Just off a Baltic cruise on Century, what do you need to know?

Just back from Celebrity Century's Baltic cruise, visiting Amsterdam, Oslo, Helsinki, St Petersburg, Tallin, Stockholm and Copenhagen.

We did everything independently, EVEN ST PETE! Can you believe anyone could survive a visit to that city without being shepherded on a ship's tour?

Well, we did and are still here to tell the tale. Ask away.

What was the weather like?

Hi, Bollinge,

Congrats on your independent touring! I'll take you up on your invitation to ask questions:

(1) We generally go independent as well. I always grade myself. Last year in the Med, I scored all A's on our independent port days with one exception--Athens. I gave myself a C for that day for a variety of reasons. Did you have any B or C days, and if so, why? I always learn from my mistakes, and I don't mind sharing them with others so they don't repeat them...hope you'll do the same! On the flip side, do you have any especially hot tips for those A days you enjoyed?

(2) What did you do in St. P at night?

Thanks for coming back to tell us about your trip!

WE are going on the July 20 cruise with Century. Could you tell us about the tours you did in each port? Someone said not to do the ON/OFF bus in Oslo but did not say why. Any comment? Also please give any "must do's or don'ts". And, if you don't mind, comments on the ship would be appreciated. In other words.......I can't wait to go!

Hi Bollinge,

Please let us know how you scheduled your two days in St. Petersburg, step by step. Is it too far to walk from the pier to the exit gate and?

Thanks, TD

We are going independent also. I am interested in your transportation modes? Did you use the subway? Were you able to walk from the ship to the Port entrance? Did you have any communication problems? Anxious for any details you would like to share.

I'm glad you had a great trip.

How was the weather?

What did you like best abt Tallinn, Helsinki and St Pete? What things did you like less well in those 3 places? Thanks!!!

Can you share what you did in Helsinki and Tallin? What are the must do's, anything you didn'd do but wish you did? Thanks for anyinformation you can share.

Bollinge must be catching up on sleep! :D

Just back from Celebrity Century's Baltic cruise, visiting Amsterdam, Oslo, Helsinki, St Petersburg, Tallin, Stockholm and Copenhagen.

 

We did everything independently, EVEN ST PETE! Can you believe anyone could survive a visit to that city without being shepherded on a ship's tour?

 

Well, we did and are still here to tell the tale. Ask away.

Did you use rubles to purchase things in Russia ? Food, admissions or souvenirs ? What was the dollar to ruble conversion ? How much was food in rubles ? For example how much would a cup of coffee be at a cafe ? Have a freind going on a land tour in August and she is trying to decide how to handle her money. How much to carry for everyday things. How much to convert ? Do you need to convert ?

I wont be going to LaStrada anytime soon. $35.00 for Pizza and salad bar? Thats more than Beverly Hills.

Wow! What a response.

Am presently composing a reply. Don't get too preoccupied with the weather we had in May, as you'll get more sense and current info. from Yahoo the day before you leave.

If you are travelling in summer plan for four seasons in Northern Europe: Rain, Sun, Cloud, Sunny periods, showers etc. In June expect less rain. July ditto. August? Who knows but it won't be tropical.

But no hurricanes either!

Bollinge - Can't wait to read your report!

Just back from Celebrity Century's Baltic cruise, visiting Amsterdam, Oslo, Helsinki, St Petersburg, Tallin, Stockholm and Copenhagen.

 

We did everything independently, EVEN ST PETE! Can you believe anyone could survive a visit to that city without being shepherded on a ship's tour?

 

Well, we did and are still here to tell the tale. Ask away.

We had a marvelous time. Did "Hop On Hop Off " buses in Copenhagen, Stockholm, Helsinki. 1 hint: Ride the whole route once, then get off where you want to on the second go around. That way you won't get carried away at one stop and not get to see the whole city overview.

Booked a St. Petersburg tour with Red October. It was outstanding. Had 10 people which is far better than a busload, cost less and they handled the visa for all.

Booked a Berlin tour through Berlin Starting Point. They drove 6 of us in a van, and again it was marvelousand cost far less than the ship. Highly recommend both this company and Red October.

Tallinn was small enough to walk through by ourselves.

