LIVE - Royal Princess Transatlantic & Baltic day by day

[Fletch1]

Great photos again Dave.......Looks a bit foggy and cool though!

Edited May 15, 2014 by Fletch1

[dmwnc1959]

Great photos again Dave.......Looks a bit foggy and cool though!

 

Hopefully they'll have better weather inland.

 

 

Web cam grabs of Royal Princess entering the breakwater at the port of Rostock...

 

 

Should have said Port of Warnemunde

 

Sorry!

 

.

Edited May 15, 2014 by dmwnc1959

[IECalCruiser]

 

...We got up early this morning - I believe it is only dark for about 5 hours. Keeping the curtains closed are a must if you have a balcony. ..

 

...We have had rain every port so far and I cannot say enough times you MUST have a water PROOF jacket with a hood. Unless you have a really good umbrella that withstand high winds - don't bother. I have ruined 2 and they were nice ones, but you need an industrial strength one and my Totes was not!...

 

...We also went to a McDonalds with free wifi and thought they might have free restrooms. You need Kroners for ALL bathrooms. Luckily another couple had some Kroners and we piggybacked on the open door to theirs in McDonalds...

 

 

 

...We have a very early morning as our tour of Warnemunde and Schwerin leaves at 7:30 am and we meet in Vines at 7:00 am - this is a Cruise Critic tour group led by Michael & Ellen. We are looking forward to lunch in a 560 year old pub! Stay tuned!

Some very good information.

 

We like fresh air at night and the less than 5 hours of darkness messed up our sleep pattern until we started closing the door and the shades.

 

I always bring a hooded gore-tex (or similar) wind breaker in my back pack in ports whether in the Baltics, Alaska, South America or similar areas. It is no fun being soaking wet :(

 

We didn't need to use a W.C. in Stockholm or Tallinn. In Oslo they were free in the museums. We needed Euro coins at the Rostock train station. In St. Petersburg I don't know if there is a charge, but the guides will bring you locations where they are free. In Helsinki we were charged a Euro at the "Rock Church" but they were free at the restaurant we stopped at. In Copenhagen they were free at the Rundetarn but there was an admission (Peter the Great rode his carriage all the way up the winding ramp to the top of the Rundetarn when he visited Copenhagen!). They were also free at the Silkeborg Museum on our tour from Aarhus.

 

We found it easy to use the train to visit Schwerin. It was a nice, leisurely and sunny day! Last June we only had rain once and that was at a W.C. stop in St. Petersburg. The tour guide has umbrellas on the bus and kept everyone that wasn't prepared dry. We were very fortunate last year because the cruise before us had rain a number of days including both days in St. Petersburg.

 

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Edited May 15, 2014 by IECalCruiser

[hubofhockey]

For anyone on this cruise, a couple of questions:

 

How much is the charge for the Enclave for the 11-day Baltic itinerary?

 

What are the scheduled days of the Winemakers Dinner?

 

Thank you.

[wallycat16]

Hi. Really enjoying your daily reports. Will be on this cruise in August. The shuttle into Gothenburg - do you book ahead of time or just get on once you disembark the ship? Thanks.

 

 

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[cruisenshop]

Hi Gwen! So enjoying your live from... Sailing the royal next month on the Baltic itinerary.

Question in advance of your Stockholm visit- are you taking the princess shuttle from Nynashamn? If so could you kindly note and advise as to where the drop off is located? I am meeting a friend in Stockholm and would appreciate knowing in advance where the shuttle drops off! Thanks so very much and enjoy your cruise!

[Grammyluvs]

Gwen, I'm now following you on your Baltic adventure, as we will be doing it later this summer. Thanks for the "tour" of Oslo. We'll look in to the HoHo bus thing. One thing I'm eager to hear more about is the credit card thing and whether the HAVE to be chip and pin. Our credit card companies sounded quite confused when we called them last summer to ask for a chip and pin card for our Mediterranean cruise.

 

 

When we did the Baltics last May on the Emerald, we had a Chase Sapphire Credit Card and had no problems anywhere we went including St. Petersburg.

[Grammyluvs]

Hi Gwen, Hope you enjoyed your lunch in the brewery in Warnemunde. We did that on our Friends of Dave tour. One of the best meals we had, although the smell of hops when we walked in was pretty overwhelming. We got use to it and had a wonderful meal.

[GweninTX]

For anyone on this cruise, a couple of questions:

 

How much is the charge for the Enclave for the 11-day Baltic itinerary?

 

What are the scheduled days of the Winemakers Dinner?

