Live from Voyager in the Baltic

[CruiseMelissa]

2 minutes ago, pretzlaff said:

We got off on Sunday.  The airport was worse than I had imagined for a Sunday morning.  There was a long line to check bags.  The line for security was worse. 

 

We passed by the covid test place three times.  The first time was when we first got there and there was no line.  Second time was before check in and there was a fairly long line.  The third time was after check in and the line had not moved much in the 20+ minutes.  People from the boat were still in line and had not even started testing yet.

 

I don't believe that it ended well for many as they still had to then check in and go thru security.

 

We brought our own Binax tests.  Trouble was that the wifi was so poor the sea day before debarkation, that we tested at 5:30 am when we docked.  I used my ipad on the cell towers to get a solid signal.

 

I asked at the desk is they did testing on board for flying and they said no.  I asked if I could buy back up Binax tests from them, and they said no.  They said to 'get tested at the airport'.

 

If you have not left for the cruise yet.  Order some tests from emed.com.  If you are currently on board, self assist your luggage off at 7am and grab the first cab to the airport to beat the lines.

This is helpful.  I heard some airlines weren't accepting those tests, which airlines did you fly?

[lionheart]

3 minutes ago, pretzlaff said:

We got off on Sunday.  The airport was worse than I had imagined for a Sunday morning.  There was a long line to check bags.  The line for security was worse. 

 

We passed by the covid test place three times.  The first time was when we first got there and there was no line.  Second time was before check in and there was a fairly long line.  The third time was after check in and the line had not moved much in the 20+ minutes.  People from the boat were still in line and had not even started testing yet.

 

I don't believe that it ended well for many as they still had to then check in and go thru security.

 

We brought our own Binax tests.  Trouble was that the wifi was so poor the sea day before debarkation, that we tested at 5:30 am when we docked.  I used my ipad on the cell towers to get a solid signal.

 

I asked at the desk is they did testing on board for flying and they said no.  I asked if I could buy back up Binax tests from them, and they said no.  They said to 'get tested at the airport'.

 

If you have not left for the cruise yet.  Order some tests from emed.com.  If you are currently on board, self assist your luggage off at 7am and grab the first cab to the airport to beat the lines.

Thanks for the information, 

[lionheart]

Just now, lionheart said:

Thanks for the information, my  cruise is Wednesday so hopefully not as busy as weekend. 

 

[Norwaylady]

Hello!

due to covid, CPH airport and a lot other airports in Eu, did get rid of a lot employee’s…. (OSL has the same challenges) 

So now they hire new security staff, but they are having large issues to fill all positions. So the lines are much longer then usual. 
CPH airport says it will be like this for several more weeks. 
 

I flew home to Norway on Monday 11.55AM and the lines for security was 25-35.min. 
If you fly c-class/ have fast track in your ticket. It’s 0-15.mins for security. 

When it comes to ckin line, it deepening on your airline and destination. 
Due to regulations and the need to verify paperwork for test or visa, it takes much more time to process each passenger. 
 

For US departure, this needs to be verified. Since US requires negative test not older then 24h before departure. 
(if the US lift the demand for test documents on ckin, the lines will drop significantly at ckin;) 

For passengers flying to areas were there’s now need to show a negative test or other documentation, you can use the machine to ckin+tag to bag AND use self-service drop-off. It’s very easy and goes faster then manually ckin. 
So if you go to Norway, France, U.K etc as finally destinations. This is the way to do it fast and easy. 
 

But expect longer lines for the summer season🥰

 

(I been working for SK for many years😉) 

[Norwaylady]

22 hours ago, marielco said:

Very quiet on board. Some of the bars closed. Guest Services told us no need to book ice show or any of the other shows as not needed with so few passengers on board. Most people who are braving the breeze on deck are using the Solarium area as it is more sheltered than the main pool. 

 

Hope you have a lovely day in Stockholm. Did you enjoy the sail-in?

Did you have time for Fika in the city?

 

Can I ask you a question? Can you ask for me the sports crew at FlowRider if its aloud to wear water socks in neoprene or water shoes when your boogie board? (its a bit ruff for the toes and feet)

My husband is wondering, since I'm bringing him later on this sailing. 

[flamingos]

We usually have the cheese plate as an appetizer - after the first night you ask for it, it is brought to your table automatically.  Hopefully, you have someone in your group who likes each part of the plate - blue cheese, swiss, mild cheddar, walnuts, fig jam and brown bread. 

 

[marielco]

17 hours ago, Norwaylady said:

 

Hope you have a lovely day in Stockholm. Did you enjoy the sail-in?

Did you have time for Fika in the city?

