cruising through the Stockholm archipelago

Two weeks from today :D we will be visiting Stockholm on the Norwegian Sun, arriving from Helsinki and departing toward Copenhagen. Question is, will the ship exit through the archipelago the same way it entered, and if not, is the scenery significantly different? Since we arrive in Stockholm at 8am and depart at 3pm, it would be more relaxing to see the islands on our way out toward Copenhagen. Just wondering if we'll miss anything spectacular by not getting up extra-early to enjoy the view on the way into Stockholm from Helsinki.

Thanks! :)

Two weeks from today, we will be visiting Stockholm on the Norwegian Sun, arriving from Helsinki and departing toward Copenhagen. Question is, will the ship exit through the archipelago the same way it entered, and if not, is the scenery significantly different? Since we arrive in Stockholm at 8am and depart at 3pm, it would be more relaxing to see the islands on our way out toward Copenhagen. Just wondering if we'll miss anything spectacular by not getting up extra-early to enjoy the view on the way into Stockholm from Helsinki. Thanks!

We got to enjoy the "sights" on the sail-in to Stockholm, where our wonderful Baltics and Russia cruise ended. My suggestion would be to get up and see the sail-in. Don't just rely on the sail-out!! Why?? It's the light and the weather as your variables. Many times during the early morning, the light as the sun rises can be more interesting and beautiful. Your weather for the afternoon could be mixed and/or less desirable. That's why I would do BOTH!! Below are some of my pictures from our sail-in, plus a couple of highlights on the must-sees for the charming, historic and special sights in Stockholm.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 86,659 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 72,626 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

Appreciate those who have “tuned in” for these two posts. Don’t be shy and feel free to comment and/or ask any questions of interest.

Some of the sights we saw cruising into Stockholm early in the morning:

At the Vasa Museum with this large salvaged ship from the 1600’s. This is their website: http://vasamuseet.se/en/ Taking almost two years (1626-1627) to build Vasa, carpenters, sawyers, smiths, ropelayers, sailmakers, painters, carvers, gun carriage makers and other specialists struggled to complete the navy’s great, new ship. The king, Gustav II Adolf, visited the shipyard to inspect the work. With a hull built of more than a thousand oak trees with 64 cannon, masts over 50 meters high and hundreds of painted and gilded sculptures, this was a spectacular ship. BUT, it was too heavy and sunk sailing out from the harbor.:

At Stockholm’s Royal Palace, the changing of the guard was one of our highlights from visiting this historic capital in Sweden. Loved this part of our visit.:

From the harbor in Stockholm, here is a view of the Royal Palace, the historic Saint Nicolaus Church, or as commonly known Storkyrkan. To the left in the picture is where the historic Gamia Stan area starts. Walking around in the Gamia Stan is wonderful as you soak up its history, charm and interesting architecture.:

The route is the same for the couple hours closest to Stockholm. Ships going to/from the Helsinki/Tallin direction do take a slightly different path closer to open Baltic water than do ships heading to/from the more westerly direction (Copenhagen, for example). But the difference is not that noticeable. When we left Stockholm, there were 4 ships following each other. Three went on to Helsinki via one path and 1 veered off to the south at one point and presumably went on to Germany or some other western location. It's not enough of a difference to let it impact your plan, though. In my case, I woke up around 6:00 or so to have breakfast while doing the last 90 minutes of the sail in from the buffet windows and then up on deck. For the sail out, I was on deck for about 3 hours enjoying it.

Sailing thru the Archipelago was simply a joy to behold. We also sailed in early but we decided we wanted to try and sleep a bit more, enjoy our breakfast and knowing we were going to have a glorious day, we decided to view it on our leaving. We are glad we made that choice. Our ship departed about 4 and we were up at the outdoor restaurant at the stern and sat and enjoyed the complete sail thru the Archipelago. Being outside to me, is a no brainer. That way you can enjoy the view from both sides and the entire feeling of the sail through. With the sea wind in your hair, an extremely enjoyable experience.

Here are some of my pix and a short video of our sail thru.

http://s834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/?action=view&current=europemaster1374.mp4

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1341.jpg

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1342.jpg

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster1343.jpg

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1344.jpg

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europept1338.jpg

Cheers

Len

The route is the same for the couple hours closest to Stockholm. Ships going to/from the Helsinki/Tallin direction do take a slightly different path closer to open Baltic water than do ships heading to/from the more westerly direction (Copenhagen, for example). But the difference is not that noticeable.

