Baltic Cruise Jewel of the Seas Review-Aug 2012-long!

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Baltic Cruise

Jewel of the Seas Royal Caribbean

19th-31st August 2012

Bit about us, we are in mid 50’s this is our 6th cruise, 3rd with RC. We love visiting different places, not beach people, we are not very fit and I have trouble walking great distances.

On this cruise we mainly did our own thing in each port except Russia-must have a visa or take a tour, other cruises we booked ships tours but have found they seem very short and expensive, used cruise critic to get info about different ports. We had to take the shuttle in Gotenburg too, no other way into town, same with Helsinki (their city websites not clear on public transport)

Money we took Euros, dollars, had no krona but paid with credit card sometimes. Didn’t but much in the cities usually took our own drinks and cookies from ship to eat. We work on a tight budget!

A lot of ports had cobbled paths, so strong sturdy shoes help support the feet!

Sunday 19th - ( hot , sunny then cloudy) Harwich sail away 5pm

Left home at 9am and arrived in Harwich by 11am, traffic good. Into a very friendly car park-a bit difficult to find- dropped the luggage off with the help of porters then parked the car (make a note of the letter you’re in i.e. “C”) then onto the waiting shuttle bus nearby to the terminal. The whole process took about an hour, a bit slow but pretty standard. The security photo wasn’t taken till we were boarding the ship so that slowed us down again but soon we were on our way to Windjammers the buffet restaurant, loads of room surprisingly, R had curry I had salad. After wandered ship taking photos, good way of taking areas without many people in them! At 1.40 headed for cabin, no announcements, but cabin was ready, on bag was there so unpacked the rest turned up within 15mins, good service. Finished unpacking and a quick relax before boat drill that took about ¾ hour. Then to Windjammers for coffee & ice cream (drinks free except alcohol and soda), then onto deck 4 for sail away. Some bagpipers were playing as we left which gave a great atmosphere, then it was back to cabin to change for dinner at 6pm (we had this as our set time).met 4 of our dining companions all American but living in UK, great bunch of people. We were on a table for 10 the other 4 turned up a few times during the cruise, not every day, I think as they had young children they didn’t want a rigid eating time. Went to theatre for show 8pm then quick drink and back to cabin. Clocks went forward one hour tonight.

Mon 20th – (warm, sunny with cool breeze) Day at sea

Didn’t sleep well seemed alot of noise coming from below our cabin, even with earplugs (we were on deck 3 mid-ships) up around 8am leisurely breakfast in WJ’s, picked up cartons of chocolate milk for drink in morning, we have a fridge in our room but no tea-making stuff, not to busy then strolled on deck, ended up in Solarium, found a couple of chairs and relaxed before going to get swimming costume and having a lovely warm dip! Watched a few gannets from window and there was a sparrow inside the Solarium-wonder if he’s been travelling back & forth for weeks! Around 2.30pm strolled on deck and found a warm spot out of the wind for an hour before hot chocolate in WJ’s, also picked up some cookies to take with us for lunch tomorrow, back to cabin to dress for first formal night, big surprise! Not many people dressed up-we went on Indy in April and 99% had tuxes on-here on Jewel total opposite! After dinner watched BEE GEE Magic tribute band in theatre 9pm till 10pm, thought cabin would be noisy again tonight but it was much better.

Tues 21st- (cool wind, sun then cloudy) Copenhagen 7am to 4pm

Alarm went off 5.45am (I like 2hrs to get up in morning, including breakfast) off ship by 7.30am, nothing was open, no HOHO buses running till 9.30am. Walked into town following a walking tour I found on the internet, passed little mermaid, hardly anyone there, lovely. Walked down to Tivoli gardens and back to main square for changing of the guards at 12.15pm. I became unwell and we walked slowly back to the ship, stopping often and drinking water. Drink & cake in WJ’s and watched sailaway. When I went back to cabin I was really unwell, sick and bad tummy, not sure if norovirus or just a bug-no high temperature- I stayed in room R went for dinner in WJ’s and watched show in the theatre Broadway musicals with ships cast, I just slept and kept being sick! It finally stopped around 2am and I felt rough, slept on & off.

Wens 22nd – (cloudy, some rain, cooler) Day at sea

Woke at 8am, still feeling rough and drained. Had no breakfast but R bought me a cup of tea & a box of cheerios which I nibbled on. Went out for a stroll on deck taking things slowly, went back to cabin had a short nap while R watched TV. Foe lunch went to WJ’s had a turkey sandwich R had burger x 2! After lunch watched people rock climbing, good for a laugh, people are such great sports! Back to cabin another nap before going to dinner 6pm, kept the food simple and didn’t eat too much. Went to theatre in evening watched piano player, very good. R had Jack Daniels & coke. Bed by 10.15 as up at 7am tomorrow.

