St. Petersburg and the "blanket cruise visa"

So my understanding from our O Cruise Consultant is that no separate Russian visa is needed if all we do in St. Petersburg are O excursions. Is this correct in everyone's experience? I'm just paranoid enough to have this nightmare about being refused at check-in if we don't have Russian visas of our own. How does the check-in staff even know whether or not we might have arranged our own tours? How does the "no separate visa" get policed in St. Petersburg? And relying on the blanket cruise visa also means no walking around on our own I believe.

Of course, this is a separate question from whether or not we should consider any private tours - in which case I know we'd need our own visas.

There is most likely a wealth of information on this topic already that may answer many of your questions - particularly those about private tour company recommendations. A search might help.

That said, you do NOT need a visa if

1 You will do Oceania tours

2 tour with private companies

3 stay onboard.

Oceania does not require Russian visas prior to boarding - unlike cruises to India, for example. If you do not have your own visa or are not doing any tours, you will not get past the immigration officers.

Personally, I think in SPB more than anywhere else it is almost imperative to use private tours - size depends on your preference.

You will do more, see more, decide what you want to see and probably pay much less. For example, none of O's tours (in the past) went to the Faberge museum that you can visit with a private company.

PS You do NOT need a private visa when using a tour company - they will provide it for you (same as Oceania would). You only need a private visa if you want to walk around on your own - not my recommendation.

We visited St. P. in May '01 and opted for our own visas. All the touring companies like Red October, etc., didn't exist yet but we found a tour guide was took us around for a very modest cost. Like $40/day for the two of us. (She no longer charges that little!)

In Sochi in 2012 we had a private guide with a group visa arranged by another passenger.

You shouldn't worry as long as you either use one of these groups that gives participants a group visa OR you use ship's tours.

Over the years there have been frequent questions about "how about if we leave the group" ... don't do that unless you have your OWN visa!

The guards outside the ship do look at your documents, more than once ... If you're with a group, whether it's an O group or a group like Red October, St. Petersburg, etc., you will be fine. But you will NOT be if you do NOT have a visa and you are alone.

This should be obvious, but enough people have asked the question that I thought I should mention it ...

Mura

Mura

Plus 1 with Paul. If you use a private tour company they will email the customs papers to you. Use those and your passport to enter the country..your passport is now scanned at customs so you do not have to fill out an immigration form. You must stay within sight or within headset distance of your tour guide during the day tours...a little more leeway for evening concerts, ballet, etc.

Another piece advice that might help some.

If you happen to be in SPB on a Monday and have a private company tour, arrange your itinerary so that you visit the Hermitage on Monday. It is closed to the public on Mondays but open to special groups. We were virtually the only group in every single room there - a huge difference from the normal masses where you sometimes cannot even get close to some of the masterpieces.

Also, the Impressionists have now been moved out of the Hermitage into a separate space. Thus you would need a separate tour to see these masterpieces - again, not available through Oceania (at least not in the past) but can be arranged with a private company.

All of 'this advice is good. I personally like to wander on my own and opted for my own Visas. Depending on the time in port you can evaluate how much independence you would like. If you plan to do tours you can avoid the extra cost of obtaining Visas

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All of 'this advice is good. I personally like to wander on my own and opted for my own Visas. Depending on the time in port you can evaluate how much independence you would like. If you plan to do tours you can avoid the extra cost of obtaining Visas

 

 

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Of course, this is an option but SPB is different from most European ports.

While many of the young Russians do speak English, that is not the case for taxi drivers and most of the people on the street. Scams are very common and unless you speak Russian or at least can read the Cyrillic alphabet you may have real problems navigating SPB on your own. Not to mention making your way across town from Peterhof to Catherine's Palace to wherever. If you are on your own, you will stand in very long lines to the Hermitage with everyone else - not so with a group. There are probably many more reasons not to tackle SPB on your own for MOST tourists on a cruise ship.

