Berlin or Copenhagen for Baltic

[Tedferg]

We are looking at April - May 2017 for Baltic cruise. We could start in Copenhagen or Berlin.

 

My feelings are: Berlin is a more interesting pre-cruise location; Berlin is hard to do from Cruise port; We would have a Cruise day in Copenhagen. Whereas I don't think we would do Berlin as an excursion because of three hour train ride there and back.

 

Conversely Port Transfer is much easier in Copenhagen.

 

Any thoughts please ?

[IECalCruiser]

If you want to see Berlin, then depart from Warnemunde and spend a few days pre cruise in Berlin. Unfortunately, since Copenhagen will be a turnaround port you will need to take some form of transportation from the remote pier location. They had just started embarkation in Warnemunde when we took our Baltic cruise and the fare departing from Warnemunde was significantly higher than departing from Copenhagen.

Edited July 9, 2016 by IECalCruiser

[bcnvcanada]

If you take a Princess transfer from airport or the hotel they used for

overnights, this year it is 99usd and a two and half bus ride.

[chinorider]

My wife and I spent a week pre-cruise in Berlin. We booked a Princess transfer from the airport to Warnemunde and took a taxi from our hotel to the airport on the morning of the cruise. Worked out great for us.

Edited July 9, 2016 by chinorider

[gbldcl]

I have been looking at available cabins and it seems the selections are limited if starting from Warnemunde.

 

 

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[bassmaster150]

We did pre-cruise in Copenhagen, and loved it. When we do baltics again, we will do pre-cruise in Copenhagen again.

[GradUT]

Tedferg, you have pretty much laid out the pros and cons for Berlin vs. Copenhagen.

 

We had a similar dilemma last year when we were trying to choose between cruises with embarkation in Berlin and Copenhagen. We really wanted to start out with a few days in Berlin (which we had visited a number of years ago)before our cruise, but the flight from the US to Berlin would have been much longer (with a change of planes on the way) and much more expensive than the flight to Copenhagen. And then we would have to deal with the logistics and added expense of getting from Berlin to Warnemuende. So, we decided to take the cruise that began in Copenhagen and I must say that I was so impressed with Copenhagen--much more than I expected! We went a day early to Copenhagen and had a day after the cruise too. We easily filled our time and could have used even one more day. Having been to Berlin previously, I would not say it is "more interesting" than Copenhagen. They are both interesting places for different reasons.

 

Our ship did dock in Warnemuende for a day and while we were tempted to take the train to Berlin, we decided to spend the day in Warnemuende and Rostock instead and we had a GREAT day! We rented bikes to ride on the trail that hugs the sea; we had a pleasant walk through charming Warnemuende and we took the train (easy!) to Rostock to tour the fascinating Stasi Prison Museum.

 

So, if you decide to do the Copenhagen option, don't worry--you will have a fabulous time in Copenhagen and your visit to Warnemuende/Rostock can be fabulous too.

[Tedferg]

Great inputs, thanks. I must check cabin availability for Warnemunde boarding - I guess majority of passengers start in Copenhagen.

 

GradUT you helped a lot, thanks.

[lstone19]

We were on Regal last month. The numbers I heard were 90% of passengers embark in CPH, 5% in Warnemunde, and 5% in St. Petersburg. So I would expect a limited choice of cabins for Warnemunde.

 

 

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[DougH]

I sailed out of Copenhagen recently and few in a couple of days early. Spend several days wandering around Copenhagen and one day touring the nearby countryside. I wish I had gone in even another day early as there was still more I wanted to see.

 

I didn't want to do the long one day tour to Berlin so skipped that entirely. Personally I had more interest in Copenhagen but choose based on what you want to visit more.

 

You didn't ask but I did tours in several ports with SPB and thought they did overall a very good job. Loved wandering around old town Tallinn on my own.

Edited July 10, 2016 by DougH

[Fletch1]

We have done the day trip to Berlin from the cruise port and it was a long day and very rushed. There was so much to see.

 

If I had to choose, I would embark at Warnemunde and have a couple of days in Berlin to explore the sites at leisure. The day trip in Copenhagen was long enough to see the major sites. And we could walk back to the ship from the town centre in Copenhagen.

[lstone19]

If I had to choose, I would embark at Warnemunde and have a couple of days in Berlin to explore the sites at leisure. The day trip in Copenhagen was long enough to see the major sites. And we could walk back to the ship from the town centre in Copenhagen.

 

Was this a few years ago? Princess ships and most other ships doing embarkations in Copenhagen now dock at the new Oceankaj terminal which opened in 2014. For most people, it is not walkable.

 

Perhaps your ship used Langelinie. That one is walkable and it appears that was used for turnarounds in the past but it no longer is.

[pompeii]

We departed from Warnemunde last year specifically so we could spend several days in Berlin beforehand. We knew we either wouldn't take the long excursion into Berlin, or if we did, we wouldn't see nearly enough of the city in just one day. It was definitely the right decision for us; we found Berlin to be fascinating and we loved every minute of it.

