St Petersburg - Visa question

[MalkyM]

I have been following another thread suggesting which operator to use whilst in St Petersburg - Red October/Denrus/Alla - but there is something else that has since jumped to mind.

 

Is an organised tour the only way you will be allowed to see St Petersburg?

 

We are not planning to "do our own thing" whilst in the city, a combination of all the tours being offered seems great. But I get the impression that you just cannot walk of the ship to do a bit of sightseeing on your own.

 

Is this the case? If we wanted to do this, would we have to apply for a separate visa?

[VinTek]

If you are not with a tour group that provides a visa waiver, yes, you will have to obtain a visa beforehand. You will not be allowed "just walk off the ship."

[MalkyM]

VinTek

 

I had a suspicion that was going to be the answer but thanks for taking the time to put me right. We enjoy taking an organised excursion and then (if time and location permit) hop off the ship for a walk around. Not in St Petersburg, though! :(

[ISABELLA]

Here it is:

If you are on cruiseline tour - they will provide you with visa, price included in the price of the tour.

If you are part of the private tour - Red October or Denrus - the same thing, only you have to provide them with your passport info in advance.

If you are want to do St. Pete on your own ( by the way, I would not recommend it), you need to get visa before your cruise from Russian consulate or there are a few other places in US you can get it from . I think last year cost was $75-$150 depended where you got it. St. Pete is a very large city and without knowing Russian , it will be complicated to see it. Besides, port is about 30-45min car drive from the city and not all taxi drivers speak English. But it is a jewel and must see place. Have fun.

[Jill_b]

There is no cost for the visa free entrance into Russia. There is no visa required for cruise ship passengers but they need to be escorted by a registered tour company, so it is not included in the price.

[ISABELLA]

You absolutely need a visa to step on Russian soil, if you are going on your own and you cannot get it on ship.

[susietb]

Unless you are with the ship's escorted tours you must have a visa. The Russian immigration people are on board the ship and they check documentation coming and going.

 

We had arranged for a private guide so we obtained our visas through the visa service recommended by the Celebrity (last year the cost was about $100 each). Many people on the cruise explored St. Petersburg independently. Celebrity charges for a bus ($10 per person I think) which drops you off near the Hotel Astoria. You can arrange for a private taxi from there. Many people did that, they walked to the Hermitage and hired a guide.

 

There are really no taxis allowed into the pier area without a special permit.

[ISABELLA]

SUSIETB,

Please explain what do you mean by "Russian immigration officers are on board and checking documentation coming and going." Do you mean when you leave and board the ship or you walking around the ship?

[susietb]

When you leave and reboard the ship.

[SaylorGirl]

We were on this cruise in September and we obtained our Russian Visa's before we left. It was the most incredible experience to be able to be in St. Petersburg on our own. I would highly recommend it. We used public transportation such as the buses and subways to get around. We even went to Peterhoff to see the fountains. We were able to see so much and we saw things that we wanted to see. It was the highlight of our cruise.

[gooselace]

Here it is:

If you are on cruiseline tour - they will provide you with visa, price included in the price of the tour.

If you are part of the private tour - Red October or Denrus - the same thing, only you have to provide them with your passport info in advance.

taxi drivers speak English. But it is a jewel and must see place. Have fun.

 

I'm trying to figure out the best tours for what I want to see, but that raises a visa issue I haven't seen mentioned. If I take a day tour with RO or Denrus and then want to take a Princess evening tour, how is the visa handled? Can the independent operator turn the visa over to the ship (seems unlikely)? Do I apply for one on my own and use it for both? Or am I supposed to sign up with only one or the other, not both?

[VinTek]

I'm trying to figure out the best tours for what I want to see, but that raises a visa issue I haven't seen mentioned. If I take a day tour with RO or Denrus and then want to take a Princess evening tour, how is the visa handled? Can the independent operator turn the visa over to the ship (seems unlikely)? Do I apply for one on my own and use it for both? Or am I supposed to sign up with only one or the other, not both?

 

When you're with an organized tour, you don't get a visa. Rather, the visa requirement is waived. So in your scenario, you wouldn't actually have a visa but you would be carrying documentation which would allow the authorities to waive the requirement when you debarked to join your tour.

[Sniktaw]

To Saylor Girl,

We have obtained our own Russians visas, Would be interested in what you did on your own

Carolyn

[Dallas girl]

Saylorgirl or anyone else who's ventured out on their own...Would you kindly provide more info as to what you did and how easy was it to use their public transport? Do you pay on the bus or is there a visitor's card like other cities?

My husband & I have traveled extensively thru Europe, but this is only our 2nd cruise. So, we also like to see things on our own, but I'm concerned about the language barrier and being able to navigate around.

 

I wouldn't mind joining one of the smaller tours, but I'd like to be able to experience local shops and such.

 

Any advice would be appreciated.