Thurs 23rd – (heavy rain early morning & evening, bright spells during day) Stockholm 9am to 5pm

Awake around 6am saw a few close islands through our window, breakfast at 7.45am & off ship just after 9am. We brought a 24hr travel ticket (£10 approx-paid with credit card in krona) from tourist office in terminal then followed blue line to bus stop about 10mins walk from ship. Caught #76 bus, only waited mins for it and were in town 15mins later, bus was clean and signs were clear. I had found another walking tour of the old town in Stockholm so we followed that, lovely place. Watched changing of the guard at 12.15 to 12.30 then caught Djurgarden ferry over to Vasa museum (price included in our 24hr travel ticket) it was about a 5mins walk to museum and 15mins wait in queue to get in. Spent about 1 ½ hrs there, could have stayed longer but time was short, well worth a visit, then crossed bridge and found bus stop and back to ship by 4pm (I don’t like leaving it to late to get back to the ship!) up to WJ’s for drink, sail away at 5pm with “party” on helipad but weather bad so didn’t stay long. Dinner at 6pm. Up on deck in evening great views of the islands and weather improved greatly, back to cabin as very tired clocks went forward one hour tonight.

Fri 24th – (cloudy early, warm & sunny later) Helsinki 10am to 6pm

Up at 8am to leave ship 10am booked ships shuttle 10 euros return, too far for us to walk and couldn’t find details of local buses. Quick & easy into town, headed down Esplande to market and harbour. Walked the very interesting market for awhile before getting 24hr travel ticket (7 Euros each)and took ferry over to Summolinna island, waited 10mins for ferry, 20mins to get to island and we spent about 2hrs wandering the area. There was not a lot on the island but a lovely walk with great views and not many people, but many cobble stones! Knew we wanted to catch 3T tram to get to rock church-our tickets were ok for the tram as well-got off at rock church stop and wandered around church, very 1960’s but worth a look, loved the font. Back to tram stop were going to do all the circuit but tram very hot so got off back near market and wandered to cathedral and town hall. Must go in toilets of town hall, very errr different! Quick visit to Uspenski church before back to shuttle stop, on board by 4.30pm. after dinner watched “Livewire” show. Filled in paperwork for passport control in Russia tomorrow, had to get some more from guest relations as made a few mistakes!Clocks go forward again tonight.

Sat 25th – (warm sun morning, heavy shower in afternoon) St Petersburg 7am to 5pm

Awake at 5am ready to leave by 7am, we had pre-booked a 2 day tour with DenRus on the internet and I was a bit nervous that they may not be there when we got off, but shouldn’t have worried, after passing through a very “non-smiling” passport control they were there to meet us, sadly one couple were very late off the ship and we waited nearly an hour for them, we were just about to leave when they turned up. We went to Catherine’s Palace first about an hours’ drive outside St Petes, saw beautiful gold rooms and wonderful gardens, lots of walking. We were a group of 14 people, various nationalities, but they were a great bunch. After a lovely lunch of cabbage/beetroot soup (really-it was very nice!) beef stroganoff and fruit fool tart with champagne/water we set off to Peterhof, it was a wonderful place with many fountains and gilded statues, just a shame it rained for the last hour, but it was a beautiful place. Then it was on to the metro station, Russia has some of the deepest stations and the escalators were very long. The stations are covered in marble and various icons, we got on the train and off the next stop. Then it was back to the ship by 5.30pm, long queues to get back onboard! Dinner tonight was open seating so you could go when you liked but we were very tired so grabbed something in WJ’s before going to our cabin to crash!

Sun 26th – (chilly, cloudy but dry and warming up) St Petersburg 7.30am to 5.30pm

R has a sore throat and feels like he’s getting a cold but still struggled on the tour, one of our group didn’t come today, no well, but he will not get a refund. Passport were quicker today, still not happy though. Onto the mini bus and into the city for a tour of the main sights. Stopped for photos and visited church of the spilled blood, a beautiful very ornate church, then a canal cruise for an hour a lovely way to see the city, the boat dropped us at the Peter & Paul Fortress where we visited the church & saw the Tsars graves. Back on the bus to the Astoria Hotel for lunch, salad, chicken Kiev, vodka, wine/water, bit rushed but food nice. Next the Hermitage museum, stood in queue for about ½ hour, once inside very bust, very hot! Loved the exhibits, beautiful paintings, colourful furniture and highly decorated rooms, it was a whirlwind visit, the museum is very large and you need a whole day at least to see it, but we got a taster. Back to the ship by 5.15pm, no queue tonight. Quick rest before dinner and catch up with our fellow table companions. In the theatre at 9pm and watched “City of Dreams” the crew singer/dancers show, was ok. Clocks go back one hour tonight. Very tired.

Mon 27th – (sun, later heavy rain) Tallinn 8am to 5pm

Woke at 7am & set off walking into town about 9am. Again had walking tour found on internet. It took about 5hrs to cover most things, stopping for a quick lunch & visiting a church. Tallinn is wonderful; the people are so nice, very charming and smiling! We stopped for lunch in the main square, an elk/boar pie (1 Euro) and a coffee (2 Euros) in one of the cafe is a must and a visit to the toilets is very memorable! the place had no electricity, only candles. Done with the sights we walked back to the ship with passengers from Celebrity Eclipse that was docked next to us, lovely people. We strolled the many stalls and eyed the usual souvenirs up for grabs. Just got back ont he ship and the heavens open, very heavy rain thunder & lightning, people running in all directions, we sat in WJ’s with a drink and “watched the show!” after dinner at 6pm, picked up some of the daily puzzles from the library for our day at sea tomorrow before going to the theatre for 9pm to see Kyle Knight illusionist, he was pretty good. Weather bit rough tonight but I was okay. Bed by 10.30pm. Clocks went back tonight one hour.

