Amber Shopping in the Baltics

[michigankate]

Looking for suggestions on where to buy Amber during our Baltic Cruise in September. Is it better to buy in Riga or Kliapeda? Thanks

[Giantfan13]

A lot of people say Tallinn is the best place, but it is all judgment.

 

Cheers

 

Len

[The_Big_M]

I would also say Tallinn - but our cruise didn't stop at those two other destinations.

[LondonTowner]

I saw a lot of amber in all the ports and some very nice pieces. However, I thought it was all rather expensive.

[LocardsChild]

The prices in Tallinn and St. Petersburg were generally the same - but out ship didn't go to the ports you named.

 

Of course, the cruise line is likely to offer it for sale on board as well which some folks on our ship preferred as it solves the "is it real" question.

[grimsleypals]

Looking for suggestions on where to buy Amber during our Baltic Cruise in September. Is it better to buy in Riga or Kliapeda? Thanks

 

Hello: I found Tallinn to be the best stop for Amber jewelry. Purchased a ring and earrings. Love them. Good luck and have fun searching.

[RickT]

The last time we were on a Baltic Cruise (7 yrs ago) the ship had a good selection.

 

My wife also fell in love with the Georg Jensen collection. It's made in Denmark and there are a number of stores in Copenhagen but you'll also find this in some of the other countries.

[michigankate]

Thank you for your suggestions.

[shoreham01]

Price up the amber before you travel. I found that it was cheaper here in UK although there was far more choice in Tallinn, St Petersburg, Copenhagen etc. I did buy an amber - or amberish necklace in the market in Tallinn which was very cheap and exactly what I was looking for. The thing about amber is that a lot of it is reconstituted where they melt it down and put it into moulds, even adding insects. For me the design was very important so I did not worry too much. Probably a case of you get what you pay for.

[Desdichado62]

An older thread that might be useful: http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1375702

[4774Papa]

DW loves amber. We first purchases some in Gdansk in 1989. We found more in STP and Tallinn.

 

While on a Vantage tour of Russia, our Russian Program Manager warned us not to buy amber from street vendors. There is a lot of fake amber out there. Also, we were suspicious of green amber, which is the new rage.

 

It is hard to do the tests suggested here

http://www.amberizon.com/page/identifying_true_amber.html

 

Apparently, real amber floats, but hard to check if attached to metal settings.

[shoreham01]

There is another way to check, but it will not show if it is reconstituted or not. You tear off the smallest piece of tissue you can get, and then rub the amber on your sleeve. Immediately hold it over the tissue and if it is real the amber will act like a magnet and the tissue will jump up to it. Plastic will not do this so I have been told. I have used this method and it seems to work.

[michigankate]

Appreciate all the advice given. Rethinking if I want to buy Amber. Really appreciate the time people took to help me out.