I speak fluent Russian and we went with a tour company all 4 times we visited there.:D

To add to Paul's post

the cost of a VISA it probably close to the price of a 2 day tour with a private guide & you will get the transportation to the sites & explanation of what you are seeing

You have weigh the options

So my understanding from our O Cruise Consultant is that no separate Russian visa is needed if all we do in St. Petersburg are O excursions. Is this correct in everyone's experience?

You will not need to apply to a consulate for a Russian visa if you arrange a tour with a licensed St Petersburg tour company. Other posters have said the same thing, but there is so much intimidation and misinformation put out by the cruise lines -- not just Oceania -- this fact is worth repeating.

If you head to the ports of call board for Northern Europe, there is always a lively discussion about the many well regarded licensed tour companies. There are small differences among the tour companies. Some include shopping time. Some include a sit down lunch from a set menu. Some include a light, on-the-go lunch. Some visit Peterhof via bus both ways; others visit via a combination of bus and hydrfoil. Some itineraries include a bit more exposure to the life lived by ordinary St. Petersburg citizens. Some companies are better with children.

I recommend you identify the small details that will be important to you and ask about them when you contact various companies.

I'm just paranoid enough to have this nightmare about being refused at check-in if we don't have Russian visas of our own. How does the check-in staff even know whether or not we might have arranged our own tours?

Russian passport officials in St. Petersburg control your access to the city. The Oceania check in staff has nothing to do with this. They won't keep you from boarding at your embarkation port.

How does the "no separate visa" get policed in St. Petersburg?

If you arrange a tour of St Petersburg with a private licensed company, you'll have to send the company information about your passport, name, address, etc. That company submits your information to the Russian authorities and your name will go into the passport control computer allowing you to come ashore on specific days for specific times. The company will email you a ticket. It doesn't look very impressive, but the system works.

Incidentally, the words "ticket" and "blanket visa" get used interchangeably. If you go to the web site for SPB, one of the top private tour companies, they use the phrase "Tour-ticket" in the FAQ.

At passport control, you'll show your original passport (not a copy) and your tour company ticket to very serious looking officials. The first day of your port call, the officials deal with the paperwork in a deliberate manner and the lines can move slowly. Subsequent days, the lines move much more efficiently. You never surrender your passport; you'll have it back when you're done at the passport control check point. (This the same procedure for cruisers touring with Oceania or privately arrange with a licensed tour company.)

And relying on the blanket cruise visa also means no walking around on our own I believe.

To be fully accurate, there is a bit of flexibility depending on the tour company. You can arrange with many companies to come back into the city to eat dinner in a restaurant or attend a ballet. In those cases, you will not be dining/seeing the ballet with a guide. A company car/bus will take you where you need to be, drop you off, and pick you up at the end of the evening. I've even heard some tour guides allow a bit of freedom when shopping within a rather limited area.

This evening outing will be reflected on your ticket. The licensed tour companies do this all the time. They know how to long an itinerary to see X,Y, and Z will take and apply for a ticket that will comfortably get you back on board. They know how much time to add for cruisers who want to enjoy dinner or the ballet in the city, and the ticket times will reflect this.

Of course, this is a separate question from whether or not we should consider any private tours - in which case I know we'd need our own visas.

If you've read this far, you probably have figured out that your assumption is not correct. A private tour arranged by a licensed company is very different from wandering at will through the city.

The cruise line's scare tactics are completely silly because it's obvious that cruisers who book the Oceania excursions are actually touring with a licensed tour company. Oceania's employees are not offering the tour!! When the cruise lines brag about not needing a visa, that also applies to cruisers who book directly with SPB or Alla or TJ or Best Guides or White Nights, etc.

When the cruise lines brag about not needing a visa, that also applies to cruisers who book directly with SPB or Alla or TJ or Best Guides or White Nights, etc.

Several years ago, we toured SPb with Alla Tours. It was an extremely comprehensive tour - 2 days - and, yes, Alla provided the 'blanket visa' for the twelve of us. With NO hassle from Oceania.