Riga we contacted the Jewish Museum there and hired a guide for 3-4 hours. Took us through the museum, walked to see some interesting architecture, hired us a cab ($20 US for 3-4 hrs) and took us to other areas of general and Jewish sites (including Rumbula forest). Was an excellent guide.

Klaipeda, Lithuania we also walked on our own from the ship and around the city. It was the first time a cruise ship docked there and they made a big deal. Hundreds and humdreds came out to greet us and to see us off that evening.

Glad to answer any questions. I found this board invaluable and am glad to share with others. Read up on your ports and circle places on the maps the ship gives out and keep it with you and you'll get to see everyting they do on the ship's tours and more.

The weather? Well the seas were the calmest I have encountered on any voyage (including the Caribbean) except for the last day on the North Sea when there was a bit of movement.

It was sunny with some clouds for the main part, temperatures between 52 and 68 F. Throughout much of the voyage people were sunbathing in swimming gear by the pool. Didn't see anyone actually in it though. It was bloody cold on an open boat trip in Copenhagen though, once we got out to sea!

Oslo; the ship docks right in town. Turn left as you get off. We walked all around, mostly modern buildings, a few interesting things to see, City Hall, the Royal Palace. Nothing special though, and wouldn't return in a hurry. Best to go see the Kon Tiki museum or something like that. It involves a short ferry ride from near the ship. Many of the bars in town have free hi speed wi-fi internet access. A small compensation for your $11 beer.

Stockholm; Taxi to the ATM near the station in new Stockholm. Suspect we are slightly ripped off by the (English) taxi driver. Cabs are metered, but have differing rates for nighttime, holidays, rush hour etc. Could swear he had the meter on “rate 2” rather than “rate 1”. All the rates are clearly posted on a yellow notice……if you read Swedish. I’m no trainspotter, but I like to look around stations as they give you the flavour of a place.

Walk to Gamla Stan, the mediaeval old town. Architecture very Germanic, and similar to Munich, Salzburg and Innsbruck. Wander through the parliament buildings, to the Royal Palace in time for the changing of the guard: Every day I think at 12.15. We were lucky because we also had a mounted brigade and a military band. I think usually it’s just footsoldiers. Visit the Royal Museums within the building and also see the Crown Jewels.

Taxi to the Vasa museum: Vasa, being the magnificent flagship of the Swedish navy which sank a few hundred yards out to sea on her maiden voyage in 1628 in full view of the King and Queen and the launch party. She lay in silt on the seabed which preserved her. She is in now in her own air-conditioned humidified museum. Very interesting. Walk along quayside to posh main drag shops. Are worn out so taxi back home. I suspect there was a shuttle from the ship to town but we must have missed it altogether that day.

Helsinki; complementary shuttle to the main drag, drops off outside the Swedish Theatre. Walk right down the main drag for about a mile, all posh shops, Rolex, Gucci, etc. Then you reach the old fish market on the waterfront which is interesting, as is the nearby old market hall to the right, towards the ferry port. Then walk up the hill away from the water to see the cathedral and parliament and I think the university buildings on a big square. There's a circular tramline route, ideal for travellers, which goes all round the sights, pay the driver and he'll give you a map in English. Costs about $2-3. Takes an hour. Get on and off where you like. Stops directly opposite the shuttle. In fact you're probably better to take that first, and go all round the city to get your bearings.

St Pete? Well, surprise, surprise, the cold war is over and it's just like any other bustling city, if slightly more exotic than some. And the Cyrillic! New Yorkers will feel immediately at home with crazy taxi drivers who speak little English!

Our ship docked in a derelict old commercial port in the Mariinsky disrtict. Costa & P&0 were there too. The customs shed is a hut, with an army of passport perusers. Sometimes they double or treble up to check your passport. All very friendly though - keep smiling however many times they thumb through your paperwork, and eventually, after three or four minutes but it seems longer, you're out into Mother Russia.

You're entitled to feel smug as you swan past the hordes being crowded onto expensive ship's tours. Within seconds you will be approached by a "facilitator" with the words "You want taksi?".

You now have a problem, the dock gates are about a mile and a half away - he'll claim it is three, and when you get outside the gates it's not a very pleasant area. The man represents Mafia cabs; usually a man and a Lada car. Official licensed taxis are not allowed through the port gates. You don't really have any other choice than to deal with him.