 

Can I ask you a question? Can you ask for me the sports crew at FlowRider if its aloud to wear water socks in neoprene or water shoes when your boogie board? (its a bit ruff for the toes and feet)

My husband is wondering, since I'm bringing him later on this sailing. 

You start to pass into the archepelligo  (sp?) at 6am. We did get up to watch the sail in.  With the sun on the island cabins, boat houses etc.. it was very pretty.  We did not reach the dock until 9am. 

I will ask the question for you at the Flowrider. 
 

 

[marielco]

We took the shuttle into Stockholm yesterday morning. They began running at 10.30 .  It is 4 km if you want to walk right into the center .  If you want to walk there is a blue line painted on the pavement from the terminal which brings you to the first local bus stop.  About 10 minutes walk.  
 

The shuttle leaves you at the Opera house which is right in the center of Stockholm.  If you cross the near by bridge it takes you to the Royal Palace (changing iof the guard 12.30) and into Gamel Stan the Old Town with its cobbled streets. 

The weather was overcast but not cold. We took the shut,e back to the ship for lunch. as we had tickets for the opera in the evening (Aida) we were able to take the last shuttle from the ship back into city, have a meal and enjoy the opera. 
 

we were warned that the taxis are not regulated and fares can vary wildly. However Uber is the best to use as you know the fare before accepting the trip.  We took an Uber back to the ship and it cost 132 SEK which is about €13.  The exchange rate between the Swedish krone an the €/$ is easy as it is 10kr to 1€/$ approx 

 

we were warned not to leave the ship without our vaccine certs as we might be asked for them in some venues in the city.  We were never asked. In the Opera House hardly anyone was wearing a mask.  It is the same on the ship.  I would say less than 10% were wearing a mask in the theatre. 

we received a Diamond invitation to a Behind the Scenes tour of the Entertainment which willl take place on Saturday.  The Top Tier event is this afternoon. 

 

[Cruise Quest]

Great insight thank you. We’re on this cruise July 10 so interested to know what it’s like getting on and off ports of call if there are any Covid restrictions especially for countries who no longer require proof etc like Tallin. 

[lionheart]

4 hours ago, marielco said:

We took the shuttle into Stockholm yesterday morning. They began running at 10.30 .  It is 4 km if you want to walk right into the center .  If you want to walk there is a blue line painted on the pavement from the terminal which brings you to the first local bus stop.  About 10 minutes walk.  
 

The shuttle leaves you at the Opera house which is right in the center of Stockholm.  If you cross the near by bridge it takes you to the Royal Palace (changing iof the guard 12.30) and into Gamel Stan the Old Town with its cobbled streets. 

The weather was overcast but not cold. We took the shut,e back to the ship for lunch. as we had tickets for the opera in the evening (Aida) we were able to take the last shuttle from the ship back into city, have a meal and enjoy the opera. 
 

we were warned that the taxis are not regulated and fares can vary wildly. However Uber is the best to use as you know the fare before accepting the trip.  We took an Uber back to the ship and it cost 132 SEK which is about €13.  The exchange rate between the Swedish krone an the €/$ is easy as it is 10kr to 1€/$ approx 

 

we were warned not to leave the ship without our vaccine certs as we might be asked for them in some venues in the city.  We were never asked. In the Opera House hardly anyone was wearing a mask.  It is the same on the ship.  I would say less than 10% were wearing a mask in the theatre. 

we received a Diamond invitation to a Behind the Scenes tour of the Entertainment which willl take place on Saturday.  The Top Tier event is this afternoon. 

 

That’s good info thank you 

 

when you arrive at Helsinki please let me know if the ship provides a shuttle into Helsinki 

 

Thanks 

[Norwaylady]

51 minutes ago, Cruise Quest said:

Great insight thank you. We’re on this cruise July 10 so interested to know what it’s like getting on and off ports of call if there are any Covid restrictions especially for countries who no longer require proof etc like Tallin. 

 

Hello!

 

I was on the sailing before, 1-8.may.

There are no restrictions in ports of call in this itinerary as of now, but you never know what the future brings...

So its just to ping out of the ship, and off you go. 

No screening or other things to pass. 

 

They have a shuttle for fee in Tallinn, Helsinki and Stockholm.

If you walk out of the port in Stockholm, you can take the local bus. From Frihamnen were the ship docks in Stockholm its 2,5km to ABBA, Vasamuseum and Djurgården bridge. The walk is thru a park area and embassy street. (I'm a walker and this is easy peasy for a sporty person;) 

 

Tallinn, they have a shuttle or you can walk 10-15.min to the gate to the old city. Its clearly marked and signs. Its a flat walk. But be careful in the city centre, all cobblestone and uneven surface. Narrow stairs and uphill areas.

