Russia- Georgia and St Petersburg

[sheridan88]

I will be taking the Crown Princess in two weeks with a stop at St Petersburg. I haven't seen anything yet in the news about problems with ships sailing in to Russia so I assume there will be no problem at that port.

 

Has anyone heard/read anything yet?

[scrapycruiser]

I spoke w/ RCI this AM and asked the same question. We leave next week . They assured me that RCI was keeping their eyes on it, but so far no problem .They said if a problem should arise the ship would just reroute, BUT they don't expect a change.

[cruzmaven]

Several posters have asked about their cruise being disrupted in light of recent events in Georgia. I wonder though, in light of these events, and Russia's new threats against Poland, is anyone rethinking a Baltic cruise they've already booked or were planning to book?

 

For simply practical reasons, should things heat up, a disruption of the itinerary could be significant if Russian ports, like St. Petersburg is missed. This is a major highlight of the cruise and many people book expensive tours with outside providers and can lose a deposit if the itinerary is changed.

 

Beyond that, if Russia is going to be taking a more aggressive stance in that part of the world, should we be giving financial support by going to Russian ports?

 

Personally, haven't made up my mind yet on this but I've been thinking about it.

[jbeb]

China, Russia, The United States... we make choices every day about where to visit. Is the concern for safety or politics? Should a would a could a? I choose to travel. May is a long time from now. I believe we will be going. Are the individuals living St Petersburg different than me? I don't think so. We love our family, work real hard and dream our dreams... I think I choose the high road. Hope to see you there.

 

If you stay home because someone out there is mean... the meanies win.

Jan

[jbeb]

John Heald blogged from the new Splendor ship this week. He said only 300 some souls of the 3000+ cruisers remained on the ship in St Petersburg the days following the incident in Georgia. They traveled so far, dreamed of taking the tours and never got off the ship. Those who did loved the experience! Seemed a bit sad, really.

[doodlefan]

We're leaving in 10 days and will be in St. Petersburg in early Sept. We sincerely hope that there are no itinerary changes since this port is one of the main reasons we picked this cruise.

 

If the ship docks, we'll be ashore, troubles or not. The fighting is 1800 miles south of St. Petes so from that stand point, we will be fine.

 

Like jbeb said, travel is one of our dreams and I won't let politics ruin that for me. If there was a real safetly issue in the immediate area then I would reconsider, I don't have a death wish either, but as it stands now, we'll be there with bells on. :D

 

I also don't mind adding my Canadian dollars to a nice Russian lady's income. She (Alla) has been wonderful so far and I anticipate a fantastic tour. She is just trying to make a living like anybody else, she isn't Russia, she just lives there.

[Mexfolkart]

We are booked next June and hadn't even given it a thought to cancel. The fighting is a looong way off. Russia counts on our tourism dollars. St Petersburg is such a fabulous city that we definitely plan to go again!

Sherry & Kimber