 

Thank you.

The Winemakers dinners are scheduled as people request them., no scheduled nights There are 3 different ones. We did the Mondavi one on the TA and are doing the French one tonight. Stay tuned.

[GweninTX]

Hi. Really enjoying your daily reports. Will be on this cruise in August. The shuttle into Gothenburg - do you book ahead of time or just get on once you disembark the ship? Thanks.

 

 

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No advanced sale of shuttle tickets. You buy them from the bus drivers - either US dollars or Euros were accepted. No credit cards. Shuttles started at 8:00 am and the buses had free FAST wifi too!

[GweninTX]

Early morning wake up call at 6:00 AM - this Baltic cruise is not for the weak! We showered and dressed quickly, ate at the HC - finding a table is not as easy as on the TA - you have to swoop in quickly when you see one! You find a table first and go get food in shifts! Again, the food is hot, fresh and good! We eat quickly as we meet in a Vines at 7:15 for our Friends of Dave Tour. We walk off as a group with no lines at 7:30 and Dave is waiting for us with a sign.

 

He is a pleasure to meet and seems really interested in knowing not only our names, but where we are from. Being a good guide is a true gift and Dave is one of our very favorites. I think he could make going to the local landfill an exciting, fun and unique adventure. We laughed and kidded all day long. I HIGHLY recommend him as your guide for the day in Warnemunde if you have no interest in sitting on a bus or train for 3 hours to get to Berlin. We are SO glad we chose this tour and saw so much! http://Www.frindsofdavetours.com

 

We did do a LOT of walking, but it was paced so that you did not notice it as much. Susan had her step counter going and we walked 12 thousand steps total, which is a good thing because of the most wonderful lunch we had, but I am getting ahead of myself.

 

We walked thru the older part of Warnemunde and Dave told us all about it. Dave used the nice hearing devices that we had used with other guides. These make it so nice as everyone can walk at their own pace and hear everything. Warnemunde is very clean and the shops along the waterfront looked like they would be fun to explore, but it was too early and were not open. We had a bathroom stop at a local restaurant after about 45 minutes and then boarded a nice van that held our group of 18 comfortably. Dave paid for all of our bathroom breaks - some would have cost otherwise. Be prepared with euro coins if you are not part of a tour group!

 

We then traveled toward Wismar and Dave told us all about the Hanseatic history. The countryside was beautiful and Dave kept us in stitches the whole way. Ask him about the wild cows and the purple flowers! While we were driving Dave passed out the menus for our lunch in Brauhaus am Lohberg. He describe call the dishes and after seeing them, there were no wrong choices. We had the fish platter and the fruit stuffed pork ribs. I would highly recommend the Mecklenburg goulash over the ribs. The ribs were called Rippenbrauten and were stuffed with dried apples, prunes, and apricots. The red cabbage and apples served with it were heavenly though. The Baltic fish sampler was pan fried filets of cod and place (2 local fresh fish) and served with a white wine and bacon sauce. It came with pan fried potatoes that were as good as any my good German Mom ever cooked! We of course had the beer that was brewed on site. When you walk in they have hops hanging from the ceiling and it smells heavenly. They are also brewing beer that day and it smells like honey too. Jerry had the dark classic Mum beer and I had Radler Lemonade beer. It was very good - they pour half a glass of their brewed Pilsner and then top it off with a Sprite. Sounds horrible, but was light, lemony and refreshing! All of the food was very good, huge portions and we sampled each other's food since it was all so unique. I highly recommend stopping here if you are in the area!

 

We needed to walk off our lunch so we continued our walking tour. We saw beautiful old churches and unique new and old architecture. We then caught up with our bus driver and traveled to Schwerin. The castle is there and in the beautiful sunshine is just a site to behold. We voted not to go inside and just tour the beautiful grounds and hear Dave tell us all about it. We then walked over to a beautiful square that had lots of shopping. We all went to a local bakery and got to choose a slice of cake for our afternoon snack (as if we needed more calories) - OMG - the choices - and again they were all delicious. I had a strawberry shortcake and Jerry had Black Forest Cake. We then had 35 minutes to shop before we left. A nice little grocery store was there and I picked up some very inexpensive wine - should be set for the rest of the trip.