 

As for getting up to the port for embarkation, we rented a car and drove up because we wanted to see more of the county, stopping at Schwerin Castle on the way and Wismar for the night. It was actually very easy to drive with a GPS and good road signage. But you could easily go back to the airport and pick up the Princess transfer the day of embarkation. Or if you are a little more adventurous but not enough to drive, you could take public transportation.

 

If Berlin is one of those cities you always wanted to visit, don't let the distance from the port scare you off. We also liked Copenhagen, but since the ship docks there it was much easier to see the high points without a long excursion.

[Tedferg]

We were on Regal last month. The numbers I heard were 90% of passengers embark in CPH, 5% in Warnemunde, and 5% in St. Petersburg. So I would expect a limited choice of cabins for Warnemunde.

 

 

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Was that May ? How was the weather ?

[lstone19]

Hate to tell you but it's July already so last month was June. [emoji3] A lot of rain the first 2/3 of the cruise but it was still great. I posted a short review which you should be able to find.

 

 

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[Tedferg]

Hate to tell you but it's July already so last month was June. [emoji3] A lot of rain the first 2/3 of the cruise but it was still great. I posted a short review which you should be able to find.

 

 

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Gee I've just mastered telling time, little finger, big finger etc. - now I've got to work on the Calendar !

[dreaminofcruisin]

We LOVED Copenhagen!! Our Baltic cruise departed and returned there. We arrived a day early and stayed 4 days after. We found many things to do both within Copenhagen and in the outlying areas. They had a transportation card you could get that allowed you to use all the public transit. We also took a train to the coastal castles. We would love to go back!

 

That being said....we have never been to Berlin (have been to other parts of Germany, but not there yet), so I was thinking if I did another Baltic cruise someday, I would like to depart from Warnemunde, so I could spend some pre-cruise days in Berlin....for the reasons you mentioned about the distance from the port.

 

I would say...either way you will have a wonderful time!! ;)

[Griller]

We LOVED Copenhagen!! Our Baltic cruise departed and returned there. We arrived a day early and stayed 4 days after. We found many things to do both within Copenhagen and in the outlying areas. They had a transportation card you could get that allowed you to use all the public transit. We also took a train to the coastal castles. We would love to go back!

 

That being said....we have never been to Berlin (have been to other parts of Germany, but not there yet), so I was thinking if I did another Baltic cruise someday, I would like to depart from Warnemunde, so I could spend some pre-cruise days in Berlin....for the reasons you mentioned about the distance from the port.

 

I would say...either way you will have a wonderful time!! ;)

Having been to Warnemunde before its just a little seaside town, but nearby Rostok is a very interesting place, and I would rather spend a day there than all the travelling to Berlin and back.

We are embarking for a 22 day transatlantic in September in Warnemunde, it was half the cost of the 25 day from Copenhagen, just one of those odd prices I guess.

Easy and cheap to get to Warnemunde from just about anywhere in Europe using Flix bus.

[pompeii]

Having been to Warnemunde before its just a little seaside town, but nearby Rostok is a very interesting place, and I would rather spend a day there than all the travelling to Berlin and back.

We are embarking for a 22 day transatlantic in September in Warnemunde, it was half the cost of the 25 day from Copenhagen, just one of those odd prices I guess.

Easy and cheap to get to Warnemunde from just about anywhere in Europe using Flix bus.

 

That's exactly what we found, it was much less expensive to depart from Warnemunde although the cruise was only 3 days shorter than departing from Copenhagen. So that was just another reason to pick Germany over Copenhagen, although I am sure you will love either place whichever you choose. I'm mainly just trying to say don't forgo leaving from Warnemunde because the port is far from Berlin. You won't regret flying into Berlin, spending as many days as you can, then making you way up to the port. It's not at all hard to do, whether you drive, take the bus or train, or use the Princess transfer. And keep in mind that your itinerary does include Copenhagen, so you will get to see it either way.

[DrivesLikeMario]

I had many of the same questions, Tedferg, before I started researching. We definitely want to spend some time in Berlin pre-cruise so for us, it's worth it to embark in Warnemunde. Going round-trip from Berlin is definitely more expensive than the round-trip CPH fares, but I think it will be more interesting than CPH. We're planning to stop at Sachsenhausen: https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/sachtoc.html on our way up to meet the ship.

Edited July 10, 2016 by DrivesLikeMario

[Tedferg]

Thank you once more for excellent input - off to discuss with our cruise mates !

Edited July 11, 2016 by Tedferg

[josumello]

Our cruise left from Copenhagen. We did have the option of doing an excursion to Berlin that had the usual 2 1/2 hour travel time each way. That did not appeal to us at all. So we flew to Berlin before hand. Spent 3 days there and leisurely saw all the sights that interested us. We then flew to Copenhagen and spent a couple of days precruise. It worked out really well. The flight was pretty cheap and quick. Would recommend this heartily. Good luck whatever u decide.

 

 

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[Coral]

Copenhagen is one of my favorite European cities! That would be my vote.