Thank You Steve Ballis & Many, Many Questions

[bogie113]

Dear Steve:

I do not believe that I am writing to people on the internet that I don't even know. That being said, THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH for the time and trouble you took to prepare and share your trip diary with everyone.

We are booked on the 7/27 Dover/Stockholm sailing. Neither my husband or I have ever been on a ship before, let alone for 2 weeks. Therefore we have many questions for anyone out there who reads this and is kind enough to take the time to reply.

1. Do most people pre-medicate with Meclazine or the like to prevent sea sickness?

2. Are these waters generally calm?

3. Do many men wear sport jackets to dinner. My husband generally wears a sweater tied around his shoulders or if necessary puts one on over a shirt. He would kill to not have to take a jacket. Is there any reason for him to need a sport jacket on this trip?

4. Neither of us are real drinkers, but we are eaters... In order of preference which dining rooms did any one responding like best?

5. If one is in a Penthouse can you order a hot breakfast in your room, and further, is it served hot?

6. A friend of ours used to be in the travel business and he handled setting us up for a 3-day private tour in St. Petersburg. There are 4 couples in our group [although we are not a group attached at the hip] and we paid $800 per couple including the cost of admissions. We were told we had to get our own Visa's which we did at almost $300 per couple. He booked us with "Victoria Russian Tourist House". Has anyone ever heard of them. As you can imagine, we are all a bit out of joint to learn that there are at least two really fine companies out there with whom we could have booked without getting our own Visas.

Anyway, thank you in advance to anyone out there who has taken the time to read this posting and an even greater thanks to anyone who is kind enough to answer.

If there is anything I forgot to ask, please answer it for me anyway.

I believe I read in Steve's diary that he is from Chicago.... So are we. I hope that is an omen that our trip will be as good as their's.

Thank you,

Marsha

[jfb128]

We just returned from the June 15th Baltic cruise. A few answers to your questions:

1. The Baltic was very calm on our cruise.

2. When dining at Toscana and Polo Grill more men donned sport jackets but hardly ever wore ties. At the Grand Dining Room, there was a good mix of sport jackets and attire that you describe your husband wearing.

3. All three of the above dining venues were well received by our fellow cruisers. My wife and I preferred the Grand Dining Room but going to the Polo and Toscana provides a nice change of pace. We only dined at Tapa on the Terrace once because of a late return from Berlin and found it less appealing than the other alternatives.

4. You could order a hot breakfast and get it hot on the Penthouse level. That is not an option that my wife and I prefer but I know of many who availed themselves of that option.

5. We were among four couples who used Red October and cannot say enough about their service. We did talk to many who used private tours such as you have arranged and were very satisfied with the product. They also needed to get visas . The price you paid is slightly above the amount we paid but it depends on what is included.

Have a wonderful cruise.

[bogie113]

Thank you for taking the time to answer. Your information is very helpful and we appreciate it. I guess my husband is taking a sport jacket just to be on the safe side.

Would still like to know if anyone out there has heard of Victoria Russian Tourist House.

Thanks again and welcome home.

Marsha

[bogie113]

our prices included entry fees, as i am sure yours did. I just think we got a little took but if we enjoy our tours and have good knowledgable guides we will not mind/

Thanx

[srb]

Hi Marsha,

I think we talked before. With regard to your inquiries:

We took no motion sickness medication at all and found the movement of the ship no problem throughout the cruise.

I never wore a jacket to any of the dining venues and often used to wrap a sweater around my shoulders. I never felt underdressed the entire time. We found Toscana, Polo Grill and the Grand Dining Room of equal quality.

Check with your tour guide again, you should not need a visa if you are using a registered guide and company and arrive by cruise ship.

Hope this helps, have a great time...the two weeks breezed by.

Stephen