Oops I forgot to add text to the pictures! :o Yes, inner part of the route is the same and all eight pictures I show above are from that part of the route so you'll be able to see those scenes regardless if you go towards Helsinki or Copenhagen. The fourth and the eight picture are taken close to Stockholm. You can see the city in the background.

Oops I forgot to add text to the pictures! :o Yes, inner part of the route is the same and all eight pictures I show above are from that part of the route so you'll be able to see those scenes regardless if you go towards Helsinki or Copenhagen. The fourth and the eight picture are taken close to Stockholm. You can see the city in the background.

Thanks for posting, they are lovely photos!

I think it's worth getting up early for a room service breakfast on our balcony. Then, we can enjoy the view again during sailaway.

Get up early and enjoy the sail in. Somehow it is a greater experience than the sail out. The light is better, there is a sense of calm and tranquility that you do not get in the evening.

The transit through the Stockholm archipelago is one of the highlights of a baltic cruise.

Selswick.

Get up early and enjoy the sail in. Somehow it is a greater experience than the sail out. The light is better, there is a sense of calm and tranquility that you do not get in the evening.

 

The transit through the Stockholm archipelago is one of the highlights of a baltic cruise.

 

Selswick.

Hello! Can just agree... Get up early and just enjoy everything. (I live in Stockholm. ) Have a beautiful trip. And as someone said earlier - the archipelago outside Stockholm is one of the most beautiful part of the trip. Enjoy, /chris58

Will probably get up early for the sail in to Stockholm.We did this on our arrival back to Venice, the memories are still with me it was so serene and beautiful at that time of the day. We dock at 7am, what time should I aim to get up for to enjoy the beautiful scenery that the picies on this thread depict...

Hello! Can just agree... Get up early and just enjoy everything. (I live in Stockholm. ) Have a beautiful trip. And as someone said earlier - the archipelago outside Stockholm is one of the most beautiful part of the trip. Enjoy, /chris58

Is there any wildlife visible on this part of the cruise?

Will probably get up early for the sail in to Stockholm.We did this on our arrival back to Venice, the memories are still with me it was so serene and beautiful at that time of the day. We dock at 7am, what time should I aim to get up for to enjoy the beautiful scenery that the picies on this thread depict...

If you dock at 7AM I would plan on being up at 5AM or even before.

Have fun,

Al

Is there any wildlife visible on this part of the cruise?

Cormorants and gulls in the outer archipelago, mallards, dabbling ducks and now and then a swan in the bays nearer the city.

There should also be grey seal in the archipelago but I guess they keep away from the ship routes.

In the parks of Stockholm and Helsinki you can often see lots of Barnacle Geese that otherwise only breed far up in the Arctic.

Is there any wildlife visible on this part of the cruise?

Might see the occasional nude sunbather.

:rolleyes:

Al

Is there any wildlife visible on this part of the cruise?

I love the "wildlife" comment about seeing nude sunbathers. BUT, we didn't enjoy that part of fun during our sail-in to Stockholm. Early morning would be a little too cool in weather for that type of "nature" sighting. As one of my earlier pictures showed, you will see birds. Don't expect to be seeing bears and that type of wildlife, larger animals, etc. There are lots of vacation homes along this route, plus with the amount of boat traffic along this busy route is an important factor. It's not like really being out there in "nature" like we experienced in going north and back along the Norway coast, in the fjords, up to the North Cape, being above the Arctic Circle, etc.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 90,782 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1426474

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 75,111 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

I love the "wildlife" comment about seeing nude sunbathers. BUT, we didn't enjoy that part of fun during our sail-in to Stockholm. Early morning would be a little too cool in weather for that type of "nature" sighting. As one of my earlier pictures showed, you will see birds. Don't expect to be seeing bears and that type of wildlife, larger animals, etc. There are lots of vacation homes along this route, plus with the amount of boat traffic along this busy route is an important factor. It's not like really being out there in "nature" like we experienced in going north and back along the Norway coast, in the fjords, up to the North Cape, being above the Arctic Circle, etc.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

 

Thanks -- Don't think I'll bring the binoculars on this one...