advice on Excursion for Helisinki, Tallinn and Stockholm

[KerbyTex]

Two adults and two teens seeking advice on see these three ports. We have splurged on St. Petersburg and Berlin and need a good value for these ports. Stockholm is from Nynashamn.

[Bet & Peg]

Last July (Celebrity Baltic Cruise) we did Stockholm, Helsinki and Tallinn on our own. (We also had an 8-person tour in St. Petersburg!) All three cities are easy to see without tours - althought we didn't dock in Nynashamn in Stockholm - docked in the sourthern part of the city.

 

We had been to Stockholm a few times before so we chose to see places we had missed on earlier tips (Son-in-law is from Swedne and his family lives there.) I would highly recommend the Vasa Museuma nd also Galm Stan (old city). They are across the harbor from each other and should be doable - check thread here on CC for advice from your port.

 

Helsinki - my DH is an historian so we decided to see the fortress on Suomelinna Island - fabulous time especially if you're into history. If not, there's an on-off tram that goes around the city to main points. And don't miss the market by the port.

 

Tallinn - there's a great walking tour on CC - TallinWalkingTour - we found the town very interesting and had lunch at Olde Hans which we enjoyed - touristy - but the whole town is! Olde Hansa

 

There's SO much info on CC and also the internet that I really don't think you need ship excursions or private tours in any of these ports. Just find what you really like to so - history, museums, shopping, etc. - and go with it!

 

Have a GREAT cruise!!

[Giantfan13]

Two adults and two teens seeking advice on see these three ports. We have splurged on St. Petersburg and Berlin and need a good value for these ports. Stockholm is from Nynashamn.

 

Hi and welcome to our little corner of the boards. You have asked a great question and many here will give you basically the same advice.

 

ALL three of the cities that you asked about you can do all on your own. They are very easy to do and very cost effective.

 

#1--Tallinn. One of our posters put up a great walking tour of Tallinn that many, many on these boards have followed including myself.

http://www.*****.com/tallinnwalk.html

Tallinn is just a marvelous town to wander around in, finding little streets to explore on your own. You will have plenty of time to do this, or any walking tour, and to eat, visit anything that catches your eye.

 

#2--Helsinki another city that is pretty easy to do on your own. Most of the sights center around Market Square. You will need some sort of public transportation or taxi to get you from where the ship docks to Market Square, but from there, you can catch a tram (trolley) that sort of does a loop thru out Helsinki covering most of the main sights. With a pass you can get on and off at will and see most of the things.

 

#3--Stockholm--This was our favorite port. Since you said you are docking outside of Stockholm, you need to either do a ship shuttle into Stockholm, or take the train. some people mentioned that there were buses there, to take people to Stockholm, but I cannot guarantee that. You are about an hour away. Once you get to Stockholm, many of the main things people want to see are sort of spread out. It is easy to do it yourselves just by using a HoHo bus or boat. Most people try to get to the Vasa Museum ASAP. From there you can head towards Gamla Stan, the Palace and the changing of the guard. Gamla Stan is a remarkable area, with narrow cobblestone streets that just beg to be explored. It is crowded but you can always find small streets where there aren;t many people. We loved it and found several wonderful shops.

 

You can do private tours from each city also. If you go to each cities web site, them will inform you of several options to sue private tours giving you a good view of each city, but beleive me, you can do them all very easily, on your own and get to see everything there is to see.

 

Here are a few of my pix of the towns you mentioned to get you acquainated with them

 

In Tallinn, you will just love to explore the town, the old walls and all they hold.

Entering Tallinn thru Fat Margret Gate

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster511.jpg

 

When you get to the top of the hill, you have a marvelous view out over the rooftops towards the harbor and your ship

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe543.jpg

 

In Helsinki, as I said, Market Square is the main hub, and just a wonderful place to shop, eat or jsut get the feel of life in Helsinki

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster1150.jpg

 

Not far from Market Square is the Uspensky Orthodox Cathedral

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1135.jpg

 

In Stockholm, a truly amazing place is the Vasa Museum, on every one's NOT TO BE MISSED list

Here is a short video of the Vasa

http://s834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/?action=view&current=europemaster1357.flv

 

From there, head towards Gamla Stan. As I said just a wonderful area to spend time and explore the narrow streets

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1262.jpg

 

Hope this helps. We have several posters who live in these cities and can give you specific info if you desire. Just ask away.