 

A lovely drive back to the ship thru pretty countryside. We arrived back at 5:45 and walked right on, no lines and nothing said about the wine. We ate in the dining room and then sat on our balcony and watched sail away. Towns people came to wave and watch us leave. Gorgeous evening! I watched the rest of the Book Thief (so appropriate for the ports we are seeing now) and Jerry read. We had no desire to see the singer, Chili Gold in the Princess Theatre and we were too tired for 70's Cult Classic dancing and games in the Vista lounge. We both needed sleep and we have a much needed sea day tomorrow. Stay tuned for another Winemakers dinner tomorrow evening - it is formal night also. Keep asking questions, I will try and answer them all.

[sunsetbeachgal]

Gwen,

 

Loving your posts!! and Dave the photos of the ship are gorgeous..such great resolution!

Edited May 16, 2014 by sunsetbeachgal

[Grammyluvs]

So glad you enjoyed Dave. Our tour with him was one of the highlights of our trip. It was interesting seeing the old East Germany and Dave really knows his history. Our meal at the brewery was just as great! We were so glad we didn’t spend all that time on a train to Berlin and back. We felt we really had a chance to experience the people and culture more. It amazed me that nothing was in English and Dave said they felt no need to learn English. One of the few European countries we have visited where this was so.

[Woobstr112G]

Early morning wake up call at 6:00 AM - this Baltic cruise is not for the weak! We showered and dressed quickly, ate at the HC - finding a table is not as easy as on the TA - you have to swoop in quickly when you see one! You find a table first and go get food in shifts! Again, the food is hot, fresh and good! We eat quickly as we meet in a Vines at 7:15 for our Friends of Dave Tour. We walk off as a group with no lines at 7:30 and Dave is waiting for us with a sign.

 

He is a pleasure to meet and seems really interested in knowing not only our names, but where we are from. Being a good guide is a true gift and Dave is one of our very favorites. I think he could make going to the local landfill an exciting, fun and unique adventure. We laughed and kidded all day long. I HIGHLY recommend him as your guide for the day in Warnemunde if you have no interest in sitting on a bus or train for 3 hours to get to Berlin. We are SO glad we chose this tour and saw so much! http://Www.frindsofdavetours.com

 

We did do a LOT of walking, but it was paced so that you did not notice it as much. Susan had her step counter going and we walked 12 thousand steps total, which is a good thing because of the most wonderful lunch we had, but I am getting ahead of myself.

 

We walked thru the older part of Warnemunde and Dave told us all about it. Dave used the nice hearing devices that we had used with other guides. These make it so nice as everyone can walk at their own pace and hear everything. Warnemunde is very clean and the shops along the waterfront looked like they would be fun to explore, but it was too early and were not open. We had a bathroom stop at a local restaurant after about 45 minutes and then boarded a nice van that held our group of 18 comfortably. Dave paid for all of our bathroom breaks - some would have cost otherwise. Be prepared with euro coins if you are not part of a tour group!

 

We then traveled toward Wismar and Dave told us all about the Hanseatic history. The countryside was beautiful and Dave kept us in stitches the whole way. Ask him about the wild cows and the purple flowers! While we were driving Dave passed out the menus for our lunch in Brauhaus am Lohberg. He describe call the dishes and after seeing them, there were no wrong choices. We had the fish platter and the fruit stuffed pork ribs. I would highly recommend the Mecklenburg goulash over the ribs. The ribs were called Rippenbrauten and were stuffed with dried apples, prunes, and apricots. The red cabbage and apples served with it were heavenly though. The Baltic fish sampler was pan fried filets of cod and place (2 local fresh fish) and served with a white wine and bacon sauce. It came with pan fried potatoes that were as good as any my good German Mom ever cooked! We of course had the beer that was brewed on site. When you walk in they have hops hanging from the ceiling and it smells heavenly. They are also brewing beer that day and it smells like honey too. Jerry had the dark classic Mum beer and I had Radler Lemonade beer. It was very good - they pour half a glass of their brewed Pilsner and then top it off with a Sprite. Sounds horrible, but was light, lemony and refreshing! All of the food was very good, huge portions and we sampled each other's food since it was all so unique. I highly recommend stopping here if you are in the area!

 

We needed to walk off our lunch so we continued our walking tour. We saw beautiful old churches and unique new and old architecture. We then caught up with our bus driver and traveled to Schwerin. The castle is there and in the beautiful sunshine is just a site to behold. We voted not to go inside and just tour the beautiful grounds and hear Dave tell us all about it. We then walked over to a beautiful square that had lots of shopping. We all went to a local bakery and got to choose a slice of cake for our afternoon snack (as if we needed more calories) - OMG - the choices - and again they were all delicious. I had a strawberry shortcake and Jerry had Black Forest Cake. We then had 35 minutes to shop before we left. A nice little grocery store was there and I picked up some very inexpensive wine - should be set for the rest of the trip.

