MikeK Posted May 10, 2016 Report Share Posted May 10, 2016 We are going to the Baltics on the Navigator in June and I was checking to see if anyone here has any good tips for this trip. The stops are Oslo, Copenhagen, Tallinn, St Petersburg, Helsinki and Bruges. Are any of the cruise ports near the areas just to walk around and see the sites without having to sign up for an excursion? Money exchange problems? Good local food? etc etc......Thanks...Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAAAYTOOO Posted May 10, 2016 Report Share Posted May 10, 2016 Nice itinerary ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wobble31 Posted May 10, 2016 Report Share Posted May 10, 2016 Oslo is nice to get off and just walk around. For Tallin we did a trip into the town which included a castle. St Petersburg you have to go on a trip to get off the ship as you need a visa RC organise all this for you. There are more canals than Venice and it was a very interesting day. We could not dock at Copenhagen as the weather was too bad, we went in June! Can't remember what we did in Helsinki or Bruges. Be prepared, the Baltic can be rough but we had a wonderful time. Take local currency for each stop, if you change your money up on the ship the rates are very poor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dirk Posted May 10, 2016 Report Share Posted May 10, 2016 Wonderful itineary, we did a similar one on the Brilliance back in 2013, here is my experience: Copenhagen: The ship docked about 300 m away from the famous mermaid. And from there it was also an easy walk to the city centre (about 10 Minutes to go), everything is in walking distance. I remember a candy store "Somonds Bolcher / Street: Nørregade 36 / www. where you candy fantastic hand made candies. They produce candies for the royal danish family and is is definitely worth a visit. Tallin: Also in walking distance to the city centre (15 minutes walk). It is a small city with an incredible medieval centre. In about 1-2 hours you can walk through the whole town. There are a lot of good restaurants were you can sit outside, and enjoy watching people and the estonian beer or their special liquor called "Pepper Schnaps". St. Petersburg: As Wobble mentioned you have to book an official excursion if you have no visa, otherwise the russians don't let you in. St. petersburg is a very impressive city, too much to see for only one day. Take a trip where you can see the "Emiritage", definitely a must-see. The russian tour guide was not very friendly to us. But that was because we are from Germany and their city suffered very much in WW II, so that should be not your problem. I would avoid the gift shops where they guide you to, to expensive and "touristy". On our tour we haven't been to Oslo and Bruges and we stayed on board in Helsinki, so I can't say anything about it. But Bruges is also a wonderful old city where you can walk around by yourself. But the city is about 20km away from the coast, but there is a good public transportation from Zeebrugge (I assume that the ship docks there) to Bruges. In Estonia, Finland and Belgium the Euro is the currency, but you also can pay with it in St. Petersburg. Even in Denmark we paid with Euro's. I have no idea if they accept it in Norway. So you won't have to change money in every port. Enjoy your cruise and I don't think that the Baltic is too rough at this time of year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
firegal2539 Posted May 10, 2016 Report Share Posted May 10, 2016 I have a suggestion, take me with you. My dream cruise is to do the Baltics, Copenhagen, Oslo, Helsinki and Bruge. I promise to be good Mike :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeK Posted May 10, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2016 Oslo is nice to get off and just walk around. For Tallin we did a trip into the town which included a castle. St Petersburg you have to go on a trip to get off the ship as you need a visa RC organise all this for you. There are more canals than Venice and it was a very interesting day. We could not dock at Copenhagen as the weather was too bad, we went in June! Can't remember what we did in Helsinki or Bruges. Be prepared, the Baltic can be rough but we had a wonderful time. Take local currency for each stop, if you change your money up on the ship the rates are very poor. Thank you for the info I am sure it will help! We signed up for excursions in St. Petersburg last week so we are set there. Thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeK Posted May 10, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2016 I have a suggestion, take me with you. My dream cruise is to do the Baltics, Copenhagen, Oslo, Helsinki and Bruge. I promise to be good Mike :D I was ready to take you with me until I got to the part where you promised to be good.....just kidding .....besides the wife would probably object to it. Save up....you will be able to go one day. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeK Posted May 10, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2016 Wonderful itineary, we did a similar one on the Brilliance back in 2013, here is my experience: Copenhagen: The ship docked about 300 m away from the famous mermaid. And from there it was also an easy walk to the city centre (about 10 Minutes to go), everything is in walking distance. I remember a candy store "Somonds Bolcher / Street: Nørregade 36 / www. where you candy fantastic hand made candies. They produce candies for the royal danish family and is is definitely worth a visit. Tallin: Also in walking distance to the city centre (15 minutes walk). It is a small city with an incredible medieval centre. In about 1-2 hours you can walk through the whole town. There are a lot of good restaurants were you can sit outside, and enjoy watching people and the estonian beer or their special liquor called "Pepper Schnaps". St. Petersburg: As Wobble mentioned you have to book an official excursion if you have no visa, otherwise the russians don't let you in. St. petersburg is a very impressive city, too much to see for only one day. Take a trip where you can see the "Emiritage", definitely a must-see. The russian tour guide was not very friendly to us. But that was because we are from Germany and their city suffered very much in WW II, so that should be not your problem. I would avoid the gift shops where they guide you to, to expensive and "touristy". On our tour we haven't been to Oslo and Bruges and we stayed on board in Helsinki, so I can't say anything about it. But Bruges is also a wonderful old city where you can walk around by yourself. But the city is about 20km away from the coast, but there is a good public transportation from Zeebrugge (I assume that the ship docks there) to Bruges. In Estonia, Finland and Belgium the Euro is the currency, but you also can pay with it in St. Petersburg. Even in Denmark we paid with Euro's. I have no idea if they accept it in Norway. So you won't have to change money in every port. Enjoy your cruise and I don't think that the Baltic is too rough at this time of year. Thanks for the help ......i will definently use it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DocLC Posted May 13, 2016 Report Share Posted May 13, 2016 FYI, there are a number of highly rated companies that also offer the visas for Russia, so don't feel that you must book through Royal. We're spending three days there on Serenade and are using TJ Tours. We'll be spending three days in Oslo next summer on an Independence back-to-back, so I'll be interested in hearing what you decide to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeK Posted May 13, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 13, 2016 FYI, there are a number of highly rated companies that also offer the visas for Russia, so don't feel that you must book through Royal. We're spending three days there on Serenade and are using TJ Tours. We'll be spending three days in Oslo next summer on an Independence back-to-back, so I'll be interested in hearing what you decide to do. Thanks Doc but we have already signed up for the Russia excursions. I will let you know how things go when we get back. DocLC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MisterBill Posted May 15, 2016 Report Share Posted May 15, 2016 We did the 12 night Baltic on Celebrity and it was one of the top cruises we've done. Tallin you can just walk, as others have said. In St. Petersburg, we did the 2 day deluxe tour with SPB with folks from Cruise Critic. We booked late and were lucky to join an existing tour that someone else had arranged. It was excellent. You can always cancel the tours you booked with Royal if you find something better. DocLC 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeK Posted May 16, 2016 Author Report Share Posted May 16, 2016 We did the 12 night Baltic on Celebrity and it was one of the top cruises we've done. Tallin you can just walk, as others have said. In St. Petersburg, we did the 2 day deluxe tour with SPB with folks from Cruise Critic. We booked late and were lucky to join an existing tour that someone else had arranged. It was excellent. You can always cancel the tours you booked with Royal if you find something better. Thanks for the help Bill Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.