Help with shore excursions----MS Prinsendam

[greengeans]

I appreciate your offer to help me research some shore excursions. In the end, it may be better to stick with those trips that the ship offers,,, due to location and global volatility. But if you could direct me a bit to your favorite shore excursions that are offered off ship (Not by thr cruise line)- I'd be grateful.

The ship's name is the ms Prinsendam, Holland America Line. The trip is the "12-Day Baltic Summer" departing Tue, Jun 30 from Amsterdam, returning on Sun Jul 12 to Copenhagen, Denmark. Ports of call: Vik, Norway; Flam, Norway; Stavanger, Norway; Skagen, Denmark; Ystad, Sweden; St. Petersburg (Moscow), Russia; Helsinki, Finland; Stockholm, Sweden; Visby, Gotland, Sweden; arriving Copenhagen at 7:00am. Wow... sounds like a fully-packed itinerary.

[Aussie Gal]

First of all you have picked a lovely ship and a great itinerary. We were on the Prinsendam in October for the Black Sea cruise and loved every minute of being on her.

I can help you with some of the ports. Helsinki is an easy city to walk and that is what we did. We went to see a couple of the Cathedrals, went to the Market and to the Rock Church. Also went and looked in their big department store to see what was on sale. The Prinsendam, not being a big ship should tie up close to the city. That is where we tied up when we were on the Maasdam anyway.

Stockholm is another lovely city that is very walkable. We again tied up very close to the Old City and walked around that. We then walked to the Town Hall where the Nobel Peace Prize is given each year. Went up the top of the Clock Tower where there is a great view of Stockholm. Afterwards we caught the ferry to the Vasa Museum to see the great ship that they managed to retrieve after a few hundred years. Most interesting.

In St. Petersburg we did two days of ship's excursions but since then (we were there in 1999) Red October has come along and I have read nothing but great reports about them. Go to the Ports Board and look up Baltic Ports and you will find all sorts of information for this.

Hope this helps.

Jennie