Donna

All of 'this advice is good. I personally like to wander on my own and opted for my own Visas. Depending on the time in port you can evaluate how much independence you would like. If you plan to do tours you can avoid the extra cost of obtaining Visas

 

 

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We have done Russia both ways. In Moscow, we traveled independently with visas. It seemed as easy and open as any of the large Western European capitals we have visited. We took no tours, just walked on our own or used public transportation. For the subway, I counted stops with a good subway map, so that we knew when to exit. Taxis two and from the airport were hotel arranged.

On our cruise we opted for a small group excursion with Alla. As others have mentioned, the large tour companies arrange for group visas.

I preferred Moscow to St. Petersburg, probably because we had a chance to process the city through our own filter. But, on the short St. Petersburg port stay (we only had two days), it was efficient to do it with a tour, skipping lines and such. If we had been on a three day port stop, I probably would have opted for just getting a visa...efficiency would not have been that important.

One example of the difference in how we experienced the two cities was subway tours. Alla took us to a new station and we rode between two stops. It was as charming as using the Tokyo subway.:rolleyes: On our own, in Moscow, we did the old original central loop line, getting off at each stop to marvel at the old tile and artwork contained in each station.

We have done Russia both ways. In Moscow, we traveled independently with visas. It seemed as easy and open as any of the large Western European capitals we have visited. We took no tours, just walked on our own or used public transportation. For the subway, I counted stops with a good subway map, so that we knew when to exit. Taxis two and from the airport were hotel arranged.

 

On our cruise we opted for a small group excursion with Alla. As others have mentioned, the large tour companies arrange for group visas.

 

I preferred Moscow to St. Petersburg, probably because we had a chance to process the city through our own filter. But, on the short St. Petersburg port stay (we only had two days), it was efficient to do it with a tour, skipping lines and such. If we had been on a three day port stop, I probably would have opted for just getting a visa...efficiency would not have been that important.

 

One example of the difference in how we experienced the two cities was subway tours. Alla took us to a new station and we rode between two stops. It was as charming as using the Tokyo subway.:rolleyes: On our own, in Moscow, we did the old original central loop line, getting off at each stop to marvel at the old tile and artwork contained in each station.

WE did SPB twice with Alla for 3 days each time. There is so much to see there we could not possibly have done it on our own. The second time we were on Marina and docked a little ways from the city and do not know if there even is public transport to the downtown area. Have not been to Moscow but I think you need some kind of tour in SPB to see the most.

We have done Russia both ways. In Moscow, we traveled independently with visas. It seemed as easy and open as any of the large Western European capitals we have visited. We took no tours, just walked on our own or used public transportation. For the subway, I counted stops with a good subway map, so that we knew when to exit. Taxis two and from the airport were hotel arranged.

 

On our cruise we opted for a small group excursion with Alla. As others have mentioned, the large tour companies arrange for group visas.

 

I preferred Moscow to St. Petersburg, probably because we had a chance to process the city through our own filter. But, on the short St. Petersburg port stay (we only had two days), it was efficient to do it with a tour, skipping lines and such. If we had been on a three day port stop, I probably would have opted for just getting a visa...efficiency would not have been that important.

 

One example of the difference in how we experienced the two cities was subway tours. Alla took us to a new station and we rode between two stops. It was as charming as using the Tokyo subway.:rolleyes: On our own, in Moscow, we did the old original central loop line, getting off at each stop to marvel at the old tile and artwork contained in each station.

I agree in so far as if you are in SPB on a land trip, you can do it yourself - if you are so inclined - as you have fewer time constraints and probably help and advice from your hotel.

Not as easy on a cruise.

PS You should have seen the Moscow subway in the communist times before all the vandalism that I saw more recently.

I agree in so far as if you are in SPB on a land trip, you can do it yourself - if you are so inclined - as you have fewer time constraints and probably help and advice from your hotel.

Not as easy on a cruise.

