Considering Private Berlin Tour

[iluv2cruztoo]

We will be sailing on the Norwegian Sun on the Baltic Cruise June 4 -16, 2010, and are trying to decide whether or not to go to Berlin or stay closer to Warnemunde. In case we decide it's worth the effort to get to Berlin (it's probably the only opportunity we'll have), I have been researching private tour companies. I just came across some very favorable reviews on Trip Advisor for "SANDEMANs NEW Berlin Tours." They offer free tours (once you get to Berlin) where you are expected to tip the tour guide at the end, and also private tours where they provide transportation to and from the pier. I also have information from SPB and Milk & Honey Tours. Has anyone done a private Berlin Tour? I would appreciate any advice you can provide.

[bardstowntraveller]

We will be sailing on the Norwegian Sun on the Baltic Cruise June 4 -16, 2010, and are trying to decide whether or not to go to Berlin or stay closer to Warnemunde. In case we decide it's worth the effort to get to Berlin (it's probably the only opportunity we'll have), I have been researching private tour companies. I just came across some very favorable reviews on Trip Advisor for "SANDEMANs NEW Berlin Tours." They offer free tours (once you get to Berlin) where you are expected to tip the tour guide at the end, and also private tours where they provide transportation to and from the pier. I also have information from SPB and Milk & Honey Tours. Has anyone done a private Berlin Tour? I would appreciate any advice you can provide.

I haven't done a private tour but have a couple more private tour groups to add to your list http://www.berlinwalks.com and http://www.denrus.ru.

 

We have just about come to the decision to go to Lubeck instead of making the long journey into Berlin.

[lalique]

We will be sailing on the Norwegian Sun on the Baltic Cruise June 4 -16, 2010, and are trying to decide whether or not to go to Berlin or stay closer to Warnemunde. In case we decide it's worth the effort to get to Berlin (it's probably the only opportunity we'll have), I have been researching private tour companies. I just came across some very favorable reviews on Trip Advisor for "SANDEMANs NEW Berlin Tours." They offer free tours (once you get to Berlin) where you are expected to tip the tour guide at the end, and also private tours where they provide transportation to and from the pier. I also have information from SPB and Milk & Honey Tours. Has anyone done a private Berlin Tour? I would appreciate any advice you can provide.

We just did Oceania's Scandanavian Splendors cruise July 25, 2009. We booked a private tour for our group of 6 with Original Berlin Walks and it was terrific. The driver met us at the ship and drove us to Berlin (2 1/2 hour ride with one stop for restroom and snack) and we met our guide when we got to Berlin. We had Heather as our guide and she was fabulous. We had 7 hours in Berlin for sightseeing and we saw ALL the important sights - in fact, even more than were on my list of "must sees." And we got back to the ship in plenty of time. There is a lot of history to see in Berlin and we feel that if we never get back there, we have seen it all - the good and the bad.

[antone]

We are going on the same Oceania cruise in June. There are 5 in my family (3 kids 13, 18 and 20). Can you recommend any other private port operators or experiences? Thank you!

[lalique]

We are going on the same Oceania cruise in June. There are 5 in my family (3 kids 13, 18 and 20). Can you recommend any other private port operators or experiences? Thank you!

We used Alla Tours in SPB )the 3 day comfort tour) and it was fantastic. I am sure there are things you can add or change that would also be of interest to your children, but do NOT miss the main sights unless you think you will go back to SPB some day. Since there are 5 of you, I would recommend you contact Brugse (note spelling) Taxi Service to pick you up at the dock in Bruges and take you into the town since it is about 1/2 hour away. They will drop you at the main square and you can arrange a time for them to pick you up there later in the day. Be sure to take a canal boat ride in Bruges. There are not many taxis that will hold more than 4 so arrange it ahead of time with the taxi service - and you can do it online. You do not pay until they take you back to the ship. The price (90 euros this past July) is the same whether you have 4 or 5 or 6 passengers. Actually the taxi vans will hold up to 8 people and you just split the 90 euro cost among the group. You can tour the city on your own. We did use private vans for our group of 6 in Amsterdam and Tallin which we just picked up at the dock when we arrived. I took their cards and if you are interested, I will look for them and give you their names. They were both terrific. At most ports, there are guides waiting and you can hire them when you get there. We were lucky and got good ones but I assume most of them are very good. You should have an idea of what you want to see and do and let them know so they can accomodate you. And then, they take you all around the city and show you everything. One more thing, if you want to go to the Anne Frank House in Amsterdam, go to their website and get your tickets online. That way, when you get there you go right in a separate door and do not have to wait in the long lines which go all around the block. Since you are travelling with children, don't know if you want to go to the Absolut Ice Bar in Stockholm, but it was a really neat experience - and they do have non-alcoholic beverages. If you do want to go, I would suggest you make reservations ahead of time online as they only let a few people in at a time. If you want to do this, go the the Nordic Sea Hotel website and click on the Ice Bar. Sorry this is so long, but hope it has been helpful. It is a fantastic trip - wish we were going again!!