 

A lovely drive back to the ship thru pretty countryside. We arrived back at 5:45 and walked right on, no lines and nothing said about the wine. We ate in the dining room and then sat on our balcony and watched sail away. Towns people came to wave and watch us leave. Gorgeous evening! I watched the rest of the Book Thief (so appropriate for the ports we are seeing now) and Jerry read. We had no desire to see the singer, Chili Gold in the Princess Theatre and we were too tired for 70's Cult Classic dancing and games in the Vista lounge. We both needed sleep and we have a much needed sea day tomorrow. Stay tuned for another Winemakers dinner tomorrow evening - it is formal night also. Keep asking questions, I will try and answer them all.

 

Sounds like an absolutely fantastic day.....:):):)

 

Bob

Edited May 16, 2014 by Woobstr112G

[Colo Cruiser]

Yes sounds like a great day!

[Mom33]

Sounds like a great tour. Hopefully, we will finally take this cruise next year.

Thanks again for taking the time to relate your experiences.:D

[Bogof1]

We saw Chili Gold last year on our cruise...she was amazing. Thanks for your posts,it's making me excited for our Baltic cruise next year.

[homeinboca]

Early morning wake up call at 6:00 AM - this Baltic cruise is not for the weak! We showered and dressed quickly, ate at the HC - finding a table is not as easy as on the TA - you have to swoop in quickly when you see one! You find a table first and go get food in shifts! Again, the food is hot, fresh and good! We eat quickly as we meet in a Vines at 7:15 for our Friends of Dave Tour. We walk off as a group with no lines at 7:30 and Dave is waiting for us with a sign.

 

He is a pleasure to meet and seems really interested in knowing not only our names, but where we are from. Being a good guide is a true gift and Dave is one of our very favorites. I think he could make going to the local landfill an exciting, fun and unique adventure. We laughed and kidded all day long. I HIGHLY recommend him as your guide for the day in Warnemunde if you have no interest in sitting on a bus or train for 3 hours to get to Berlin. We are SO glad we chose this tour and saw so much! http://Www.frindsofdavetours.com

 

We did do a LOT of walking, but it was paced so that you did not notice it as much. Susan had her step counter going and we walked 12 thousand steps total, which is a good thing because of the most wonderful lunch we had, but I am getting ahead of myself.

 

We walked thru the older part of Warnemunde and Dave told us all about it. Dave used the nice hearing devices that we had used with other guides. These make it so nice as everyone can walk at their own pace and hear everything. Warnemunde is very clean and the shops along the waterfront looked like they would be fun to explore, but it was too early and were not open. We had a bathroom stop at a local restaurant after about 45 minutes and then boarded a nice van that held our group of 18 comfortably. Dave paid for all of our bathroom breaks - some would have cost otherwise. Be prepared with euro coins if you are not part of a tour group!

 

We then traveled toward Wismar and Dave told us all about the Hanseatic history. The countryside was beautiful and Dave kept us in stitches the whole way. Ask him about the wild cows and the purple flowers! While we were driving Dave passed out the menus for our lunch in Brauhaus am Lohberg. He describe call the dishes and after seeing them, there were no wrong choices. We had the fish platter and the fruit stuffed pork ribs. I would highly recommend the Mecklenburg goulash over the ribs. The ribs were called Rippenbrauten and were stuffed with dried apples, prunes, and apricots. The red cabbage and apples served with it were heavenly though. The Baltic fish sampler was pan fried filets of cod and place (2 local fresh fish) and served with a white wine and bacon sauce. It came with pan fried potatoes that were as good as any my good German Mom ever cooked! We of course had the beer that was brewed on site. When you walk in they have hops hanging from the ceiling and it smells heavenly. They are also brewing beer that day and it smells like honey too. Jerry had the dark classic Mum beer and I had Radler Lemonade beer. It was very good - they pour half a glass of their brewed Pilsner and then top it off with a Sprite. Sounds horrible, but was light, lemony and refreshing! All of the food was very good, huge portions and we sampled each other's food since it was all so unique. I highly recommend stopping here if you are in the area!

 

We needed to walk off our lunch so we continued our walking tour. We saw beautiful old churches and unique new and old architecture. We then caught up with our bus driver and traveled to Schwerin. The castle is there and in the beautiful sunshine is just a site to behold. We voted not to go inside and just tour the beautiful grounds and hear Dave tell us all about it. We then walked over to a beautiful square that had lots of shopping. We all went to a local bakery and got to choose a slice of cake for our afternoon snack (as if we needed more calories) - OMG - the choices - and again they were all delicious. I had a strawberry shortcake and Jerry had Black Forest Cake. We then had 35 minutes to shop before we left. A nice little grocery store was there and I picked up some very inexpensive wine - should be set for the rest of the trip.