I say “Mafia taxis” in that although the gentlemen driving them are perfectly pleasant, they have paid a backhander to be allowed to work in the Mafia-controlled port. Tell him where you want to go - a good suggestion is the WinterPalace - and he will quote you a price. First $30, although you should get it down to $20. Miraculously a vehicle will appear from nowhere and he will tell the driver your destination and price and away you go. Through the port gates and more passport checking. If you see an ATM "Bankomat" en route, stop and get some roubles.

When you get to your destination, you can either ask the driver to pick you up and take you back at a pre-arranged time to take you right back to the ship, or you can arrange an official taxi in town whenever you want. But remember, the official cab will only take you to the port gates and you will have to get “internal transport” on the other side costing $10 or $5 depending on your bargaining skills. These Mafia taxis run all night, as they also cater to the crew who like to pop ashore (or outside as they seem to call it these days) at all hours to visit the interesting “Seaman’s Club” not far from the port gates. Yes, my fiancée and I went there too……it’s not for the faint-hearted!

One Mafia car was a posh BMW, whose driver refused to drop below ten bucks for the night shift intra-port fare. We had the following conversation:

“Is this a Mafia port?”

“Yes”

“How much do you pay to work here?”

“Secret”

“Do you pay per journey or just once to work a whole shift?”

Prolonged silence.

“Oh well, I pay you, you pay another man, he pays another man…..that’s Capitalism”

Laughter.

“Yes, but I think somewhere there is man who don’t pay!”

Laughter all round.

On your journey back to the ship from town it is a great help know where the ship is docked. We set out the first day into town thinking we were moored at Vasilevsky island, as Stan J had intimated we might be. In conversation with the driver I mentioned Vasilevsky and he said “that’s miles away”. Fortuitously, when we stopped at the Bankomat, it turned out to be in the lobby of the pleasant, if inelegantly named “Seamen Hotel” (no relation to the club) and I had picked up the hotel leaflet. We were later able to find the ship on the map.

We returned that afternoon on a combination of tram (10 roubles; pay conductor on board), metro to Narvskaya station (10 roubles; buy subway token at cash desk), official Taksi to dock gates (about 5 bucks) and Mafia cab, dock gates to ship (5 bucks). I noticed that there were trams almost up to the dock gates, and also Martrushka van minibuses running around. There were also bus stops with people waiting at them within the docks, and only 200 yards from the ship. In two days I did not have chance to get familiar with them. But if you did I bet you could get downtown for under two dollars.

That night, after dinner we ventured out again behind the Iron Curtain. This time we had taken the sensible precaution of obtaining the address of the port in English and in Russian from the concierge.

“To the Seaman’s Club, Mr Mafia”. $10. There we meet many members of the crew (male and female) making friends with local ladies, including the ship’s Head of Security: “I only went there to buy CDs”

Hmmm…Yes, they have a lot of pirate CDs and DVDs on sale in Russia. A photographer bought the latest “Sith” Star Wars DVD for 5 bucks and pronounced it an excellent counterfeit.

Outside the Seaman’s Club – it was too smoky to stay for more than one drink, “You want Taksi?”. It seems almost every car in St Petersburg is a potential taxi. The guy took us back to Narvskaya station and we took the Metro to Nevsky Prospekt, the main drag. Had a great night but were tired and we got the last metro train back which arrived dead on time at 12.46 a.m. Coming out of Narvskaya station we notice it’s getting lighter already. Another ad hoc cab and more passport perusals and we’re back on board. Fellow guests are shocked: “You went outside on your own? At night?”

Next day Mr Mafia takes us downtown himself in his new Ford minibus for $20. Drops us at the WinterPalace and arranges to meet us at 4.45 p.m. to take us straight back to the ship for the 6pm sailing. We had done the metro and didn’t want any hassle getting taxis/Mafia taxis back because of our tight schedule.

Go into the Winter Palace and get tickets and are immediately accosted by an “Official Licensed Private Tour Guide”. Arrange one hour private tour round this remarkable edifice, with each room being more splendiferous and gobsmacking than the last. You really need several days to look around, but we were soon cultured out.

We step outside and go round the corner to the river and board the excellent “Meteor” hydrofoil service to the magnificent Peterhof palace on the Gulf of Finland. The high speed journey takes 40 minutes and costs 350 roubles return. Right next to the Meteor dock outside the Winter Palace there appears to be a ferry service straight across the Neva to the Peter and Paul fortress, another famous tourist attraction.