 

Cheers

 

Len

Edited October 25, 2010 by Giantfan13

[Cornishpastyman1]

Good to hear you've splurged on St P & Berlin. Whatever that costs, it's still a bargain. As others have said, the costs of those other 3 can be kept to very little if that's required.

 

In Helsinki get a one-day travel ticket (easy to do, there's a 7-11 type store in the market area where I got mine). It cost 6.80 Euros in June and is good for buses, trams and the ferries. The 3T tram does a circular tour of the outskirts of the city, in each direction and you can just get on and off as you please. Easy way to see the Senate Square, Rock Church, Railway Station, Sibelius Monument, Olympic Stadium etc.

 

Helsinki

 

Suomenlinna (Fortress of Finland)

The ferry for this leaves every 15 mins and the trip over and back takes about the same time. You'll spend an hour minimum there, maybe more, plus the travel time.

Tallin

A 10 minute walk from the ship, then nothing to pay other than a couple of drinks, maybe a sandwich, a bag of caramelised almonds and some souvenirs.

Scenic Central Stockholm

 

You're coming from Nynasham so hopefully your cruise line will lay on a free coach transfer into Stockholm (HAL did for us). That takes about an hour each way so you'll only have about 5, max 6 hours to explore and won't see the Archipelago :(. Set aside 90 minutes for the Vasa Museum (which cost 121 SEK pp in June)

Royal Warship Vasa & the Vasa Museum

 

 

You've clearly got St P and Berlin all sorted, but in case it's of interest here's some info about them :

 

Some Sights of Berlin

 

There's hardly anything left of the Berlin Wall

Six of St Petersburg's biggest attractions :

 

The Fountains of Peterhof

The Catherine Palace at Pushkin

Peter and Paul Fortress/Cathedral

St Isaac's Cathedral

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntfg92fRF38

 

Church of Our Saviour on the Spilled Blood

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLrNXXB2Qr8

The Winter Palace/Hermitage State Museum

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=driudAEkocs

[sammiedawg]

Helsinki- DIY, we bought the cruise ship shuttle bus into the city, then walked on our own to the Rock Church and the city markets. The city is not that big, we did not purchase the trolley ticket. Someone posted on the fortress, if I go back I want to see that.

Stockholm- walk off the cruise ship to the water ferry , go over to the VASA museum. Take the one that goes to Vasa first. See VASA which is a tremendous museum, then get back on the water ferry to the Gamla Stan, old city. Then back to the ship either on foot on via the water ferry. The ticket you buy is for all day.

Tallin use one of the walking guides either Rick Steves or a link on this board.

[KerbyTex]

So the visa required when "On your Own" applies only to St. Petersburg?

[Lair Bear]

So the visa required when "On your Own" applies only to St. Petersburg?

 

If you are a US citizen that is correct.

[TMLAalum]

The cruise lines may imply that if you don't do a shorex with them, you will need to obtain a Visa thru the Russian government. IF you have booked with a registered guide company, such as Denrus, Red October, SPB Tours, they provide you with a visa that takes the place of a personally obtained visa.

[Giantfan13]

So the visa required when "On your Own" applies only to St. Petersburg?

 

Yes, the only place you need a visa is St Petersburg. If you do a ships tour or an independent tour, your temporary visa is already supplied. Several people were thinking about getting their own visas for St Peterburg, and trying to DIY, but that really isn't the easiest thing to do.

As we all ahve already said, almost all the ports you will stop at are very easy to do yourself. Do some good research, buy a couple of books, Rick Stevens is very good, and ask all the questions you can think of. More than likely those same questions ahve already been asked and answered, so do a quick search and you will find the answer to many of them. if not just ask away.

