where the heck is my ship?

this will probably sound ridiculous to most, but this is only my second cruise.....

how the heck do i find out where to get on the ship?

i am trying to plan everything for each port but dont know exactly where the ship will dock.

we start in southampton and end in stockholm. those are the 2 most important stops but i would also like to know where the ship docks at the other stops so i can do a google map search to see how to get to where we want to go once on shore.

we will be on the marina doing the baltic bliss in august.

London (Southampton),

Oslo, Norway

Copenhagen, Denmark

Berlin (Warnemunde), Germany

Visby, Sweden

Helsinki, Finland

St. Petersburg, Russia

Tallinn, Estonia

Stockholm, Sweden

thank you!!!

I can remember asking that exact same question when I started cruising.

Where you will get onto the ship, your "Embarkation Port" will be listed on Page 4 of the personalized Cruise Planner which you will receive shortly after final payment. The Embarkation location almost never changes because the logistics of provisioning and populating a cruise ship are such that it really cannot be.

Precisely where the ship docks in the following "through Ports" as they are known isn't written in stone until the ship arrives in that port on that day.

For almost every Port City, if ones Googles, "______ Cruise Port", there will be a Calendar showing expected berthing locations, but it is a mistake to use those locations as Gospel, because time and tides cause them to be shifted often. .

In short, I would suggest making your plans based on what you want to see, NOT on where the ship will be.

There are just too many variables at work.

thanks! things are planned.... i just need to have a starting point on google maps so i can figure out how to get to the things we want to see. :-)

also, the final payment was made weeks ago..... looks like i need to contact someone.

thanks! things are planned.... i just need to have a starting point on google maps so i can figure out how to get to the things we want to see. :-)

also, the final payment was made weeks ago..... looks like i need to contact someone.

Jim and Stan gave the best advice...google each port and find out where the ship will berth. I did a quick search of Warnemunde/Rostock and it appears you are in Warnemunde. This is a port where location matters. Some ships end up in the commercial port of Rostock and cruisers are shuttled to Rostock. But, as J&S stated, port authorities can change things at the last minute.

In Copenhagen you are scheduled for Langeline (sp?).

Note...Oceania has shuttles to take you into some towns. There is a sticky thread at the top of the board which is worth searching through to see which ports have had shuttles in the past and where the shuttle takes you.

If you haven’t already, you might want to pick up a copy of Rick Steves’ Northern European Port Guides. He gives great logistical information of how to get from the various ports that he covers into town.

These two are useful websites for planning:

https://www.whatsinport.com/index.htm

https://www.tomsportguides.com/

Happy planning/cruising

Rosalyn

Rosalyn, I was just going to recommend checking Tom's Port Guides but I see you beat me to it!

Besides that, just googling the various ports should be revealing.

Join the Roll Call for your cruise to see if others want to join you in private tours. (You don't have to set them up if you are leery of doing so. Just look for others who are and need extra bodies in the van.)

If you are afraid of private tours (some people are timid about that), then see what the ship is offering in terms of tours.

In St. Petersburg there are several excellent tour agencies that will show you lots at a reasonable price and you don't need to have the expense of your own visa.

Mura

stockholm

http://www.portsofstockholm.com/vessel-calls/

Copenhagen

http://www.cmport.com/ships-in-port/cruise-ships

Southampton

http://www.southamptonvts.co.uk/Live_Information/Shipping_Movements_and_Cruise_Ship_Schedule/Cruise_Ship_Schedule/

Just put the date the ship arrives it should tell you the Quay

but as all things in life they are subject to change

Thank you so much!!!!

Be sure to check out the thread on missed ports. Stuff happens so be flexible about your planning. You can miss a port, arrival can be delayed, a port can be changed due to weather or other unforseen circumstances.

Mary

I am a big planner as well. Just be aware that in some ports, Stockholm and Helsinki being glaring examples, there are several places the ship may dock, and this may change right up to the day the ship is in port there. I had a lovely walking tour all planned out in Helsinki only to find out the morning we arrived that the port authorities had changed our docking location. In Stockholm, I had arranged for a car and driver to pick us up to go to the airport. Our dock changed to a totally different location. Fortunately the driver was savvy enough to figure this out and showed up only a little late.

