St Petersburg - itinerary crazy or doable?

hello,

we would love to see the following sights in one day if possible and we are aware that we would not have much time at each location. however we are traveling with two children (3 and 6 years old) and they are not too fond of spending too much time in one place. we noticed fast paced tours work better with them. we could also skip the metro and market.

is this doable all in one day? or would we have to break it into a two day excursion?

also... if we can manage to do a one day private tour with the kids, could we get off the ship the next day on our own? or is the visa only valid for that tour?

Hermitage

Catherines Palace

Church of spilled blood

Peterhof with gardens

typical Russian lunch

Subway ride and Market

looking forward to your feedback!

hello,

 

we would love to see the following sights in one day if possible and we are aware that we would not have much time at each location. however we are traveling with two children (3 and 6 years old) and they are not too fond of spending too much time in one place. we noticed fast paced tours work better with them. we could also skip the metro and market.

 

is this doable all in one day? or would we have to break it into a two day excursion?

also... if we can manage to do a one day private tour with the kids, could we get off the ship the next day on our own? or is the visa only valid for that tour?

 

Hermitage

Catherines Palace

Church of spilled blood

Peterhof with gardens

typical Russian lunch

Subway ride and Market

 

 

looking forward to your feedback!

Too much for one day. Catherines Palace & Peterhof are almost a full day just due to the transit time. Basically it's good to do all the 'St Petersburg' sites in one day, and then the Winter Palace and Peterhof the next day.

We did the Baltics with our almost 3-yr old (boy) last year and had an amazing trip. Unfortunately he managed to fall asleep at exactly the wrong times, but it all worked out ok. We also included a stop at the outdoor train "museum" which was amazing - even for a not-three yr old. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varshavsky_railway_station )

The tour group visa is only valid when you're on a tour. If you want to get off the ship on your own the next day, you will have to have obtained individual visas for all of you before you leave home.

several people have posted that if your ship is in port for 2 days then tour operators are reluctant to offer a 1 day tour

We also toured at a very brisk pace. On the first day, with our 3 year old we did:

Catherines Palace

exterior of Church of spilled blood (I wanted pictures of the exterior on day 1, since rain was predicted on day 2)

Peterhof with gardens

lunch at Stolle

Subway ride

Canal ride

visited Palace Square

Please note that if you would like to visit the Hermitage when it is less crowded, you would need early admission on the second day. Not all exhibit halls are open during early admission time, so you need to decide if this is worth the extra cost.

Your private tour company will email you the visa substitute ahead of time. It will list the exact dates and times it is valid for (if you are booking a two day tour they will probably list all of the time your ship is in dock for, so if you decide at the last minute to add an evening program with your tour company you would be allowed off the ship. I don't know if you book a one day tour if they would issue a visa that covers both days). Legally, you are not allowed to leave the ship unless you are with your tour guide company, but the Russian custom officials can only check that the dates and times are valid on your paperwork, since tourists meet their tour guides and drivers after exiting customs. Even if your paperwork covers the entire time your ship is in port, obviously no one on cruise critic can predict what would happen if your family experienced an emergency and the Russian officials found out that you are traveling in St. Petersburg without your tour guide.

You will not be allowed off the ship without a visa or paperwork from a private tour guide specifying that you are allowed to leave at that specific time. As we were returning, we saw ladies denied exit since they lacked a visa. They had taken a ship tour earlier that morning and threw away the paperwork when it was over. They later decided to visit the souvenir shops in the lobby of the port, but the customs officials would not let them leave. They asked to borrow our paperwork since we were returning to the ship, but I explained that the customs official would check the names with the passports and not let them off the ship if they didn't match.

Please also note that Russian custom officials are very thorough in terms of examining passports and visas on the first day. Unless you have priority disembarkation, it is likely to take a very long time to exit the ship. We were one of the first off our ship, and still needed to wait a half hour to clear customs. One of the tour companies we contacted recommended waiting until 10 am to start the tour on the first day, and starting earlier the second. I also don't know how your children will handle a difficult day of touring after time spent on custom lines.