 

Here are a few more pix to help get you, sort of, in the mood

 

Copenhagen has so many wonderful architectural styles and it all blends together beautifully

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster285.jpg

 

Walking around Tallinn, you never know who or waht you might run into

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe627.jpg

 

In St Petersburg, there is jsut so much to see and limited time to do it. We used SPB tours and they were simply marvelous. We saw so much and they treated us like royalty.

At Peterhof, the fountains are simply amazing

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster734.jpg

 

Church of the Spilled Blood

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe764.jpg

 

In Helsinki, one of the main sites is the

Church in the Rock, Not much from the outside, but inside it is like another world.

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1103.jpg

 

Stockholm's Changing of the Guard is a wonderful ceremony, with a large marching band and an age old ceremony

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1306.jpg

 

Hope you enjoy

 

Cheers

 

Len

[Al_Frescoe]

 

Stockholm's Changing of the Guard is a wonderful ceremony, with a large marching band and an age old ceremony

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1306.jpg

 

 

:eek:

 

That's debatable Len ... LOL, nice pic though. :)

 

Cheers

 

Al

[newfarmers]

what cruise line? Carnival?

 

your day in Sweden will depend on your cruise line's debarking policy. If Carnival have the same horrid policy as NCL, they'll have three platforms out and tenders for guests on 'their' tours leaving the ship from 7.30 (if they arrive 7ish or a bit before).

 

But...., if you're one of those in steerage (oops sorry), an independent traveller, then they'll graciously allow you to board atender somnetime around 8.30. So with the time it takes to get to shore and then the walk to the station you can only make the 9am train into Stockholm.

 

My suggestion - if they have an 'on your own' tour, take it! They'll bus you into the centre of town and then bring you back. You'll get off sooner than we did, and potentially be walking in the door of the Vasa Museum at 9ish, just when we were starting our train trip from Nynashamn.

 

As others have said, all three ports are 'on your own' destinations. No need to be paying the cruise line robber barons (yes, I sound bitter, but we pay enough for the cruise and our boozeand dinner bill not te be treated as second class citizens) three times what you'd pay for doing it yourself.

 

Especially with kids you'll be able to move at your own pace and not be dawdling along while others disaappear endlessly into toilets and shops.

 

I've gone into a fair bit of detail in our blog on Travelpod - just select the link in our sig. There are a couple of pics - ok 1000 - and detailed descriptions of what we did. It's the one titled "Cor Blimey, we're off to Old Blighty".

 

Three beautiful ports.

 

You can't help but love them all.

 

pete

Edited October 26, 2010 by newfarmers

[Giantfan13]

:eek:

 

That's debatable Len ... LOL, nice pic though. :)

 

Cheers

 

Al

 

We liked it Al. It is pretty touristy though. Probably made more for tourists than really old time pagentry

 

Cheers

 

len

[sammiedawg]

Kerby Tex, in Tallin we took our young adults to a charming midieval restaurant, Olde Hansa. They loved it, especially since the original recommendation came from a young person.

[newfarmers]

Kerby Tex, in Tallin we took our young adults to a charming midieval restaurant, Olde Hansa. They loved it, especially since the original recommendation came from a young person.

 

 

we loved our lunch at Olde Hansa, it was a great experience. saw a number of questions on here from people asking if they needed to book but we just walked in. maybe it depends on how many ships are in port? only two of us when we were there.

 

pete

Edited October 28, 2010 by newfarmers

[sammiedawg]

No reservation, we just walked into Olde Hansa for lunch, we sat outside in the square. There were seats inside as well.

[cccruisin]

last year we did great tour in st pete others mostly on our own - did tour in vasa museum and blue room both in sweden, estonia, helesinki, oslo we remember almost nothing ecept noble peace museum in oslo was awful and a waste of $$. this year we have booked either private or up to group of 8 in every port we are visiting - barc-rome-ephesus-greece-cairo. found using hop on hop off and rick steves you really remembered nothing once you got home.

[debziewho]

Hi and welcome to our little corner of the boards. You have asked a great question and many here will give you basically the same advice.