As we get off the Meteor back in St Pete, we notice a distinct absence of traffic and what appears to be a carnival parade passing over our Mafia taxi pick up spot. Yes, the roads are closed for the city’s birthday celebrations. Ask cop when roads will reopen: “Tomorrow”. Join in the celebrations, feel incongruous walking the streets with the throng without a bottle of strong beer in hand.

Even Mr Mafia’s influence did not extend to cancelling the carnival in order to pick us up as arranged. End up going back to dock gates in 5 star hotel’s limo: $35. Mafia to ship $5.

At no time did we feel threatened, although Rolexes and diamonds were locked in the ship’s safe. We did however spot one band of footpads in broad daylight on Nevsky Prospekt. They are common in mainland Europe and are known as “Thieving Gypsy Bastards”. There is a matriarch and a crew of street urchins and scallywags. The kids muck about with and jostle the mark whilst the elder ones pickpocket him. They were obviously “between projects” or perhaps we looked too impoverished to bother with.

I would estimate each day cost us around $100 for two, including taxi, metro, hydrofoil and tram fares, admissions, guide and odd drinks and snacks. Talking of which we went to a smart café on Nevsky where they had a concert pianist and an opera singer performing for a 20 rouble cover charge. We had a Baltica beer and a hot chocolate, which turned out to be just that – melted. I told Her Loveliness: “Stop whingeing and drink it before it sets in the cup”

Many people who had been on the ship's tours remarked how dour and miserable the Russians were. All the Russians we met were very pleasant. I bet we met more! Cannot wait to return to St Petersburg, this time direct by air or by rail from Moscow. Will spend several days there.

Tallinn: Ship’s shuttle to downtown. Change leftover Roubles into EEKs – Estonia Kroons - at one of the many foreign exchange booths. They won’t touch either currency at the bank on board ship.

Wander the fascinating old town, formerly a member of the Hanseatic league. Loads of fascinating old buildings, churches and castles. Also many bars with cheap beer. Taxi back to ship, but stop off at the shops at the adjacent ferry port, catering to booze-cruisers visiting from Sweden and Finland to stock up on duty-free cheap drink and goods. Lots to see and good prices. Walk back to ship 300 yds. Spend excess Kroons at chocolate stall.

Copenhagen: Taxi to famous Tivoli Gardens. Taxis metered and take credit cards. They print out your receipt there and then. Arrive 9.15 p.m.Tivoli virtually closed, except for small scale funfair rides and loads of interesting restaurants - we had just eaten. Disneyworld it ain’t. Don’t bother going.

Other folk went to Nyhavn old quayside. All nice bars and restaurants in picturesque area. I think the ship shuttle drops you off nearby. Back to ship for supper.

Next day, taxi to Central Station, look round then walk across main square to Stroget, the main pedestrian shopping street, wander to Kongens Nytorv and jump on a tram at random. Leap off near the parliament building and onto a 50 minute circular guided canal boat cruise. Travel out in bleak weather towards our ship and the Little Mermaid statue. She is just that – minute. Off boat and onto metro to warm up. Back to Nyhavn harbour area for overpriced drinks. Ship’s shuttle back to Century.

Amsterdam: Am dismayed upon disembarkation at 8.30 am to find dozens in line for a taxi. Spy Centraal Station in the distance and decide to walk it. We have those four wheel drive suitcases so it was not too difficult. About 600 yards, a good work-out though. In case you’re wondering I’m 49 and Her Loveliness is 45. We had a 10 pm flight out of Schipol so we checked into the Hotel Ibis adjacent to the station. A day room costs 60 Euros.

To the person who asked: I have awarded myself straight “A”s in all ports for our peregrinations!

Seriously though, we are sure to have missed many of the nuances of architecture and history and culture by doing these tours on our own without a professional guide. But then some of the groups I saw following the man with the “X” Celebrity Cruises flag were so large that many of the tour members will have missed much of what was said, also.

Being independent means you can go with the flow and be spontaneous. We found that after four or five hours on the hoof we were beginning to flag, so don’t be too overambitious.

What did we think of Century? Not as nice as the "M" class ships, but we have booked a Med cruise on her in October. I think that says it all.