I would honestly email the major tour companies and ask them to price out both a one day and two day tour to see what your options are. I would hate for you to be in the position of having one of your kids completely meltdown, need to return to the ship and your being stuck with only ship tours as your option for day two (I believe the private tour companies need a few weeks to process your visa and I don't know if they can extend it with no notice. I'm not sure how much lead time he ship needs to add someone to their tour)

hello,

 

we would love to see the following sights in one day if possible and we are aware that we would not have much time at each location. however we are traveling with two children (3 and 6 years old) and they are not too fond of spending too much time in one place. we noticed fast paced tours work better with them. we could also skip the metro and market.

 

is this doable all in one day? or would we have to break it into a two day excursion?

also... if we can manage to do a one day private tour with the kids, could we get off the ship the next day on our own? or is the visa only valid for that tour?

 

Hermitage

Catherines Palace

Church of spilled blood

Peterhof with gardens

typical Russian lunch

Subway ride and Market

 

 

looking forward to your feedback!

Sure it is doable, but, as you say, you might be waving hello and goodbye at the same time.

Look, I am NOT criticizing you at all, but I see this all the time. To go to the Baltics, St Petersburg and not see it fully, enjoy it to the best possibility because you are catering YOUR vacation to your children is silly. I fully understand the predicaments, but you are paying thousands of dollars and you are worried that a 3 year old might be bored?. Then wait on this trip and go to the Caribbean instead. St Petersburg is a remarkable city and you surely do not want to see places like the Hermitage--quickly. You can spend an entire day there and not see a quarter of what it has to offer. PLUS, if you are on a group tour with a private tour company, the others may have something to say about where you go and how much time to spend there.

Believe me when I say this is YOUR vacation so YOU need to enjoy it, including what you see, when you see it and how you visit these amazing cities.

Again, please don't take this the wrong way, I am certainly not scolding anyone. Just my opinion, do not cheat yourselves out of the full enjoyment of these ports. Kids will adjust and be fine. Tour groups like Best Guides seem to cater to families with younger children, you might want to chat with them.

Cheers

Len

Totally valid points. This has crossed our minds as well.

We will opt for a 2 days private tour, since we are able to then fully enjoy it.

The tour company confirmed that we can only leave the ship with a tour guide.

We might do one day with the kids and one day without.

Wondering if the Peter and Paul Fortress is an absolute must.... wasnt high on our must see list?????!!!!!!

We much rather spend some more time at other places (Hermitage/Catherine's palace/Peterhof with gardens/Church of spilled blood/lunches/subway/city tour).

Any feedback on Peter and Paul Fortress?

Thanks again!

Peter and Paul Fortress was not my personal favorite, but is generally considered one of the highlight attractions. When I planned, it helped to google images to preview sites in cities like Stockholm and St. Petersburg since there are a lot of attractions to choose from, and different people will have different preferences.

Wondering if the Peter and Paul Fortress is an absolute must.... wasnt high on our must see list?????!!!!!!

Didn't really do it for us. I would have rather spent more time elsewhere..

Totally valid points. This has crossed our minds as well. We will opt for a 2 days private tour, since we are able to then fully enjoy it. The tour company confirmed that we can only leave the ship with a tour guide. We might do one day with the kids and one day without. Wondering if the Peter and Paul Fortress is an absolute must.... wasnt high on our must see list?????!!!!!! We much rather spend some more time at other places (Hermitage/Catherine's palace/Peterhof with gardens/Church of spilled blood/lunches/subway/city tour).

Giantfan13: Sure it is doable' date=' but, as you say, you [b']might be waving hello and goodbye at the same time[/b]. Look, I am NOT criticizing you at all, but I see this all the time. To go to the Baltics, St Petersburg and not see it fully, enjoy it to the best possibility because you are catering YOUR vacation to your children is silly. I fully understand the predicaments, but you are paying thousands of dollars and you are worried that a 3 year old might be bored?.

Glad to know that you took well the wise and considered comments/wisdom from Len. Kindly expressed by him. Glad to know that you are asking and considering, in advance, your many great options in amazing St. Petersburg. Here are a few of other thoughts:

1. At the Peterhof, your kids might enjoy the "surprise fountains". See my visual below.

2. From the Peterhof, the hydrofoil could be of interest. See my two visuals below.

3. The canal ride can be interesting for some. Don't know for you and/or your kids. You're riding on the water, allowing a little time to rest compared to just walking and standing.

4. A sit-down lunch could be a little more challenging for kids. There are potentials to eat at the Peterhof's outdoor, cafeteria-style place. See visual below.