[BULLOCK]

Lalique: When you were in Stockholm where else did you go. Did you go to the Vasa Museum? Did you arrange your own transportation or use the ships tours. I am also interested in the tour you did in Tallinn, I would be interested in getting the tour quide info as well.

 

Thanks for you detailed post, it was very informative.

[lalique]

Lalique: When you were in Stockholm where else did you go. Did you go to the Vasa Museum? Did you arrange your own transportation or use the ships tours. I am also interested in the tour you did in Tallinn, I would be interested in getting the tour quide info as well.

 

Thanks for you detailed post, it was very informative.

When we arrived in Stockholm, we took the Hop On Hop Off Bus right in front of the terminal directly to the Vasa Museum. You should definitely go there first before it gets busier later in the day. There is a short movie and the guides there give a free and very informative tour. It is a fascinating place. The ship is amazing to see. You can then take the HOHO bus around the city and get off at any of the places you want to see. We then went back to the Gamla Stan area and just walked around the winding streets. It is very pretty with lots of cafes , shops and people . We did not have time to go into the City Hall Building but it is supposed to be very nice and is where some of the Nobel Peace Prize dinners are held. As for Tallin, we hired a van and the driver drove us to the Upper Town and showed us everything , letting us get out and go in places and take pictures. He even took us to beautiful places where we got out and could view the city from above. He then drove us down to the Lower Town and we got out and arranged for him to pick us up at a certain time and place. We just walked around to see all the sights - it is a beautiful little town. We had lunch in a nice little restaurant and wandered around some more until it was time to go back to the ship. You really can walk to the town from the ship, but we had 1 in our group that had problems with too long a walk. It is probably a 15 minute walk to and from the ship. I will look for our driver's card in case you want to pre-arrange a tour with him and post it in a day or two. You should get Rick Steeves book on these countries. He does an amazing job of listing all the important sights to see and great walking tours you can do on your own. Not sure if the cruise in 2010 goes to Gdansk or not. If it does, we had a wonderful guide which we arranged ahead of time that took us to the Stutthof Concentration Camp outside of the city for a tour and then back into Gdansk for a tour of the city. It also has a beautiful pedestrian only area that is charming. Let me know if I can help with any of the other places.

[gkkapp]

Hi lalique-

 

Who did you use for your tour to Stutthof? DH and I are planning a Baltic and this is something we want to do.

 

<<<Karen>>>

[antone]

Lalique -

 

Thank you for the great post. You have given me so many ideas like the the Absolut Ice bar in Stockholm...fantastic. Any other must do or must avoid? How did you tour Berlin, Amsterdam, Copenhagen? Do you think if I private tour SPB and berlin we could self tour the other ports with good results? What about recommendations for restaurants in any of the ports? thanks again!

[mfanderso]

We used SPB Tours in Berlin in July 2008. We were a group of 4. A driver picked us up at the ship and drove us in to Berlin where we picked up our tour guide. The day was definitely too short but very enjoyable. If I return to Berlin again on a cruise I would definitely use SPB Tours again.

[lalique]

Lalique -

 

Thank you for the great post. You have given me so many ideas like the the Absolut Ice bar in Stockholm...fantastic. Any other must do or must avoid? How did you tour Berlin, Amsterdam, Copenhagen? Do you think if I private tour SPB and berlin we could self tour the other ports with good results? What about recommendations for restaurants in any of the ports? thanks again!

As previously posted, we used Original Berlin Walks for our private tour (6 of us) to Berlin. Our guide, Heather, had been recommended to us by someone who took the cuise the previous year. She is an American who has lived in Berlin for years and was absolutely wonderful. We got picked up at port by a driver in an air conditioned van and drove into Berlin where Heather was waiting for us at Charlottenberg Palace. We were with her for 7 hours and really saw everything we wanted to see and even more. If you want to go to a museum in Berlin, you probably only have time to do one or else you may not have time to see everything else. Go to the Original Berlin Walks website and you can see the list of where they take you - and they are very good about adding something you want that is not on the list or deleting something you are not interested in. Be sure to get private guides for SPB. We used Alla - their 3 day comfort tour and again, we covered everything we wanted plus more. We stayed with the guide in the evenings and went to Swan Lake Ballet one night and the Folkloric Show the other night. Did not have to wait in lines anywhere - we got in everyplace as soon as we got there. It was wonderful. In Stockholm we went first to the Vasa via the HOHO bus that picks you up right at the dock. Then took the HOHO around the city getting out where we wanted. Then we walked all around thru Gamla Stan which is charming. In Copenhagen we also took a HOHO bus to the Little Mermaid and some other places . Then we got off at Tivoli Gardens and walked around there and had lunch. Then we just strolled back down the Stroget (pedestrian only street with shops, cafes and lots of people). We then caught the HOHO bus back to the ship. In Amsterdam there are lots of taxis and vans waiting at the dock. We were lucky and got a van with a great driver. He dropped us off so we could take the canal ride and then picked us up and took us on a driving tour of the city with stops for picture taking. He then dropped us off at the Anne Frank House (get tickets online ahead of time). We thenwalked across the street to the DePrins Cafe for lunch. Our driver then came back to pick us up and took us to the Van Gogh Museum. Roberto picked us up again and took us back to the ship. You can do a lot of these cities on your own, but you won't see as much. Other than SPB, Berlin, Gdansk and Bruges which we planned ahead of time, we were lucky to just find good guides at the ports or use the HOHO. As I said before, get Rick Steeves book on the Baltic. He has great walking tours and lists all the important sights to see and also restaurants. Hope this helps. Any other questions, I will be glad to help. You will love the cruise - the ports and the ship are fabulous.