Dos and Don’ts

Do:

Read the ships excursion list to see which are the places to visit in each port.

Get a good guide book. We took the excellent Lonely Planet “Scandinavia” and “St Petersburg” volumes. Find them on www.amazon.com

Get the address where the ship is moored each day from the front desk, written in the local language. And also take the daily programme with you with the ship’s agent details and phone number on it, in case of difficulty.

Get the local currency each day from an ATM. Only Holland and Finland are in the Euro. If you change on board ship or try to pay in dollars you will pay extra. Most places take credit cards except for market stalls. You will need most money in Oslo, Copenhagen, Stockholm, Helsinki, St Petersburg and Tallinn in that order. Three times as much in Oslo as Tallinn. Or don’t buy anything. Americans will not find anything cheap except in the last two ports.

Go to www.oanda.com> travellers> cheat sheets and print out the currency exchange rates on card, and take them with you in each port. Thanks to the lady on these boards who recommended this site.

Don’t:

Worry.

Enjoy your trips!

Well it seems like Bollinge really did go independent. We were also on the Century sailing on 21 May and St Petersburg was the only port of call where we booked through Celebrity purely because of the Visa situation. I just could not be bothered trying to apply independently to get my own visa and just wanted them to sort it out for me. I would say that of everyone on the Century that took tours in St Petersburg, 90% of them were through Celebrity so well done Bollinge for being so independent. We booked a 2 day package ($345 pp I think) with Pushkin and Peterhof on Day 1, White Night River Cruise on Evening 1 and City Tour and Hermitage on Day 2. Traditional Russian lunch with champagne and vodka included on both days and drinks/snacks in the evening.

In Helsinki we took the ship's free shuttle bus into the main city centre then jumped on the hop on/hop off (HOHO) tour bus. In the case of Stockholm we walked into the town (20 minute walk) and again picked up a HOHO and in Oslo there was one waiting for us at the quayside. In Talliinn we took the ship's shuttle bus to town and just walked around the old part of the city, no bus needed and finally in Copenhagen, shuttle into the town and again onto the HOHO althought the HOHO goes right past the ship so if you are prepared to wait you can forget the shuttle. Getting in to the centre of town and getting on a HOHO bus is as independent as I like to get! But it does let you see the whole city and get on and off at your leisure and visit the sights as you wish at each of the stops.

Ask away for any other questions!

Dear Bollinge !

As for independent tour of in St. Petersburg - how did you arrange for a russian visa ?

Thanks.

D.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?p=3916853#post3916853

We had perfect weather without rain in all ports and temps in the mid 50s to high 60s. It did rain some nights and on 2 of our sea days at the end.

Celebrity provided complimentary shuttles in:

Copenhagen

Stockholm

Riga (very far, and those who did not get on first set of 5-6 buses had a long wait)

Tallin (but it was a 15 min walk)

Helsinki

No shuttle in:

Warnemunde but Train Station and Hertz counter right at the dock

Klaipeda (10 minute walk to Old Town)

Of course St Petersburg private tour bus/car (******, Red October, etc) was right at the dock.

Local maps everywhere from Celebrity and local agents.

Taxis easy to find in Dover. we walked off the ship at 8:15 am and there were at leat 10 taxis. Took taxi to coach station and rode coach to Victoria station. London hotel (Trafalgar Square) to Heathrow was

Here is what Ann & I ended up doing:

Dover: stayed at Churchill Hotel Best Western (best rates on-line) after driving from Heathrow. Car return about 1.5 miles from Western Docks. Old hotel but comfortable inspite of slanty floors.

Copenhagen: Shuttle to town (15 min) at 8;30 am to King's New Square. ATM near bus drop off. Money change with good rates at entrance to the pedestrian street. 1 hour canal tour for 50 Kr (need local cash) each was worthwhile. Walked down pedestrian street.

Warnemunde: Picked up Hertz car at the dock and 4 of us drove to Berlin (2.5 hours) leaving at 8 am. Parked near the zoo (15 Euro). Took a hop on - hop off bus with about 12 stops (several different companies - ours was Berolinas) for 19 Euro each. Has head phones with commentary in 8 languages. Lopp takes about 2 hours if you don't get off. Car rental and gas cost about 150 Euro (gas was almost half that amount!) split among 4 people. Driving seemed easy (Henry drove).