5. On Peter and Paul Fortress, it looks great from outside as shown below. But, we skipped it in order to do Yusupov Palace. That worked very well for us and our interests. Why? Peter and Paul Fortress is a combination of a large church and burial area. We had seen those types of experiences in other places and at other times in Europe. Yusupov Palace has some unique "angles" that were of interest and different from other stops in St. Petersburg.

Finally, one of the nice pluses with a private tour is the potential to make some "adjustments" for your two days there due to weather conditions, etc.

Keep the good questions, research and planning rolling along. Let us know any other questions.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 105,229 views for this posting.

These are the surprise fountains that go off on the hour to the delight of kids and others who enjoy such fun at the Peterhof:

From the dock at the Peterhof, here is the hydrofoil approaching before we started our trip into St. Petersburg. It is a little like boarding a "space ship". Cool and interesting ride!:

From the hydrofoil coming in from the Peterhof, here was our view of the Hermitage exterior and this water feature in the main, harbor area.:

One of the many fountains on the grounds of the Peterhof is the Orangery Fountain, depicting Triton fighting a sea monster. There is a cafe there with outdoor seating and super views where we ate outside and had our lunch.:

The Peter and Paul Cathedral is a Russian Orthodox cathedral located inside the Peter and Paul Fortress in St. Petersburg. It is the first and oldest landmark, built between 1712 and 1733 on Zayachy Island along the Neva River. Both the cathedral and the fortress were originally built under Peter the Great. The cathedral's bell tower is the world's tallest Orthodox bell tower and is an integral part of the main building. This cathedral is sometimes considered the highest Orthodox Church in the world. Its golden spire reaches a height of 404 feet and features at its top an angel holding a cross. The cathedral was closed in 1919 and turned into a museum in 1924. It is still officially a museum, but religious services resumed in 2000. The cathedral houses the remains of almost all the Russian Emperors and Empresses from Peter the Great to Nicholas II:

Certainly Tallinn is a DIY port. However, bicycles might not be the best idea due to the cobblestone/rock streets.

Hi, there. My cousin’s family (with two youngsters) and myself are ardent bikers. Does anyone know if we can rent bikes in Tallinn and St.Petersburg and do both cities on our own? Is it a crazy idea? I will be grateful for any feedback. We don’t have much time left before we make our decision.

You won't be able to do St. Petersburg on your own without a visa. A quick search with find plenty of info available on this board about the pros/cons of getting a visa and doing it on your own.

Certainly Tallinn is a DIY port. However, bicycles might not be the best idea due to the cobblestone/rock streets.

Excellent point about Tallinn. People have commented on how hard it is to even wheel a baby stroller on some of the streets. I would think ports like Stockholm, Helsinki and Copenhagen are much more appealing to a biker.

I do know there is a Segway tour in Tallinn, probably from the cruise line but I'm not sure.

And as was just said, unless you have your won visa and if you are traveling soon, that will be impossible, you won't even be allowed off the ship to visit St Petersburg without some sort of visa.

Cheers

Len

We saw folks biking in old town Tallinn. When we commented on it, our guide basically said the streets are awful for wheels in general and even cars have a short life span there. Many of the cobblestones are round river rock, not flat cobbles, so it is extremely bumpy.

Excellent point about Tallinn. People have commented on how hard it is to even wheel a baby stroller on some of the streets. I would think ports like Stockholm, Helsinki and Copenhagen are much more appealing to a biker.

 

You certainly wouldn't be the only one biking in Copenhagen (taken last week)

 

 

http://i1233.photobucket.com/albums/ff386/mmkbx75/IMG_5859_zpse6zgjws2.jpg

Thank you for your feedback.

Did I get it correctly that with three weeks left, I have no options in St Petersburg other than doing a tour offered by the boat or with a local tour operator?

That is correct - unless each of you has a Russian visa.

St. Petersburg is not a biker friendly city - there are no dedicated biking lanes and you would be taking your life in your hands to attempt to ride the streets with the chaos that is the common traffic condition in the city.

Copenhagen, Stockholm and Amsterdam are all very biker friendly - definitely not the case in St. Petersburg.

Thank you, dogs4fun.

 

Is traffic really that bad there? should we opt for a walking tour instead of a bus tour?

The major sites are just too far apart to making a walking tour work if you want to see them and they aren't all public transit friendly either.

We generally do walking & public transit tours, but opted for a private van in St. Petersburg.