 

A lovely drive back to the ship thru pretty countryside. We arrived back at 5:45 and walked right on, no lines and nothing said about the wine. We ate in the dining room and then sat on our balcony and watched sail away. Towns people came to wave and watch us leave. Gorgeous evening! I watched the rest of the Book Thief (so appropriate for the ports we are seeing now) and Jerry read. We had no desire to see the singer, Chili Gold in the Princess Theatre and we were too tired for 70's Cult Classic dancing and games in the Vista lounge. We both needed sleep and we have a much needed sea day tomorrow. Stay tuned for another Winemakers dinner tomorrow evening - it is formal night also. Keep asking questions, I will try and answer them all.

 

Sounds like a great day! Probably much easier than taking the long train to Berlin and back. That sounds like a very long day and not much time in the city. We plan to see Berlin before getting on the ship in Copenhagen when doing this itinerary.

 

How many people were with you on the Tour with Dave?

 

Thanks

 

Ron

[wallycat16]

Sounds like a perfect day! do you think that tour would work for a teenage girl (17)? Also, have you heard much from those that went to Berlin? Trying to decide if the long trip in and out of Berlin is worth it? Thanks got your ongoing commentary. Really enjoying it!

 

 

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[LostTexaninCali]

They were pre assigned. There was a card in your room with the location, date and time. We were able to call the dine line and change yours to a different location, date.

 

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[hubofhockey]

Sounds like a perfect day! do you think that tour would work for a teenage girl (17)? Also, have you heard much from those that went to Berlin? Trying to decide if the long trip in and out of Berlin is worth it? Thanks got your ongoing commentary. Really enjoying it!

 

 

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We are going to do it, mainly because we don't plan on another vacation that will get us to Germany. We look at it as our shot to see Berlin. It was the opposite for us with Le Havre and Paris, where we knew we would be in Paris on future vacations. SPB Tours price was good for Berlin and we'll get a chance to nap on the coach ride in and back. It's an interesting choice for those of us on this itinerary.

[loma linda ca a & j]

altho we are not staying on for the baltics next year,

am enjoying tagging along daily with gwen !!;)

 

 

[YLTraveler]

It is a little confusing, but we have been looking at a July 2015 Baltic cruise on the Regal. From everything I have found, you have the choice of boarding in Copenhagen or Berlin. For example, from the Princess brochure, you can embark in Copenhagen on 7 July (disembark on July 18th) or from the Princess web site board in Berlin (Warnemunde) on July 10th and disembark on July 21st. I called Princess and they stated that the two boarding options are valid. I would sure think this would be confusing to cabin assignments,etc.

 

Given this option, our current plan is to self tour in the Berlin area for several days before boarding the ship.

 

We will see what happens.

[GweninTX]

Sounds like a perfect day! do you think that tour would work for a teenage girl (17)? Also, have you heard much from those that went to Berlin? Trying to decide if the long trip in and out of Berlin is worth it? Thanks got your ongoing commentary. Really enjoying it!

 

 

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Everyone I talked to that went to Berlin were exhausted. Most said they were glad they did, but did not get to see a lot because of time restraints. Some said they wished they had nit gone. I think it is a personal choice and really depends on how much you want to see Berlin.

 

There were 18 on our Friends of Dave tour and I think a 17 YO would really enjoy it.

[IECalCruiser]

I

It is a little confusing, but we have been looking at a July 2015 Baltic cruise on the Regal. From everything I have found, you have the choice of boarding in Copenhagen or Berlin. For example, from the Princess brochure, you can embark in Copenhagen on 7 July (disembark on July 18th) or from the Princess web site board in Berlin (Warnemunde) on July 10th and disembark on July 21st. I called Princess and they stated that the two boarding options are valid. I would sure think this would be confusing to cabin assignments,etc.

 

Given this option, our current plan is to self tour in the Berlin area for several days before boarding the ship.

 

We will see what happens.

To add a little more confusion, you can also embark and disembark in St. Petersburg but it is only a 10 day cruise because you don't overnight in St. Petersburg. I believe most cabins are reserved for the CPH cruises but on the TA you can disembark in CPH, stay on three more days to Warnemunde or stay on three more days to St. Petersburg. Rolls Calls get pretty confusing.