Stockholm: Took shuttle at 8:45 am for 15 minute ride. Walk4ed over to catch the ferry boat (30 Kr per person each way paid in cash) near Old Town to Vasa Museum to see the old ship (ship's map was incorrect about where the ferry dock was). Museum accepts credit cards. Changing of guard at place from noon to 1 pm. Walked around Old Toen (Gamla stan).

Riga: caught first wave to shuttles to town (30 minute ride). Walked around and shopped. Plenty of places to change money. Local guided tour available but we did not see it; others did. Good quality Amber esp atb the shop next to Amber Museum and it is listed on the tourist map.

Tallinn: the surprise jewel of the trip. 15 min walk or short shuttle ride. Good shopping. Money changers charge $4 fee. Paid $ for purchases and got local money back for beer! Stores accept $ or credit cards.

St Petersburg: ignore the ship's schedule and get off when you want. Immigartion lines were not too long. Red October returned us by 5 pm. Plenty of time to eat and go out for evening shows, but we were too tired. 2 shopping stops. Visited Pushkin, Hermitage, Peterhof (fantastic fountains), Spilled Blood Cathedral, St Isaacs, Yusupov's Palace, Peter & Paul Fortress, ST Nicholas Church, and plenty of picture taking stops. Good guide, but it was difficult to get her to take time to buy camera pass (they charged$4 for a 50 ruble pass when she did get a pass!). Good guide (Alyona) otherwise. Small group of 14 (with Eddie and others) was better than a bus load!Cost was $248 per person for 2 days.

Helsinki: 15 min shuttle to town. Nice walk to Market Square. Local sightseein bus was 22 Euro per person. We bought a 8 Euro group ticket (works for up to 6 people) and rode tram 3T and 3B around town and the ticket covered ferry ride to Semnolinna Island too. Trams run very frequently. Single all day tourist ticket costs 5.4 Euro. Good deal! Hellps to have Euro cash for tram ticket. Vendors in Market Square take credit cards.

Klaipeda: easy 10 min walk into town. Good shopping for Amber and lines or wood items. Big welcome for us (first big ship ever!) from the town and lots of local came to see the ship. Welcome party on the pier with music and dancers. Rather small Old Town with not as much to see as Riga or Tallinn. Easy money change at bank. We decide against 8 hour Curonian Spit tour which would have consumed entire stay and opted instead for Palanga Museum Ce;ebrity tour ($49 each). Reading Eddie's notes, we would have done better just getting a taxi with English speaking driver instead of the 4 hour tour. Walked and shopped in Old Town in the morning.

London: Coach ride to Victoria Station was easy. Would suggest booking on-line as the bus tends to be full. With got to the Coach Terminal half hour early and wre able to get a seat on earlier coach.

Trafalgar Hilton was a great loaction to walk around the West End. Plenty to do within walking distance. Hotel booked a fixed price Black Cab (45 GBP) for us for returm to Heathrow.

All in all a great trip. We used ship's tours only once. Going around by yourself is pretty easy.

Please search these boards for Russia visa info. There's loads of posts about them.

giraffe0514, Bollinge, cf2404 and dileep: Enjoyed reading your comments and opinions regarding the ports, people, etc. Looking forward to our turn on July 2nd. Do have some questions?

The cost of hop on/hop on buses in Copenhagen, Stockholm and Helsinki?

What particular sights/museums in Olso, Copenhagen, Tallin, Stockholm and Helsinki would you consider a "do not miss?"

Any recommended places for light lunches, snacks, coffee, wine/beer and people watching?

Is it true the Constellation or Century will not exchange US$ to Estonian kroons or Russian rubles?

Any info you would like to share would be helpful to all.

Bollinge - Thanks for a fabulous review. Since we are also going independent in St. Petersburg you gave us some valuable information. I have printed out your report and will take notes. We may try and find the bus and see where it takes us. I was pleased that there is activity in the port area all night. I also had heard that you could get rides from the locals by putting out your arm and then negotationing a price. Thanks again.

giraffe0514, Bollinge, cf2404 and dileep: Enjoyed reading your comments and opinions regarding the ports, people, etc. Looking forward to our turn on July 2nd. Do have some questions?

 

The cost of hop on/hop on buses in Copenhagen, Stockholm and Helsinki?