The private tour guides are very savvy about knowing where the ship will dock. Their livelihood and reputation depend on it. And, if you're touring completely on your own, the port guide expert on the ship should be able to give you directions about how to adjust your route if there's a change in docking.

uhhh...excuse me, but - just who is this "port guide expert"? Surely you don't mean the useless folks in "Destination Services" who only book Oceania shore excursions? Sometimes there is a nice person from the local port who is shuttled in when the ship is docked in port, but of course they are there too late to help with much advance planning.

This is one of my big gripes about Oceania...they provide NO assistance with information on ports except to promote their own expensive shore excursions. The talks on destinations rarely provide any useful information either.

uhhh...excuse me, but - just who is this "port guide expert"? Surely you don't mean the useless folks in "Destination Services" who only book Oceania shore excursions? Sometimes there is a nice person from the local port who is shuttled in when the ship is docked in port, but of course they are there too late to help with much advance planning.

 

 

 

This is one of my big gripes about Oceania...they provide NO assistance with information on ports except to promote their own expensive shore excursions. The talks on destinations rarely provide any useful information

 

On my Cuba cruise in December we had an excellent port guide, Sandy Cares. Her talks were SRO and she answered questions after her prepared session. In reviewing Oceania promotional material since the names of the guides are sometimes listed. I must have made the mistake of assuming they have the same quality port experts on all Oceania cruises.

 

 

 

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When most of us refer to "private guides" or "private guide experts" we are NOT talking about Destination Services personnel. We are talking about private guides ... who in OUR experience DO know when the ship has been diverted to another port or dock.

But I have to give Destinations personnel some credit here. On our last few cruises we got very good information from then, even when we weren't using the ship's tours. BUT as I say that -- Destinations is not Oceania itself, I believe they are a concession that provides services. The quality of personnel can vary from ship to ship and itinerary to itinerary.

Our big complaint which has been constant over many cruises is that the people who give the "informative" talks about the port visits always have very heavy accents that make it difficult (at least for US) to understand them well. I always wonder how passengers who speak English well but speak it as a second (or third or fourth) language can understand them if we native speakers have a problem. I'm NOT talking about British vs. American English, you understand!

Mura

Most people research the port & thing to do there long before they get on the ship unless they book the ship's tours then they may just go for the ride

Most ports they do try to brink on a person for the tourist office there & then everyone who does not have a clue lines up to ask the same questions on what to do there

When most of us refer to "private guides" or "private guide experts" we are NOT talking about Destination Services personnel. We are talking about private guides ... who in OUR experience DO know when the ship has been diverted to another port or dock.

 

 

But I have to give Destinations personnel some credit here. On our last few cruises we got very good information from then, even when we weren't using the ship's tours. BUT as I say that -- Destinations is not Oceania itself, I believe they are a concession that provides services. The quality of personnel can vary from ship to ship and itinerary to itinerary.

 

 

Our big complaint which has been constant over many cruises is that the people who give the "informative" talks about the port visits always have very heavy accents that make it difficult (at least for US) to understand them well. I always wonder how passengers who speak English well but speak it as a second (or third or fourth) language can understand them if we native speakers have a problem. I'm NOT talking about British vs. American English, you understand!

 

 

Mura

I"m pretty sure Destination Services is run by Oceania. Didn't I read somewhere that FDR's son is in charge of it?

Or maybe I dreamed it.

I"m pretty sure Destination Services is run by Oceania. Didn't I read somewhere that FDR's son is in charge of it?

 

Or maybe I dreamed it.

At one time he was ...not sure if FDR JR is still incharge

but I do believe that destinations services is run by the cruise line

They are there for ship's tours not for independents though

I do have to say that when we are independents and ask questions -- at least on our most recent cruises -- they have been accommodating.

I never heard that FDR Jr. was running Destinations --I am not contesting the statement! I just never heard that and I always understood that it is a concession as the boutique is. That doesn't mean I was right! I just never heard that it was Oceania-run. If it is, they should have better English speakers doing the presentations.

Mura

These two are useful websites for planning:

https://www.whatsinport.com/index.htm

https://www.tomsportguides.com/

Happy planning/cruising

Rosalyn

Thanks a lot for this links!

Ivi