Novice cruisers seeking luxury Baltic sea cruise

Hello. I am trying to choose a luxury cruise line that has voyages in the Baltic sea to st.Petersburg. It will be a mother daughter trip. I am a first time cruiser and its been about 2 decades since my mother's last cruise. I am in my 20s and my mother is in her fifties so we need a ship with varied activities and offerings.

I had my heart set on crystal cruises but some of the reviews on here are making me reconsider. We are looking for a cruise that really is a six star cruise- excellent service, great food, clean spa and facilities, exclusive excursions etc.

My next question is it better to book with an agent or with the cruise line itself?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

Aside from Crystal, Seaborn offers six star Baltc cruises stopping in St. Petersburg (at about $5,000 per person/week). If you are lookining that price range, I believe a travel agent who really specializes would be able to advise you, and perhaps offer certain credits/benefits.

Aside from Crystal, Seaborn offers six star Baltc cruises stopping in St. Petersburg (at about $5,000 per person/week). If you are lookining that price range, I believe a travel agent who really specializes would be able to advise you, and perhaps offer certain credits/benefits.

Thank you for your reply. I'm looking in the $5000+ area. I'm now strongly leaning towards seaborn

Silversea Silver Whisper has 7 day cruises with two overnights in St. Petersburg next year. Viking Ocean is another option. Most Baltic cruises are 14 days, which might blow your budget. EM

I have a friend who just came off a Regent Seven Seas Cruise and couldn't say enough good things about it. She particularly liked the all-inclusive aspect. They cruise to that area, so maybe consider them as well.

Look at Oceania too. We did the Baltic/Scandanavia last year on Marina, which included 3 days in St. Petersburg. There are several very reputable tour companies that offer tours in most of the ports as a package deal, which is IMO much better than the ship's excursions and less expensive. They also provide the tourist visa. I posted a review of the cruise in the Reviews Forum.

Hello. I am trying to choose a luxury cruise line that has voyages in the Baltic sea to st.Petersburg. It will be a mother daughter trip. I am a first time cruiser and its been about 2 decades since my mother's last cruise. I am in my 20s and my mother is in her fifties so we need a ship with varied activities and offerings.

I had my heart set on crystal cruises but some of the reviews on here are making me reconsider. We are looking for a cruise that really is a six star cruise- excellent service, great food, clean spa and facilities, exclusive excursions etc.

My next question is it better to book with an agent or with the cruise line itself?

Any advice would be greatly appreciated

As you read the reviews, bear in mind that some of the things you are looking for -- "excellent service" and "great food" in particular -- can be quite subjectively judged. Every cruise line is likely going to have some negative reviews.

Before you decide not to book on Crystal, read a good cross section of reviews and see whether the complaints are common across most of the reviews (e.g., even in a generally good review, do posters frequently mention issues with the food?).

Cruise Critic does attract a fair amount of traffic from people whose standards appear to be extremely high (so that everything they post is a complaint) or who are comparing their experience to the good old days when every ship was cleaner, food was better and crew provided better service.

My aunt and her daughters took a Regent Seven Seas trip last year (to Alaska, though, not Baltics), but they have raved about it ever since.

Thanks for all of the replies!

It looks like well be going on seabourn because of all their excursions

If you're less concerned about everyone speaking English, Hapag Lloyd - and their ship the MS Europa could be considered.