SPB tours for St Petersburg and Berlin

Hi Everyone,

I just booked our Baltics cruise for 2012 and am starting to plan for the ports. :D

Just wondering if anyone has had any experience with SPB for St Petersburg and Berlin? They have been very prompt with their emails and seem to be on top of it.

Thanks!

Hi Everyone,

I just booked our Baltics cruise for 2012 and am starting to plan for the ports. :D

Just wondering if anyone has had any experience with SPB for St Petersburg and Berlin? They have been very prompt with their emails and seem to be on top of it.

Thanks!

We are using SPB for a two-day deluxe tour on 5/27 and 5/28; and we chose them based on the previous CC reviews and the timely and helpful responses from Vika and her associates. I'll be happy to post our experiences when we return. Carolyn

We are booked for the Baltic - August15th sailing on the SUN. We have booked ours shore excursions with Alla Tours and have been very pleased with the communication from Alla, the tour program (we will be seeing all of the highlights) and the price of the tours. I, too, will be posting on our return.

I don't think you can go wrong with any of the reputable tour companies in SPB. To list the ones I can remember offhand: Alla, Denrus, TJ Tours, Red October, &SPB.

You can do a search on the CC boards and will come up with tons of great reviews for all of these companies.

Additionally, find the roll call for your ship's sailing date (or start the thread). On the roll call, you can get a group together from your ship to share the excursion. You have plenty of time before you sail to get a group together for whichever company you choose.

Enjoy!

jill

We are taking the 2 day SPB Deluxe tour in St Petesburg and the 1 day SPB Classical Berlin tour in early July. I will post up comments after we get back. You have plenty of time to book a tour for 2012, so you might want to wait until some of the reviews for the different tour companies start coming in for 2011.

We also are taking the SPB-Tours 2-day deluxe tour in St. Petersburg and one-day Classical Berlin tour on our cruise next month. A Cincinnati personal friend toured with SPB last August on her HAL cruise and recommended it highly, as well as many frequent posters on this board, such as GiantsFan Len. I also was impressed by the prompt and thorough responses from SPB. (Thanks, Anthony!)

I second the previous posters' suggestions that you wait to hear the comments from those of us cruising this season because you have plenty of time to plan.

Thanks everyone!:)

I know you'll all have a wonderful cruise and look forward to reading your reviews. One of the best parts about a vacation is the anticipation and planning...:D

Enjoy your cruises!!!

We are also taking SPB in St Petersburg and Berlin in June. I will report when we get back.

Kirk

We had a private tour (St Petersburg) with SPB last summer and they were great! Very flexible. Really nice guide and driver. Totally recommend.

The SPB tour to Berlin looks great but there is so much to see on their (or anyone's) one-day programme that I imagine that the visit to the Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe is a relatively brief affair which just shows the field of stelae, without going into the underground Information Centre (closed Mondays anyway).

This shows the whole thing

Tony

We also used SPB tours for our time in St Petersburg. When We were looking around, we emailed most of the main tour companies and Viktoria of SPB tours, replied the quickest, and talked to me as if she really cared what we did in St Petersburg. She alone, made me feel we made the right choice by choosing SPB tours, and we were so right about that. Viktoria never failed to reply ASAP to any, and all our questions, reassured us about many things, and when we asked if we could add the Choral Synagogue onto our itinerary, she replies instantly, 'No Problem'.

Our tour was just wonderful, and I have been singing their praises here, on CC, since then. Many of our posters have used SPB tours because of the rave reviews on this board.

I did not do the Berlin part, but several from our group did, and all came back thrilled that they took the trip and used SPB tours to do it with.

Here are some pics of St Petersburg, from our tour with SBP tours

one of the many 'sleepy' canals with the Church of the Spilled Blood down the road

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe648.jpg

Catherine's Palace is magnificent, and you will stroll around the gardens also

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster667.jpg

While visiting Peterhof, you will be taken to the Palace and then a wonderful walk thru the gardens and surrounding areas

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe721.jpg

We loved the fact that SPB tours rook us to a real Russian Restaurant for a sit down lunch, enabling us to truly sample some great Russian food

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe717.jpg

Also included in the tour package,w as a canal boat tour. This was originally schedules for day 2, but we had such magnificent weather on day one, they moved things around, so to end day one, we road around St Petersburg in a Canal Boat, while sipping some great champagne and just seeing St Petersburg from a different perspective.

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster782.jpg

We also loved our time at Peter and Paul's, Yusupov's Palace and the Hermitage was simply magnificent. Doing a private tour, the tour guides seem to know how to maneuver around the crowds and get you where you need to be that much quicker

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe927.jpg

Hope this helps

Cheers

Len

Len, Thanks for taking the time to post this great review with pictures!

Paul

Len, Thanks for taking the time to post this great review with pictures!

Paul

Paul

Glad you enjoyed the pix. St Petersburg is such a naturally beautiful city,and with so many wonderful things to see and do. Even with the smallest camera, you will come home with great memories and great photo's.

Here are a few more pix of this marvelous city, hope you enjoy.

Inside Catherine's Palace you will view some truly amazing rooms and decor

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe693.jpg

From Peterhoff balcony looking out towards the Sea Of Finland

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe721.jpg

Moving away from the Palace and looking back, it is truly just an amazing place

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster734.jpg

If you are in port overnite, go out on deck of your ship and look back on this city at night

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe831.jpg

Visiting the Church of Peter and Paul, the inside of this Church is simply gorgeous

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe870.jpg

And wandering the halls of the Hermitage, with just so much to see

Again, hope you enjoy the 'tour':):)

Cheers

Len

Hi, Len, we leave in three weeks, having booked with SPB for both St. Petersburg and Berlin. I cannot wait!:D

Hi, Len, we leave in three weeks, having booked with SPB for both St. Petersburg and Berlin. I cannot wait!:D

Sounds like our ships may pass each other coming and going.

