Baltic cruise questions

[gemcruiser]

Hi,

 

I am cruising 8/23 on Voyager...Stockholm to Copenhagen. I just looked at the St. Petersburg excursions on the Regent site and they do seem to hit all the highlights. Has anyone done these excursions? I also have a quote from Red October that would add up to a good bit more money for about the same sights. I am a solo cruiser so I would be joining another group with Red October. Any comments or comparisons?

 

I understand that if I do the tours with Red October I don't have to have an individual visa...their tickets serve the purpose. If I do the cruise excursions, does it work the same way?

 

Also, the Tallinn chocolate and sightseeing tour...has anyone done that?

 

Thanks for your help! If anyone will be on that cruise, please let me know!

[wishIweretravelling]

It's been a few years since I took the Baltic cruise--it was on the now-defunct RSSC Song of Flower, that's how long it's been--but several things stand out in my memory. One, I took the ship's excursions in St. Petersburg--I don't remember what they were at the time, but we got into the Hermitage for a good hour before the crowds started, and spent a nice time at Catherine's Palace and Peterhof and the Church of the Spilled Blood. Those were among the best excursions I've ever done on a cruise. I hope they're still as good--if they are, just make sure you piece together outings that include them all--either in one or in pieces. I'm afraid I can't speak to Red October from personal experience.

 

Tallin I did on my own, and had a WONDERFUL day there. The main part of the city is very easy to navigate.

 

If you haven't heard, that stop at Visby that seems like a throwaway is not. It is extremely charming and, again, easy to do on your own.

[Misha]

Hi, we took the Baltic cruise last August and loved every minute of it! (Copenhagen to Stockholm) I tried to book a tour independently, but because only 2 of us were traveling together, the price, and we couldn't find anyone to go with us, we used the ship's excursions. We were not able to get together with any other group at the time. Perhaps, we could have found someone on the ship. At one point, I thought we had with people from another cruise ship, but our cruise ships were located about 45 minutes apart, so it didn't work out. However, we were very very happy with the Regent Excursions. There were perhaps 20 of us at the most in a group and we saw everything that we wanted to see. I just looked at the site to try and remember what specific excursions we took. Yusopuv's was beautiful, terrific performances, Peterhof, Catherines, the Hermitage... Spilled Blood Cathedral, a canal trip, Everything was fantastic. The only excursion that I didn't care for was the Russian shopping. We also went on the chocolate excursion in Tallin. I thought it was a high priced for what it was, but I'm not really into that kind of thing. My sister in law loved it though. You go to a very quaint little chocolate store and they have things set up for you to dip your own chocolates actually like in a living room. The choclatier did a little explaining, but that was it. The chocolate was excellent though. If you have any questions, let me know. I researched everything very thoroughly, but can't seem to find it right now.

[Misha]

I forgot to add about the Visa... If you travel with Regent, you do not need a Visa and there were about 3 or 4 independent companies that you did not need a visa if you used them.... they were very clear about it on their websites. I agree with Crys about Visby. We were fortunate that their medieval fair was going on when we were there. Tallin is also very easy to do on your own... don't miss the wall with all the sweaters! We also tour Stockholm on our own and went to the Viking ship, Stanzen, which I thoroughly enjoyed and the Ice Bar. All of that was very easy to do with the hop on hop off bus. In Copenhagen, don't miss Tivoli Gardens! It really was unique. We also took the train to Malmo so that we could go across the bridge.... You will love this cruise!

[Travelcat2]

We did the Baltic cruise on the Voyager in August, 2007 -- great cruise!!! While I cannot compare our private tour guide with Regent, we did see hundreds of people in line at the Hermitage and Catherine's Palace (parked buses as far as the eye can see). Using one of the other three major tour companies is, in my opinion, the way to go (if you can share with someone else it would be great!). These licensed tour operators are allowed to take their guests to the front of the long lines of people.

 

As mentioned above, Tallin is wonderful city (our favorite port) and easy to get around (Regent has a shuttle bus into town). The only benefit we got out of our city tour was an interesting history of what has transpired from the time they were part of the USSR (1992 as I recall) to now. . . quite amazing!

[gemcruiser]

Hi,

 

Thanks for the comments...it does help sort out what to do. I am so looking forward to the cruise this summer.

 

It may be the last Regent cruise for a while so I want to enjoy it. Unfortunately, most of Regent's itineraries are too long for me to be away from my store. And after having cruised on Carnival and Celebrity, it has definitely spoiled me!

 

Thanks for the help!

 

Gemcruiser

[goblue57]

We took the cruise last year.

 

St.Petersburg with the Regent shore excursions was wonderful. We were able to get a tour into the Gold Room which was, from a historical perspective, thrilling. Keep in mind that all of these sights are heavily trafficed by tourists - like us - and to a large degree you are sheep being herded here and there. If you want to do any independant travelling - even around St.Petersburg, then you do need a visa.:)

 

Tallin - be very careful what you ask for. We did a tour - hopefully discontinued - of the communist prison - accompanied by an english speaking dissident who had been imprisoned at that facility. The tour leader was the last prison superintendant -- who led us using a flashlight into many of the prison cells -- including one holding area where prisoners were executed, another where they were photographed and finger printed. There was no electricity and the boss constantly pleaded with us not to shut any of the cell doors as he no longer had any keys. It was also a grey, rainy day. It was almost too much for the most of us on the tour. The old boss was as cold and mater of fact as the stone walls. A big mistake for us on the tour to think that Estonia had progressed very far in this area.

[MICone]

Hi: We did St. Petersburg with Regent in August 2006, booking all our tours with Regent. They were all worth the money, with excellent guides. One thing we did notice was that the buses from other cruise lines (I think there were 5 in port) all seemed to be jammed pack, while the Regent tours appeared to be limited to 15-20 people. This is important as you don't seem to be waiting for stragglers all the time. Good luck, you will have a blast