PS You should have seen the Moscow subway in the communist times before all the vandalism that I saw more recently.

You mean there is no more communism in Russia any more? No more communist times. How great. :D:D

You mean there is no more communism in Russia any more? No more communist times. How great. :D:D

Believe me when I say that people (especially teenagers) wouldn't even dream of doing things then than what they are doing today (communism aside) - trust me on that.

Ticket to Siberia (and similar places) were free (and given out freely and happily) and everybody understood and learned to respect that :D

There were certainly no oligarchs then and people didn't have the freedom to travel and do/say things they have today. Russia today is very different from Russia pre 1990. Communism and oligarchs cannot co-exist - so in that sense there is no communism there today. Communist Party - yes; communism - no. Ditto for China.

Despotism is not the same as communism.

End of Politics 101 :D

I agree in so far as if you are in SPB on a land trip, you can do it yourself - if you are so inclined - as you have fewer time constraints and probably help and advice from your hotel.

Not as easy on a cruise.

PS You should have seen the Moscow subway in the communist times before all the vandalism that I saw more recently.

Agree, it's not easy on a cruise...particularly in SPB, which is why we opted for the tour (and also the cost, it's cheaper than getting a visa.) But, DH and I are the type of travelers that just love walking, exploring and mixing it up with the locals. I would have easily given up the afternoon to Catherine's Palace for a stroll down the main drag of SPG, walking into shops when we wanted. But, that's just us. Some people are better students than we are and what the tour guides tell them actually sinks in....with us it's usually going in one ear and out the other. :) We're more experiential social scientists in our travel approach, whereas, many prefer the historian approach. It's all good and whatever floats your boat.

When we went to SPB in 2006 we did both options. I did get our Russian Visas before we left as knew I wanted to experience SPB on our own as well as with a guide. The first day we had a private guide (DenRus) to take us to Peterhof Palace, the Hermitage, and some other sites and then also got some guidance on how to get around the city on our own. At the end of the first day the driver dropped us off at the Mariinsky theatre where we attended a concert. I had given both the driver and our guide a small gift from Canada and when they dropped us off the driver kindly offered to pick us up after the concert to take us back to the ship. I was not sure if he would be there... but sure enough he was and he did not expect anything when he drove us back to the ship... although I am sure we gave him something. He was just so kind and thoughtful!

The next day we went through passport control (no problems). We had to take a shuttle bus that the crew takes to the passport gates. I had also asked the crew what they did to get around SPB... they said they take the taxis into the city and advised what a good price was. After the gates there were some taxis so we negotiated a price to the Peter Paul Fortress. He was very nice as well... he spoke a little english but to ensure we were communicating he showed us pictures of places where we could meet and he would pick us up for the return to ship. Which we chose the Kazan Cathedral and he met us there as well at the time and price that we arranged. If memory serves me there was a bus that drives right by the gate that takes you into central SPB as well. This was Celebrity (a larger ship) so it was docked in the outskirts. I saw smaller ships right in the centre of SPB so those would be very convenient to get off and DIY.

We thoroughly enjoyed our day on on our own in SPB. We found a great place for lunch, walked around the canals, and just loved being able to do what we wanted when we wanted. To me it was the best of both worlds!

When we went to SPB in 2006 we did both options. I did get our Russian Visas before we left as knew I wanted to experience SPB on our own as well as with a guide. The first day we had a private guide (DenRus) to take us to Peterhof Palace, the Hermitage, and some other sites and then also got some guidance on how to get around the city on our own. At the end of the first day the driver dropped us off at the Mariinsky theatre where we attended a concert. I had given both the driver and our guide a small gift from Canada and when they dropped us off the driver kindly offered to pick us up after the concert to take us back to the ship. I was not sure if he would be there... but sure enough he was and he did not expect anything when he drove us back to the ship... although I am sure we gave him something. He was just so kind and thoughtful!