Kirk

we used SPB in St Petersburg last July and agree with Len. We did the 2 day tour and the guide and driver were professional, pleasant and very well organized. It was an amazing tour in an amazing city.Enjoy.

Maureen

Hi, Len, we leave in three weeks, having booked with SPB for both St. Petersburg and Berlin. I cannot wait!:D

Pam

Be sure to tell Viktoria that the entire board said hello. (especially Len):D:D:D:D:D

Cheers

len

Well we are back and Victoria and company did a fantastic job in both Berlin and SPB.

Kirk

Well we are back and Victoria and company did a fantastic job in both Berlin and SPB.

 

Kirk

Kirk, glad to read that all went well; I know you did a lot of preparation on these boards. We also thought that SPB did an excellent job for us in both cities; a very organized, professional yet personal company with excellent guides and drivers.

We have four tours booked with SPB Tours this month and I will be sure to post afterwards about all of them! :cool:

But I can say that I have already been in email conversations with Heather, our upcoming guide in Berlin, about lunch arrangements for that day and she has been wonderful!! :D

Kirk, glad to read that all went well; I know you did a lot of preparation on these boards. We also thought that SPB did an excellent job for us in both cities; a very organized, professional yet personal company with excellent guides and drivers.

On our just completed trip - NCL Sun 6/22, SPB had eight tours in St. P and I heard nothing but rave reviews about the guides, drivers and the experience. That was certainly true for us. On one of the Berlin trips, the restaurant screwed things up in serving the group, delaying things. That was the only significant complaint I heard about the Berlin trip. And that was not SPB's fault.

We met Viktoria in St. P on several occasions and we found Vika to be quite personable and professional and would not hesitate to recommend or use SPB again.

FYI, I think SPB in Helsinki is still trying to line up the best guides possible. Ours was a bit inexperienced. Viktoria is anxious for candid feedback on her guides in both Helsinki and Tallinn because they are new there. The guide in Tallinn was fabulous, as good as the Berlin and St. P guides we encountered. On balance, I think we would do Helsinki DIY but the guide in Tallinn we had was definitely worth the 20 euro.

I encourage everyone who uses SPB in these two new cities to let Viktoria know how the guides measure up.

Just got back from this Baltic Cruise on the Marina.

Used SPB in both cities and can only say great things about both tours. Spent two days in St. Petersburg. We did the active tour with a total of eight persons. It was very hectic but great. Say all the important sights and did not spend any time at the souvenir shops. Had a quick lunch and back on the road. All the palaces were unbelievable. The Hydorfoil ride and the subway were interesting.

In Berlin we did the Jewish Heritage tour and our guide was terrific. She was very knowledgable and showed us more than we could have expected.

What can I say other than we loved SPB.

On our just completed trip - NCL Sun 6/22, SPB had eight tours in St. P and I heard nothing but rave reviews about the guides, drivers and the experience. That was certainly true for us. On one of the Berlin trips, the restaurant screwed things up in serving the group, delaying things. That was the only significant complaint I heard about the Berlin trip. And that was not SPB's fault.

 

We met Viktoria in St. P on several occasions and we found Vika to be quite personable and professional and would not hesitate to recommend or use SPB again.

 

FYI, I think SPB in Helsinki is still trying to line up the best guides possible. Ours was a bit inexperienced. Viktoria is anxious for candid feedback on her guides in both Helsinki and Tallinn because they are new there. The guide in Tallinn was fabulous, as good as the Berlin and St. P guides we encountered. On balance, I think we would do Helsinki DIY but the guide in Tallinn we had was definitely worth the 20 euro.

 

I encourage everyone who uses SPB in these two new cities to let Viktoria know how the guides measure up.

Wonder if you had Tiinka in Tallinn. The beautiful blonde who was five months pregnant. That's who we had in Tallinn and she was tremendous. Well worth 20 Euros for the walking tour.

Wonder if you had Tiinka in Tallinn. The beautiful blonde who was five months pregnant. That's who we had in Tallinn and she was tremendous. Well worth 20 Euros for the walking tour.

Yes. She was fabulous, and, as you say both very beautiful and five months pregnant. Lovely lady. She made our day.

We are seriously thinking of another Baltic cruise in May/June 2012 and have read great reviewed about SPB Tours. Is it better to go to the CC Roll Call and try to get a small group together for the SPB Tours or will SPB Tours help us (2 of us) join an existing group of up to 10 people or so?

Any advise you can share would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

Kruz Guys

Stephen and Tom

stephenandtom@att.net

:D

We are seriously thinking of another Baltic cruise in May/June 2012 and have read great reviewed about SPB Tours. Is it better to go to the CC Roll Call and try to get a small group together for the SPB Tours or will SPB Tours help us (2 of us) join an existing group of up to 10 people or so?

 

Any advise you can share would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thanks

 

Kruz Guys

Stephen and Tom

stephenandtom@att.net

:D

We had our own group from our roll call but SPb also added others. I like that you don't have to worry about getting the minimum etc. in order to bring the price down. If you check on their website, there are ways to post if you want to join a group or get others to join in if you are doing a personalized kind of tour.