Baltic cruising & mobility issues - need advice!

I'm considering a Baltic cruise for next summer. Can any of you elaborate on mobility issues and accessibility at the major sites/points of interest in the following cities:

Copenhagen

Oslo

Aarhus

Berlin/Warnemunde

Talinn

St. Petersburg

Helsinki

Stockholm

Copenhagen is especially important, as this is the embarkation/disembarkation city and where we would be spending the most time. I'm expecting cobblestones, of course, and some stairs. What else should I should be concerned with? Any sites that are just plain inaccessible (i.e. no elevators, no ramps, etc.)? Basically, I am wondering if this cruise is doable for someone who can walk, but has issues with stairs, steep inclines/hills, and uneven terrain. We would have a rollator with us to help with walking longer distances, would take private tours to go at our own pace (any recommendations for tours are very welcomed!), and could avoid sites if they are really problematic.

Thanks in advance - you all are so helpful here on this board.

I've been to those ports a couple of times each, and I will say the only problem will be St Petersburg. That city is very difficult and not accessible friendly. The main tourist sites have many, many stairs and if there are elevators, they are usually not in working order. I've been to the Hermitage three times, and the elevator was never working, so I was relegated to the ground floor---but still had to climb stairs to enter the building.

The only other problem might be Berlin. Most take the train from Warnemunde, and it can be not the most comfortable.

We did the Baltics in July 08 but went out of England. My husband uses a mobility scooter. It wasn't the easiest but we managed in all the ports. When we were in St Petersburg I hired a private van for us for the two days. It was wonderful!! It was myself, husband and two teenage daughters and we saw so much. We had our own driver and guide and even went to the Russian ballet. I can't remember who I booked with but there are a couple comapanies that do that there, just check the St Pete boards.

we just did a Baltics cruise this summer and visited some of the cities you will.My husband is awaiting hip replacement surgery so can walk short distances but gets painful after a while!

Copenhagen Tallinn and Helsinki we did HOHO tours which were convenient in that the bus stops were close to the port..To be honest Copenhagen was not our favourite port possibly influenced by it being cold and windy

We arranged a private tour with SPB for Berlin.with the aid of this boards roll call we added extra companions which brought down the price to 100 euros each for a party of 20.We had a coach to Berlin where we met our guide and had a minivan/walking tour.Looking back the party was a bit too big and the young guide was a bit too keen on the walking side-my husband suffered the next day.Keep the party size smaller and emphasise you want to drive as close as possible to the main sites to minimise walking

St Petersberg I emailed several companies before deciding on Anastasia world.They were the most responsive to the reduced mobility issue and we thoroughly enjoyed our visit

we had a shortened 2 day tour for 3 of us that cost $340 each.The only thing we missed out on was Catherines palace as we thought that would involve too much walking

Our itinery was as follows

day 1

9-30 meet guide after immigration[we decided on a later start to avoid the long queues first thing as everyone wanted to start their day early]

city tour with our driver and guide with photo opportunities at key sites

Metro trip-we found this easy as there are escalators and only a few steps to negotiate-was worth it to see the ornate subway stations

hydrofoil to Peterhof gardens-these are beautiful but the gravel paths and spread out aspect means a lot of walking-should have taken advantage of the offered wheelchair.we learned from this for day 2

Day 2

10am meet guide

visit to hermitage museum.We borrowed the museums wheelchair and our guide got us around using elevators.we had 1 and half hours in there where we saw the main rooms and our guide tried to avoid the crowds-however there are still crowds in certain areas such as Rembrandt paintings-several people walked straight into the wheelchair because they weren't looking where they were going and than glared at us as if it was our fault!

We then had a canal ride around the city to give a different perspective-only the 3 of us and our guide on a canal boat usually meant for 50 plus.The guide provided champagne orange juice and chocolate and we felt like VIPs! The slope down to the boat from the street level was a bit steep but my husband coped

to finish off the trip we then had inside visits of St Isaacs and Church of spilled blood-not too much walking and well worth seeing

Hope the above helps with your planning

Lyn

we did the Baltic this July on Celebrity Constellation. I can only walk very short distances with the aid of a crutch and cannot do any steps. I had a wonderful time and took the tours advised by Celebrity before we cruised. They were very helpful. Some of the ports have many cobbled streets, so take advise as to whether to go off on your own. I did not do the Hermitage, my husband went and I had a day on board, but we did a tour the next day and that was really good.

It was a wonderful cruise and we would do it again.

Two years ago, my Mom, Dad, Sister and I took an NCL cruise (sailing from Dover) that visited all these cities but Aarhus. Dad uses a rollator. All the tour buses had steps, but we were able to get Dad on board by one of us boarding ahead and pulling him up, while another boarded behind him and pushed. It was really quite comical.

Copenhagen - We caught a double decker tour bus from the pier and took a sightseeing tour of the city. At the photo stops, Dad stayed aboard the bus. We wanted a better look at the little mermaid (which had been the first stop) so we stayed on the bus until it stopped there the second time. It's close to the pier, so we all walked back to the ship from there. (Dad just walked with Mom's support - didn't even use his rollator that day.) Looking back at my photos, it appears that the path is a series of asphalt, crushed stone, and brick pavers. There is a little shopping area right next to the pier that is up a few steps. I seem to remember some sort of handicapped access, but I can't remember what it was.

Warnemunde/Berlin - We took the NCL tour into Berlin. Had to help Dad up the steps to the train and the tour bus. At the Pergamon, our guide used the wheelchair lift to help Dad up the steps. (We had very little time at the Pergamon, and helping Dad took a great deal of it.) We had lunch at a restaurant - inside, up many steps. There was some outdoor restaurant seating, and our guide arranged for us to have our lunch there instead of inside with everyone else. There was a walking portion of the tour, but Dad stayed on the bus with the driver. The tour guides used a wheelchair lift to help Dad re-board the train in Berlin. The tour wasn't easy, but we were able to adapt with the help of our great tour guides and driver.

Tallinn - We took an NCL bus tour. Dad stayed on board at all the stops. At the last stop, I tripped and fractured my ankle. Sis went back to the ship with Dad, while Mom and our wonderful tour guide went with me in the ambulance to the hospital. I had surgery (it was a compound fracture) and stayed Tuesday afternoon through Friday morning.

St. Petersburg - I wasn't there, but Sis went with Dad on two NCL group tours. One tour guide was okay, but the other was terrible - very impatient, complaining about the "slow man."

Helsinki - Sis went with Dad on an NCL bus tour. Our guide helped me to check out of the hospital (with crutches and instructions not to put any weight on my leg) and Mom and I boarded a ferry from Tallinn to Helsinki. We took a taxi from the Helsinki ferry terminal to the cruise pier. NCL loaned me a wheelchair from the time I re-boarded to the time we disembarked.

Stockholm - Wasn't able to do the tour I had planned, and handicapped accessible tour was full. Instead, we caught a sightseeing boat tour. This was a little scary. Sis would wheel me up to the boat. I would stand and use my crutches or the boat rails to get from the dock onto the boat. We toured the Vasa Museum and Old Town. Sis wheeled me over those old cobblestone streets - quite an adventure.

Oslo - Took an easy bus tour. I boarded using crutches and they stowed my wheelchair underneath. Dad and I stayed aboard during the photo stops.