 

What particular sights/museums in Olso, Copenhagen, Tallin, Stockholm and Helsinki would you consider a "do not miss?"

 

Any recommended places for light lunches, snacks, coffee, wine/beer and people watching?

 

Is it true the Constellation or Century will not exchange US$ to Estonian kroons or Russian rubles?

 

Any info you would like to share would be helpful to all.

A few pointers here:

The Century Bank does not deal in Estonian or Russian currency, Tallinn takes Euros readily (and probably Dollars though I didn't try) and US$ widely accepted in St Petersburg main tourist areas including outdoor tourist flea markets and souvenir shops.

Helsinki Must See is the open air market at the harbour side which attracts both locals and tourists and is lovely just to stroll around at leisure and pick up souvenirs and grab something to eat or drink. Also head towards the area where the day cruises leave from just beside the open air market and you will see a building just behind that houses an indoor food market, if you are at all interested in food/drink this is a fantastic place again where all the locals seem to shop. Helsinki has lots of lovely pavement cafes along the large boulevard where you can sit with a coffee/beer and just people watch. Very Continental in feel.

Copenhagen: Little Mermaid statue was a huge disappointment for us but you probably will go and see it as it's such a landmark of Copenhagen. Tivoli Gardens at night is nice for coffee/beer at one of the restaurants/cafes to sit and people watch. Nice restaurants along the canal where the canal cruises leave from for lunch during the day although fairly pricey.

Sights in Oslo include the Statue Garden which is very popular with tourists and is filled with very artistic nude statues by a famous Norweigan artist I think. Oslo not a particularly busy city when we were there so didn't do too much else. The Viking Musem and Cultural Museum admission prices were too much for us unless you are serioulsy interested around 15 Euros per person

Tallinn really just made for strolling at leisure through the old town, several churches to look at and make sure you walk right to the top of the hill for panoramic views. Lots of nice tourist souvenir shops here and make you way to the Central Square for lots of cafes and restaurants and again people watching. We were there on a Sunday and there was outdoor singing/music/dancing free of charge around Midday.

All the Hop on Hop Off bus tickets are valid for 2 days and I think they were priced as follows for us:

Oslo 18 Euros per person

Stockholm 22 Euros per person

Helsinki 22 Euros per person (although we used the same company that we had used in Stockholm the day before and got it for 20 Euros each)

Links here to the open top bus tours if you are interested:

http://www.citysightseeing.com/EN/index.htm (Stockholm & Helsinki)

http://www.city-sightseeing.com/ (Oslo & Copenhagen)

Hope some of this helps!

The cost of hop on/hop on buses in Copenhagen, Stockholm and Helsinki?

 

What particular sights/museums in Olso, Copenhagen, Tallin, Stockholm and Helsinki would you consider a "do not miss?"

 

Any recommended places for light lunches, snacks, coffee, wine/beer and people watching?

 

Is it true the Constellation or Century will not exchange US$ to Estonian kroons or Russian rubles?

We did not use hop on/off anywhere except Berlin. You don't need one in Tallinn to see Old Town. The only remote place of interest is Kadriorg Palace which we did not visit. The tram in Helsinki works just fine and is much cheaper!

In Stockholm, there is plenty to see in Old Town and you can take ferry to Wasa Museum. Did not see a need for HOHO.

HOHO may be useful in Copehagen if you go to the two palaces, but our time in Copenhagen was limited and we chose to do the canal boat ride (1 hour) and explore the area around the pedestrian street.

We had a good breakfast and skipped lunch in most places and just had a beer in some interesting place in almost every port, but could have had lunch along with the beer. Had a late snack onboard after returning to the ship. Proud to say that I lost a couple of pounds!

We carried room service (ham & cheese) sandwiches in Russia to eat on the bus for lunch. Just order them the previous day and stoire in the minibar. They do not provide boxed lunches.

Another comment: we were glad to be in the early seating for dinner. Some of the shows etc were after the second seating for them and i would not want to be up late after a strenuous day of walking. Several with late seating were not too happy:(

The ship does not carry many of the eastern european currencies (Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia, Russia)

CF2404 & Dileep - Great information from both of you. Thanks for posting it.

You talked about taking the ferry in Stockholm to the Vasa museum, is there anything there to see if you don't go into the museum?