Tues 28th – (bright morning, colder & cloudy later) Day at sea

Slowly got up around 8am, no rush, after breakfast did morning trivia quiz in Schooner bar and then the crossword challenge, didn’t do very well, some people very competitive. Hot chocolate in the WJ’s was called for before returning to the Schooner bar for the afternoon quiz, we did much better with that one. Tried a bit of acupuncture too, the woman was showing people on their arms what it felt like, did not hurt but felt strange-not unpleasant though. Lunch in WJ’s, back to cabin with cookies for tomorrows outing. Quick nap before a very brisk walk on deck. Did some of the daily quizzes in cabin before getting ready for next formal night. We dressed down a bit so our fellow table guests wouldn’t feel uncomfortable. People from our DenRus tour want us to meet for a drink on Thurs evening before dinner. Show a 9pm was “Tango Bueno Aires, very good. Had my 1st cocktail of this holiday pina colada haven’t fancied much to drink all holiday!

Wens 29th – (warm, dry, sunny & cool wind later) Gothenburg 11am-6pm

Slowly up from 8am, after breakfast went on to top deck as we sailed in passed a few islands. Had to pay to use ships shuttle $10 each return (only way into town, no taxis or local buses)took about 20mins to get into town. Wandered the streets had a map and knew what we wanted to see, not anything major in Gothenburg just a nice wander. Went to the “fish church” first very nice, bit out the way. Then on to the harbour area, nearly went in Maritime museum but decided just to keep walking, harbour area very nice, sat and ate our cookies there! Up in to the main town and to Gustav Adolf Torg square, nice open area you can catch the sightseeing train from here but we had already walked most of it. R didn’t fancy the Padden boats that take you around the canals and under very low bridges so we strolled back to the shuttle bus and were back on the ship by 3.30pm. Went for a drink in WJ’s and phoned family. Found a warm spot near the main pool and relaxed there till 5.15pm. at dinner the table was full, 1st time everyone there together, took photos of our table friends and waiters before going on deck for the sunset. The show at 9pm was “Tenors Unlimited” they were great, lots of fun, not mad on operatic singing but they made it very enjoyable. Had a Bahama Muma cocktail tonight. Back to cabin by 10.30pm to relax and read up about details of departing the ship on Friday.

Thurs 30th – (sun, cloud a little rain, cold wind) Day at sea

Awake by 8am, slowly up for breakfast, WJ’s very busy had to sit out on deck this morning, bit chilly. Went to trivia quiz in Schooner bar before browsing the shops. Back to room and filled in questionnaire about the cruise, tried to check our account on the TV as usual but it wasn’t working today! Did some packing then lunch. Relaxed in the Solaruim for awhile and finished taking photos around the ship, then a cup of tea in WJ’s before changing and meeting up with DenRus tour group for a farewell drink, lovely way to say goodbye and thank you for their great company. One thing we found out was our pre-paid tipping vouchers are not given to us to give to the waiters/steward anymore, they say it is passed onto them without actually printing out the vouchers, we did not know about this and would have loved the choice to hand over our vouchers or not, as it was they did leave us envelopes and we did put in a small amount of cash for the staff we felt deserved it, but my husband did feel we were “paying” twice, even though we nearly always put a bit of cash in with our vouchers.Dinner at 6pm and again sad goodbyes to our table companions and the great waiters, exchanged emails with the Americans, then back to room to check off bill. R had some dollars in cash so took them to guest relations and used them to pay off most of our bill. Finished packing and put cases out before 11pm, sea very rough tonight and I needed a seasick pill it took a few hours before I was able to go to bed.

Fri 31st – (cool but dry) Harwich

Time for leaving, we had asked for a late departure (not the type you pay extra for) but we got 8am, the latest you could leave was 8.50am, we thought this was very early, on other ships you can usually stay till about 10am, not in your cabin but onboard, even in hotels you can usually stay till 10am. We were woken early as we docked at 4am and our cabin was nearly always above the gangway off the ship, but last night it seemed extra noisy as it was early and I guess all the luggage was being taken off. We had breakfast and headed for Schooner bar where we were to wait till our number was called. We were called at 7.50am and were off the ship and on the shuttle bus, picked up our luggage from the car park and in our car by 8.20am no hanging around there! Home by 10am, a cup of tea and a catch up with family before starting the washing!

All in all a lovely ship (my husband preferred Indy-I preferred Jewel!), fantastic passengers and crew, enjoyable ports of call, although very tiring in the middle 5 day section. Good weather for the Baltics, calm seas and mostly sunny.

Would we sail with RC again, proberly. Would we do the Baltics again, maybe not, lots of other places we still want to see! :)