[SaylorGirl]

We found it very easy to use the public transportation. You will need to have rubles but the buses are very cheap. You get on the bus and you will find a babuska, don't worry she will find you, you pay her the money and she will give you back a ticket, just keep the ticket you don't use it for anything. One time we got on the bus and it was so crowed and she was all the way in the back we passed the money back through about 20 people she got it and sent the ticket back up front. Also, the subway system is very easy to use, you buy your tickets at the window and just read the subway maps, they will be in crylic so just match it up on your map.

 

We went to the Hermitage you can pre order your tickets on the web site and then just pick them up, there are plently of people there that will offer you tours in English if you wish. We did lots of walking, we took one of the canal boats, that was great! We were there on a Saturday and we watched about 20 different weddings that was incredible. We went to St. Isaacs, The Church of the Spilled Blood (that was beautiful, we went twice) shopping at the flea market outside the church, Our Lady of Kazanze Church. We walked across the Trojosky bridge and went to the Peter and Paul fortress, walked over to the Rostrol columns. Sat by the river and ate blinys. We went to Peterhof and went through the gardens and fountains. It was so fantastic, we never had any problems at all, it is such a walkable city.

 

You will find people that will help you if you need directions, just go and enjoy it is a beautiful city and you will have a great time. Take a good map! Learn a few of the basic words, hello, thank you, please and you will do fine.

[Host CMLA]

When you're with an organized tour, you don't get a visa. Rather, the visa requirement is waived. So in your scenario, you wouldn't actually have a visa but you would be carrying documentation which would allow the authorities to waive the requirement when you debarked to join your tour.

This is only my experience. On the NCL Dream in 2001 I got my own visa for Russia. On the first day in Russia I did the ship's tour to Moscow. The cost for a visa was part of my excursion price. Because I had my own visa, I produced it at the shore excursion desk and they reduced the cost of my tour. The ship has to pay for visas for the passengers. On the second day I toured on my own with no trouble. No matter how you get off the ship...a visa is involved even if you never see it. Again, that's just my experience on an NCL ship.

[SaylorGirl]

Is there something wrong with these boards? I can't tell who is posting and when you reply it looks like it is from the next poster? Or is it just me?

[Westaussie]

Have just received sponsorship letter and instrutions from RO. They mention stamping of passports can take some time. My query is, do we get to keep our passports on embarkation or do we have to collect them on board and if so, when?

[Sniktaw]

I posed this same question to our TA and he said that we could get our passports from the Purser the evening before our arrival in St. Petersburg.

Carolyn

[JodiBB]

Have just received sponsorship letter and instrutions from RO. They mention stamping of passports can take some time. My query is, do we get to keep our passports on embarkation or do we have to collect them on board and if so, when?

I don't know which line you're taking, but RCCL doesn't take your passport from you. We got to keep ours throughout our trip, so using them in port wasn't a problem.

[Westaussie]

Thanks to the two replies above. We're with NCL but all cruises I've been on have never had my passport returned till disembarking or day prior. Had visions of a 6.00 am queue a mile long on the first day in St Petersburg!!

[bpolan]

There have been referrals to alla, denrus and red october on this message board. if you have seen st. petersburg through denrus or red october, what was your experience? we are trying to decide which tour operator to use. Also, did you do a custom tour or take one of the existing tours? WE heard the 2 day tour by denrus is very good. thanks!

[Dallas girl]

Thanks, Saylor Girl.

 

I read somewhere else that taxis are not allowed anywhere near where the ship docks, is that true? If they're not, how far away is the nearest form of transport?

 

Also, you say it's a very walkable city, but the Denrus sites (& others) list travel times between one site and another in the 30 minute range...so, are many sites actually closer than they let on?

 

Thanks a bunch!

[tranceparent]

Hello. What ship and date are you on?

jkarla@ywave.com

 

 

I'm trying to figure out the best tours for what I want to see, but that raises a visa issue I haven't seen mentioned. If I take a day tour with RO or Denrus and then want to take a Princess evening tour, how is the visa handled? Can the independent operator turn the visa over to the ship (seems unlikely)? Do I apply for one on my own and use it for both? Or am I supposed to sign up with only one or the other, not both?

[tranceparent]

We are on the Aug. 23, 2006 Star Princess Baltic cruise.

We are 7 couples who have contracted with DenRus for a phenomenal two day tour in St. Petersburg. We have room for 1 more couple. We are a great group who have met on our Roll Call.

We are approaching our deadline to finalize the group, so if you are interested, contact me at: jkarla@ywave.com.

 

Saylorgirl or anyone else who's ventured out on their own...Would you kindly provide more info as to what you did and how easy was it to use their public transport? Do you pay on the bus or is there a visitor's card like other cities?

My husband & I have traveled extensively thru Europe, but this is only our 2nd cruise. So, we also like to see things on our own, but I'm concerned about the language barrier and being able to navigate around.

 

I wouldn't mind joining one of the smaller tours, but I'd like to be able to experience local shops and such.

 

Any advice would be appreciated.