[antone]

Lalique -

 

Again, thanks for your great commentary. A couple of additional questions please. In SPB, Ballet vs Folkloric I don't think my family with kids 13 - 21 can handle more than one! Also, more detail on Bruges (tour guide, highlights, etc. Lastly, did you spend any extra time in London? If so, hotels, sights etc.

 

Thanks!

[gkkapp]

Hi lalique-

 

Who did you use for your tour to Stutthof Concentration Camp? DH and I are planning a Baltic cruise and this is something we want to do.

 

<<<Karen>>>

[lalique]

Hi lalique-

 

Who did you use for your tour to Stutthof Concentration Camp? DH and I are planning a Baltic cruise and this is something we want to do.

 

<<<Karen>>>

Our tour guide was Joanna Kruszewska and you can e-mail her at joannakruszewska@wp.pl. She was terrific and we had a group of 12 which we had put together from our cruise critic boards before we left on the cruise. She is very knowledgable and is from Gdansk but speaks English well and also Russian. There is another guide whom a lot of people use and his name is Andrew Falkowski. Can't seem to find my info on how to reach him, but if you go to Private Guides in Poland (I think that is what it is) his name will show up as does Joanna who I believe is with a group called Tours in Poland. Hope this helps. It is a very moving experience to see Stutthoff. Was just looking at our pictures yesterday. As I said, Joanna then took us on a tour of old Gdansk and the Royal Way which is lovely. We then took about an hour to roam around on our own. Do not miss walking down Mariacka Street. It is a charming narrow pedestrian only street with lovely homes on either side - and lots of vendors selling amber. On the way back to the ship we stopped for a brief visit to the Solidarity Monument and Shipyard.

[lalique]

Lalique -

 

Again, thanks for your great commentary. A couple of additional questions please. In SPB, Ballet vs Folkloric I don't think my family with kids 13 - 21 can handle more than one! Also, more detail on Bruges (tour guide, highlights, etc. Lastly, did you spend any extra time in London? If so, hotels, sights etc.

 

Thanks!

We stayed in London for 2 nights before our cruise. Since the 6 of us had all been there before, we did not plan to do a whole lot. We stayed at the Park Lane Hotel which was lovely and very convenient. We walked thru Green Park to Buckingham Palace (about 5 minute walk) and watched the changing of the Guard. After that we hopped on one of the red double decker buses (which is a HOHO but we just stayed on ) and it took us on a grand tour of the whole city. You really get to see everything of importance as you ride by. If you haven't been to London before, then you would definitely want to get off and tour some of the buildings such as Westminster Abbey, etc. A few years ago we were in London for 10 days and stayed at the Grovesner (spelling?) House Hotel which is wonderful and right across from Hyde Park which was also a great location and very close to an entrance to the Tube. The first evening we went to see the play, Billy Elliott, which is fantastic. We had ordered tickets online months before our trip. I think your children would enjoy this play. There are lots of wonderful theatre in London. The next day, we walked to Harrod's and spent time looking at the food court which is amazing. We walked all around that area and then back to the hotel. We had dinner at a restaurant we had not been to before called Rules and it was excellent. London has lots of terrific restaurants. The next morning we walked around Mayfair area for a while. We got picked up at 1:00 for our ride to Dover to board the ship. How much time will you have in London? We did have High Tea the first day. You can do it in the hotel or Tea at Brown's Hotel or Ritz Hotel are elegant. As far as a chioice in SPB between the ballet or folkloric show - it's a hard choice. They are so different. The ballet is beautiful! The folkloric show is lively with Russian dancing, singing and costumes. In Bruges, we had the Brugse Taxi Service pick us up at the ship at 9:00am (make reservation online ahead of time!!!) and take us to the main square which is Market Square. They dropped us off there and we arranged for them to pick us up at 3:00pm to take us back to the ship. In the square is the famous Bell Tower which you can climb up if you want to. It is very high and was in the movie a couple of years ago about Bruges. There are lots of little cafes and shops around. Then we took the canal boat ride which is lovely and the canal runs thru the whole city. After that we went to the Burg area (oldest part of town) and just wandered around on our own. It is easy to just walk around the town. There are 2 museums, the Gruthaus and Groenige which were closed when we were there. At the end of that street is the church with Michealangelo's statue of Madonna and Child which is one of his very few pieces outside of Italy. We also went into the Town Hall and upstairs to see the Gothic Room. Had lunch at Tom Pouce Restaurant. Most of our group had the famous mussels and frites and a couple of us had the delicious waffles and strawberries. It is a lovely town to just stroll around and stop where you want. It is also the best place to buy chocolate ! There is a chocolate museum which we went into but didn't take the tour. Probably could skip it. Lots of small candy stores around selling the chocolate bars. Bruges is also known for its lace, but some of it is very expensive. Glad to be of help. Makes me feel like I am re-living the trip!!!