 

ALL three of the cities that you asked about you can do all on your own. They are very easy to do and very cost effective.

 

#1--Tallinn. One of our posters put up a great walking tour of Tallinn that many, many on these boards have followed including myself.

http://www.********.com/tallinnwalk.html

Tallinn is just a marvelous town to wander around in, finding little streets to explore on your own. You will have plenty of time to do this, or any walking tour, and to eat, visit anything that catches your eye.

 

#2--Helsinki another city that is pretty easy to do on your own. Most of the sights center around Market Square. You will need some sort of public transportation or taxi to get you from where the ship docks to Market Square, but from there, you can catch a tram (trolley) that sort of does a loop thru out Helsinki covering most of the main sights. With a pass you can get on and off at will and see most of the things.

 

#3--Stockholm--This was our favorite port. Since you said you are docking outside of Stockholm, you need to either do a ship shuttle into Stockholm, or take the train. some people mentioned that there were buses there, to take people to Stockholm, but I cannot guarantee that. You are about an hour away. Once you get to Stockholm, many of the main things people want to see are sort of spread out. It is easy to do it yourselves just by using a HoHo bus or boat. Most people try to get to the Vasa Museum ASAP. From there you can head towards Gamla Stan, the Palace and the changing of the guard. Gamla Stan is a remarkable area, with narrow cobblestone streets that just beg to be explored. It is crowded but you can always find small streets where there aren;t many people. We loved it and found several wonderful shops.

 

You can do private tours from each city also. If you go to each cities web site, them will inform you of several options to sue private tours giving you a good view of each city, but beleive me, you can do them all very easily, on your own and get to see everything there is to see.

 

Here are a few of my pix of the towns you mentioned to get you acquainated with them

 

In Tallinn, you will just love to explore the town, the old walls and all they hold.

Entering Tallinn thru Fat Margret Gate

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster511.jpg

 

When you get to the top of the hill, you have a marvelous view out over the rooftops towards the harbor and your ship

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe543.jpg

 

In Helsinki, as I said, Market Square is the main hub, and just a wonderful place to shop, eat or jsut get the feel of life in Helsinki

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europemaster1150.jpg

 

Not far from Market Square is the Uspensky Orthodox Cathedral

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1135.jpg

 

In Stockholm, a truly amazing place is the Vasa Museum, on every one's NOT TO BE MISSED list

Here is a short video of the Vasa

http://s834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/?action=view&current=europemaster1357.flv

 

From there, head towards Gamla Stan. As I said just a wonderful area to spend time and explore the narrow streets

http://i834.photobucket.com/albums/zz267/Giantfan13/baltics/europe1262.jpg

 

Hope this helps. We have several posters who live in these cities and can give you specific info if you desire. Just ask away.

 

Cheers

 

Len

 

 

 

Hi Len, Wow, really enjoyed viewing some of your photos. Looks like I'm in for a real treat. I am doing the Baltics cruise in July (first cruise ever) and was trying to learn tid bits and came across your post (just getting the hang of this). Could you tell me which tour company you went through in St. Petersburg and were you happy with the tour. I am also wanting to do the Jewish Heritage Tour in Berlin - did you do a tour there?? I'm an Aussie girl travelling with an English cousin. Thankyou for taking the time to share so much very useful information, very much appreciated, as it really makes a difference to hear from someone who has already been. Regards, Debziewho

[hal2008]

If you are a US citizen that is correct.

 

 

This is true only if take normal commercial cruise like RCL, Norwegian, etc.

 

For US Citizen, it is possible to do SPB DIY (much more enjoyable and very inexpensive) without visa. This can be done by taking cruise on St Peter Line from Helsinki (or from Tallinn or Stockholm)

 

This week cabin was only Euro 55 roundtrip from Helsinki. Had to pay about Euro 11 in junk fees and Euro 25 for port to city shuttle. After that everything was DIY and Rick Steve's book was handy.

 

Do not have to buy any expensive food on the ship which is not really a cruiseliner - more like an upscale ferry.

 

SPB was easy, safe and US credit cards worked.