 

The next day we went through passport control (no problems). We had to take a shuttle bus that the crew takes to the passport gates. I had also asked the crew what they did to get around SPB... they said they take the taxis into the city and advised what a good price was. After the gates there were some taxis so we negotiated a price to the Peter Paul Fortress. He was very nice as well... he spoke a little english but to ensure we were communicating he showed us pictures of places where we could meet and he would pick us up for the return to ship. Which we chose the Kazan Cathedral and he met us there as well at the time and price that we arranged. If memory serves me there was a bus that drives right by the gate that takes you into central SPB as well. This was Celebrity (a larger ship) so it was docked in the outskirts. I saw smaller ships right in the centre of SPB so those would be very convenient to get off and DIY.

 

We thoroughly enjoyed our day on on our own in SPB. We found a great place for lunch, walked around the canals, and just loved being able to do what we wanted when we wanted. To me it was the best of both worlds!

Good to know. Some food for thought if we ever get back to SPB. Thank you.

Of course, this is an option but SPB is different from most European ports.

While many of the young Russians do speak English, that is not the case for taxi drivers and most of the people on the street. Scams are very common and unless you speak Russian or at least can read the Cyrillic alphabet you may have real problems navigating SPB on your own. Not to mention making your way across town from Peterhof to Catherine's Palace to wherever. If you are on your own, you will stand in very long lines to the Hermitage with everyone else - not so with a group. There are probably many more reasons not to tackle SPB on your own for MOST tourists on a cruise ship.

.:D

But for a non-Russian speaker -- it is so much more fun.

In Soviet days I was traveling with my crazy boss. We went to a hotel ballroom (not the foreigner hotel) -- and talked our way into a private reception. They of course spoke no English and back then if you seemed like you had authority you did. It turns out it was a wedding reception -- and we the only foreigners. The Vodka, Caviar and Russian music were great. We left a nice USD present for the couple (back then $$ was golden).

Then there was the other time when in Moscow (again with the crazy boss and his boss) -- we were on Arbat street and Crazy boss changes money on black market --- hauled into the police station and fortunately released in a hour. In that case it helped not knowing the language :)

When we went to SPB in 2006 we did both options. I did get our Russian Visas before we left as knew I wanted to experience SPB on our own as well as with a guide. The first day we had a private guide (DenRus) to take us to Peterhof Palace, the Hermitage, and some other sites and then also got some guidance on how to get around the city on our own. At the end of the first day the driver dropped us off at the Mariinsky theatre where we attended a concert. I had given both the driver and our guide a small gift from Canada and when they dropped us off the driver kindly offered to pick us up after the concert to take us back to the ship. I was not sure if he would be there... but sure enough he was and he did not expect anything when he drove us back to the ship... although I am sure we gave him something. He was just so kind and thoughtful!

 

The next day we went through passport control (no problems). We had to take a shuttle bus that the crew takes to the passport gates. I had also asked the crew what they did to get around SPB... they said they take the taxis into the city and advised what a good price was. After the gates there were some taxis so we negotiated a price to the Peter Paul Fortress. He was very nice as well... he spoke a little english but to ensure we were communicating he showed us pictures of places where we could meet and he would pick us up for the return to ship. Which we chose the Kazan Cathedral and he met us there as well at the time and price that we arranged. If memory serves me there was a bus that drives right by the gate that takes you into central SPB as well. This was Celebrity (a larger ship) so it was docked in the outskirts. I saw smaller ships right in the centre of SPB so those would be very convenient to get off and DIY.

 

We thoroughly enjoyed our day on on our own in SPB. We found a great place for lunch, walked around the canals, and just loved being able to do what we wanted when we wanted. To me it was the best of both worlds!

What a wonderful plan!

But for a non-Russian speaker -- it is so much more fun.

In Soviet days I was traveling with my crazy boss. We went to a hotel ballroom (not the foreigner hotel) -- and talked our way into a private reception. They of course spoke no English and back then if you seemed like you had authority you did. It turns out it was a wedding reception -- and we the only foreigners. The Vodka, Caviar and Russian music were great. We left a nice USD present for the couple (back then $$ was golden).

