Best time of year for Baltic cruise

I'm in the very, very early stages of planning (more like just thinking about) a Baltic cruise. Obviously weather is important. And yes, I know there are no guarantees, so I'm only asking for a general assessment. Are May and October cold? When do the leaves change? Is there a season when the seas might be rougher?

I'm open to other advice, too. For instance what was your favorite port? One option I'm looking at has three days/two nights in St Petersburg. Is that too many? Is one too few?

Thank you!

I love to take advantage of shoulder season to save a few bucks on a cruise, but I don't think the Baltics is the place to do that. Too many of the ports and excursions are ones where you'll want to walk around to see things, and most of these ports are going to be in the low 40's in October. You can use this site to see the average weather in October for the ports on a Baltics cruise. http://www.weatherbase.com/

As to your St. Petersburg question, we were there for two days, which I thought was just about right. Sure, there was more we could have seen, but after two full day tours, I'm not sure I would have quite as enthused to have a third day.

Had a great cruise to the Baltic in late May. Fewer children on holiday at that time of year in Europe, and fewer tourists generally.

Weather in Europe can be very unpredictable, so waiting until July/ August won’t necessarily guarantee hot or dry weather, just more people.

October is more likely to be cooler and wetter, and more autumnal, the leaves will be changing but it’s not a big tourist thing here, like it is in the eastern USA.

May will be peak spring flowers in Europe, I enjoyed walking through fragrant avenues of lilac trees in the palace gardens in St Petersburg.

You are less likely to be inconvenienced by the possible lack of air conditioning earlier or later in the year, if you do arrive for a hot summer like we have had this year.

We had two days in St Petersburg which we found just right. Saw everything we wanted, and didn’t miss out on an extra port. Tallinn was a real highlight, charming, friendly, and spectacular architecture.

Weatherwise, you'll do best going in mid-summer. We went in mid-July and the weather could not have been better.

I think 2 days/1 night in St. Petersburg is sufficient. The tour companies (Alla, TJ Travel, SPB) are so well-organized that you can see the highlights of St. Petersburg (and more) in that amount of time. The extra day would be better spent in another port.

I'm sure everyone has their favorite ports, but for me they were Copenhagen and Tallinn. I did not do the day trip from Warnemuende to Berlin because I used to live in Berlin, but Berlin would also be a highlight if I had never been there.

I would look up the dates for Peterhof fountains. It would be disappointing to miss that. It is usually May 19th or so until October 15 (give or take). I think. I would look into this as this is a highlight for me.

I think 2 days/1 night in St. Petersburg is sufficient. The tour companies (Alla, TJ Travel, SPB) are so well-organized that you can see the highlights of St. Petersburg (and more) in that amount of time. The extra day would be better spent in another port.

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I am going to disagree. If one can do 3 days, 1 more day than 2 days is even better. I have done Leningrad back in the day for probably 5 days and then later St. Petersburg for 3-4 days years later. We saw so much more than what I see people see on 2 day cruises plus we didn't have to rush through everything. On both of those trips - I could have spent even more time there. 2 days is barely touching the surface.

Based on these responses I will definitely choose an itinerary that includes Tallin—no matter when we go!

Always go for the itinerary with the most days in SPB. You won’t regret it!

We are from NYC. WE hate the hot weather and will never do a cruise to the Caribbean in those months. Before we did our Baltic cruise we were set to do a Mediterranean cruise but when we checked temperatures, we saw, way too hot, so the Baltics it was. We used to vacation mid to late August and that is when we went and, for us, it was perfect. We had cool mornings and evenings and the days were warm but never hot. Now, if you read this forum, you will soon learn that no one is ever right about the weather there. Next year it could be in the 90's in September, but you just have to go with the averages. We wanted cooler weather and we got exactly what we were looking for. Seas were as calm as can be and we had little to no rain. (this was unusual, but we didn't complain.)

Cheers

Len

It’s not, as one poster said, that weather in Europe can be unpredictable until July, but weather in the Baltics is. July and August are the best months. If you really want to go in May or October, I recommend taking clothes you can layer, a warm coat, warm gloves and a warm hat.

It’s a fabulous area to cruise. Enjoy 🙂

It’s not, as one poster said, that weather in Europe can be unpredictable until July, but weather in the Baltics is. July and August are the best months. If you really want to go in May or October, I recommend taking clothes you can layer, a warm coat, warm gloves and a warm hat, just in case!

It’s a fabulous area to cruise. Enjoy 🙂

I think 3 days in SPB would be perfect. I agree, Tallin is not to be missed!

October is too late imo. It's much colder then the summer months and the days are allot shorter.

Secdond half of May could work. Days are long and day temps can be pretty pleasant (18-22° C range).

Regarding weather, we went last July and it topped 90 degrees Fahrenheit. There really is no answer to the age old question, what will the weather be like?