[DoctorT]

Lalique

I soenjoyed your post regarding Joanna Kruszewsk and Andrew Falkowski's private tour. My attempts to contact Joanna and to locate Andrew have met with negative results. Joanna's email is returned and The Private Guides in Poland web site does not have either of their names.

Has anyone else attempted to contact either of these well reviewed guides? Like many of you I value the experiences posted on CC and attempt to copy positive encounters with local guides.

Any help or further ideas greatly received.

[lalique]

Lalique

I soenjoyed your post regarding Joanna Kruszewsk and Andrew Falkowski's private tour. My attempts to contact Joanna and to locate Andrew have met with negative results. Joanna's email is returned and The Private Guides in Poland web site does not have either of their names.

Has anyone else attempted to contact either of these well reviewed guides? Like many of you I value the experiences posted on CC and attempt to copy positive encounters with local guides.

Any help or further ideas greatly received.

You can find Andrew Falkowski at private guides in Gdansk.com or at private-guides.com. On this site you send him an e-mail and he will get back to you. Will try to find Joanna's for you. In the meantime, Andrew has gotten rave reviews so I would try to book him if you want a private guide for Gdansk and Stutthof.

[DoctorT]

Lalique thank you yet again for your help. Found the information immediately and emailed him this morning. I would hope that I might be of assistance to you on this cruise.

[gkkapp]

lalique-

 

Thank you for replying to my post of Nov 7. I just now saw your post. Don't know why I didn't see it sooner but I guess I haven't been looking at the board that much lately. I will try to get in touch with both of them. My grandfather and great grandparents on my mother's side were Jews from Latvia/Belarus. They came to the USA in the 1890's but I am sure relatives remained in both countries. I learned recently that Jews who survived in the Riga ghetto were sent by the Germans to Stutthoff. Now I know why I am so keen to go there. It is pay my respects to any ancestors who might have met their fate there.

 

Thanks again

 

<<<Karen>>>

[lalique]

Lalique thank you yet again for your help. Found the information immediately and emailed him this morning. I would hope that I might be of assistance to you on this cruise.

Appreciate your offer of help and really wish we were on the cruise again - we did the Scandanavian Splendors tour on Oceania this past July and it was fantastic. Don't know which ship you are on or your itinerary, but the Baltic area is amazing. We had wonderful guides everywhere and got to see so much more than we had even hoped for. Hope you can get with Andrew for Gdansk. Will still try to locate our guide for you if you have a problem getting Andrew. We had tried him first but he was already booked. But we were very happy with the one we had. Glad I could help.

[gkkapp]

I just noticed that my DH and I are on the same Baltic cruise as you. We will be traveling with another couple. We are keen to take a tour to Stutthoff. Perhaps we could all get together and share a tour using Andrew. Probably would lower the cost for all of us. Please see my above post.

 

<<<Karen>>>

[DoctorT]

Gkkapp would enjoy spending the day with you on a tour with Dave. We are now booked with Dave for our day in Port. You will find that his tours do not exceed 15 people and the price of the tour does not change regardless of the number of people in the tour. We are a party of 7, please, do join us for what others on line say is a wonderful experience. I look forward to meeting you.:D

[Host Karen]

Gkkapp would enjoy spending the day with you on a tour with Dave. We are now booked with Dave for our day in Port. You will find that his tours do not exceed 15 people and the price of the tour does not change regardless of the number of people in the tour. We are a party of 7, please, do join us for what others on line say is a wonderful experience. I look forward to meeting you.:D

 

DoctorT and Gkkapp, just a reminder that tour shares are to be discussed only on the roll call for your sailing. Please feel free to post further details of your tour there.

 

Karen

HostKaren@CruiseCritic.com