 

Then there was the other time when in Moscow (again with the crazy boss and his boss) -- we were on Arbat street and Crazy boss changes money on black market --- hauled into the police station and fortunately released in a hour. In that case it helped not knowing the language :)

Some day I want to cruise with you on a cruise with many sea days and hear ALL your stories :D

I bet you have enough for a book (or a mini series on TV).

I can tell you about the Russians coming into our train car (1965) and wanting to buy everything from our suitcase (ditto for the "Dezhurnaya" - the boss woman on every floor in the hotel in Moscow). Jeans and chewing gum were at the top of the list :D That WAS a different Russia.

Always had several cartons of Marlboro's with me (I don't smoke). Floor lady always got a carton. :D

Always had several cartons of Marlboro's with me (I don't smoke). Floor lady always got a carton. :D

That probably entitled you to your own bar of soap and your own towel but I bet the calisthenics music still came on at 6 AM on the loudspeaker in the room :D

Several years ago' date=' we toured SPb with Alla Tours. It was an extremely comprehensive tour - 2 days - and, yes, Alla provided the 'blanket visa' for the twelve of us. With NO hassle from Oceania.

 

Donna[/quote']

 

A couple of years ago, there was a thread on the Northern Europe Board about cruise line intimidation. A fellow wrote about a very intimidating email he had received from Oceania prior to his Baltic cruise. Both he and I had taken Baltic/St. Petersburg cruises on Oceania the same year; however, I couldn't recall having received such an email. The other cruiser followed up by posting the email.

 

When I read the actual letter, I was impressed; the letter was a masterful job of writing. Everything that Oceania written was true! They just didn't writing everything pertinent to the topic! The possibility of a visa-free visit by booking directly with a licensed tour agency was never mentioned.

 

It made no sense that Oceania would send a letter to some Baltic cruisers and not to others so I decided that since I knew about booking tours directly, I must have skimmed the email, immediately deleted it, and completely forgotten about its existence.

 

Before our cruise, I booked a private tour directly and had a great visit to St. P. In that sense, Oceania didn't interfere with me. However, cruisers with no independent sources of information almost certainly were manipulated by the letter. If the visa-free ship's tour and the visa-required, at-will independent St P visitor are both accurate options, it is illogical for a low-information visitor to say "I wonder what Oceania is leaving out." Cruisers with no way to spot the missing option, predictably signed up for an excursion through the ship.

A couple of years ago, there was a thread on the Northern Europe Board about cruise line intimidation. A fellow wrote about a very intimidating email he had received from Oceania prior to his Baltic cruise. Both he and I had taken Baltic/St. Petersburg cruises on Oceania the same year; however, I couldn't recall having received such an email. The other cruiser followed up by posting the email.

 

When I read the actual letter, I was impressed; the letter was a masterful job of writing. Everything that Oceania written was true! They just didn't writing everything pertinent to the topic! The possibility of a visa-free visit by booking directly with a licensed tour agency was never mentioned.

 

It made no sense that Oceania would send a letter to some Baltic cruisers and not to others so I decided that since I knew about booking tours directly, I must have skimmed the email, immediately deleted it, and completely forgotten about its existence.

 

Before our cruise, I booked a private tour directly and had a great visit to St. P. In that sense, Oceania didn't interfere with me. However, cruisers with no independent sources of information almost certainly were manipulated by the letter. If the visa-free ship's tour and the visa-required, at-will independent St P visitor are both accurate options, it is illogical for a low-information visitor to say "I wonder what Oceania is leaving out." Cruisers with no way to spot the missing option, predictably signed up for an excursion through the ship.

Sounds about what we heard about 8 years ago before our first Baltic trip. WE were a little nervous when we booked an Alla tour, but all the paperwork came back with the tour tickets and saying there is no problem with a visa for a private tour. Even went out at night to the theater twice. We just have to do a little homework before we go to any foreign ports.