tour. AND in hindsight we never would have seen anything had we not been on a tour. Next time in St Petersburg, whenever that is, I will do it on my own.

 

As for the other ports, it is a question of where your interests lie. It is EASY to walk all of the ports, and I do not like bus tours, but I have to do a lot more research to recognize what I may be looking at. We prefer finding those out of the way places that the local people go so tours are not really our thing unless there is no other choice.

[lionheart]

The ports are easy to do on your own. Many of the ports are easy to walk around just do some research so you hit the highlights. I took Denrus (group of nine) in St. Petrersburg and it was real fun. Saw alot and the people in the group were great. Oslo very easy. Stockholm easy, I had a taxi pick me up to take me right to the VASA and walked around the old town. Helsinki, tallinn, Copenhagan very easy. Klapedia took a tour the walked around the town. Germany depends if you want to go to Berlin or lubeck or stay in town. You can rent a car and drive. Poland I took a tour but you can grab a taxi or take the train.

 

Kurt

[Guest LetMeGo]

Helsinki was a short bus ride to town. you could take the ship's bus for $4 and wait for it to fill or walk to the corner and get on the #16 city bus for E2.50 and beat the bus to town by a considerable margin again. the 3T circle tram in Helsinki was worth the money and we got to see everything a ship's tour would see just by following the map for about $9.

 

There are three ports in Helsinki alone for different ships, so you might have to use other means (bus 15A from the West Terminal, or tram 4 from Katajanokka)...

 

And if you want to skip a portion of the tram tour, it's good to know that tram 3B goes around the same route in the opposite direction.

[TeeZee]

Gdansk was the most challenging only for the fact that you had to get a cab to the train station, then change money at the atm and buy the train ticket and get on the train. it wasn't hard. just the most steps. we saved the atm step by changing money with our cab driver. also Polish people did NOT speak English as well as in all the other ports. anyway it was completely doable and we stopped at Sopot on the way back and had a lovely very short walk to the beach there. charming place. don't miss it. then got back on train to Gdynia and then to taxi again. look for fellow travelers to share cabs with you. they quote one price and it's for 2,3 or 4 people. we grabbed another couple both times and paid $8 total for all of us including his tip. the asking was $7.

 

This sounds like what we want to do (group of 4). Can you describe this arrangement. Can you take a taxi right from the ship? How much was that? How hard was the train connection- easy to figure out what stop into old part of Gdansk, schedule, etc.? How long is the trip and how much was the train ticket? Sorry so many questions, but it's good to hear from soemone who has actually done the trip.

Thanks!

[latoto]

The only cities we did not do on our own were St. Petersburg (used Red October) and Oslo. We decided to use the ships excursion for Oslo because were were not there very long and wanted to make sure we got as much in as possible without wasting any time. Gdansk we had another private company take us to Stutthoff concentration camp, downtown Gdansk, the Solidarity Memorial and Sopot. All the others, used Rick Steves walking tour. Have fun!

 

Could you tell me your thoughts on Stuffhof camp? I understand that it is reconstructed. Some were disappointed. I would really appreciate your review, as we are booked for that on the Regatta. Also, did you use a private company? Thanks.

[LKJ]

Hey everyone. Thanks for all your great tips!

[larablair]

Quick response re: Stutthof Concentration camp. We just returned from Regatta. We were very happy we decided to do this excursion with Oceania. Stutthof and Gdansk. Yes, I know it is reconstructed but ovens are there and the gas chamber. also a pile of shoes found at the camps along with a burial site with bones and ashes behind glass!! Very well done. I felt that I was att a very sacred place!! No question, that thousands had died there, I felt it. Jeanine

[latoto]

Thanks for your reply re: the camp. We will go.