 

Helsinki, ships dock around 20-25.mins out of the city centre. Nice walk by the ocean or thru residential area. Flat walk.

 

[colsky]

6 minutes ago, Norwaylady said:

 

Hello!

 

I was on the sailing before, 1-8.may.

There are no restrictions in ports of call in this itinerary as of now, but you never know what the future brings...

So its just to ping out of the ship, and off you go. 

No screening or other things to pass. 

 

They have a shuttle for fee in Tallinn, Helsinki and Stockholm.

If you walk out of the port in Stockholm, you can take the local bus. From Frihamnen were the ship docks in Stockholm its 2,5km to ABBA, Vasamuseum and Djurgården bridge. The walk is thru a park area and embassy street. (I'm a walker and this is easy peasy for a sporty person;) 

 

Tallinn, they have a shuttle or you can walk 10-15.min to the gate to the old city. Its clearly marked and signs. Its a flat walk. But be careful in the city centre, all cobblestone and uneven surface. Narrow stairs and uphill areas.

 

Helsinki, ships dock around 20-25.mins out of the city centre. Nice walk by the ocean or thru residential area. Flat walk.

 

You say just ping off the ship, and off you go.  Is this whatever your vaccination status?  So can a family that includes unvaccinated under 12's leave the ship independently now?

[Norwaylady]

25 minutes ago, colsky said:

You say just ping off the ship, and off you go.  Is this whatever your vaccination status?  So can a family that includes unvaccinated under 12's leave the ship independently now?

  That question is not possible for me to answer. Since in didn't  travel by children last week.

 

What I know from all countrys that you visit, is that they dont require children to be vaccinated. 

I counted around 5-10 children last week onboard. They were between 9mnd-12years old ish. 

A family were walking free in Stockholm, I walked behind them for a while.....  so can't say yes or no to what applies.

 

They did a test off all children onboard, its complementary/no fee, but obligatory to do for the child when unvaccinated. 

[marielco]

@Norwaylady I asked your question at the Flowrider.  They said you must be bare foot no water shoes or socks allowed. 

[LinRon3]

On 5/9/2022 at 6:27 AM, marielco said:

At sea today. Lovely and sunny but chilly breeze on deck, need a jacket.  Captain warned weather may change tomorrow, we may get rain in Stockholm. 

 

it is a long walk to city center from where we dock. They are running a shuttle service every 30 minutes tomorrow into Stockholm. First shuttle 10am last shuttle 4pm.  As we are staying overnight I would have thought they could run the shuttle later.  It is $20 for the day.  The shuttle drops you off at the Royal Opera house in the city.  On Wednesday it will start earlier at 8.30 am but finish at 3pm. 
 

I bought the basic one device internet package for e mail etc… it is hopeless.  Complained and the gent at the WiFi table - end of Promenade by Guest Services - told me they are “having problems”   RC officer then told me good around ship but not good in cabin because “closed space”.  I said not told that when paying!  He would not admit they had a problem. Eventually he did upgrade me to the more expensive faster streaming package without any extra payment.  Happy with this until I got back to cabin.  Some improvement but still very poor, slow and disconnecting intermittently. I’m in the middle. It is far worse than I have ever experienced on RC before. 

See, this is what we feared considering using those eMed test kits for post cruise flight home [ie slow internet].  It's why we have opted to stay a few nights AFTER the cruise and hopefully hotel wifi usable for doing eMed.  Other than that, we suppose 'Falck' our best option? Thank you so much for this thread BTW.  EXTREMELY useful [we're on June 5 Voyager].

[Norwaylady]

1 minute ago, marielco said:

@Norwaylady I asked your question at the Flowrider.  They said you must be bare foot no water shoes or socks allowed. 

Thank you! Then I will bring the news to my better part🤓

[marielco]

Took the Hop on Hop off red bus into the city this morning.  The weather was warm and sunny about 17c The full tour took about 2 hours a bit too long buys a good way to get to the various places of interest.
 

 Anyone interested in shopping there is a big shopping area in the city city Center with a long pedestrian street filled with all sorts of shops. Stockholm is built on 4 islands so lots of water and parks.  There is a lot of building going on and a very extensive transport project. Reminds me of Boston’s big dig though probably not quite as big!

Almost everyone in Sweden speaks English they start learning it at 7. Most go on to learn another foreign language, French, German, Spanish et..

Sweden is a secular state, discovered on the tour only 9% of Swedes espouse a religion.  So not many churches around.  As in Copenhagen it is noticeable how well the people of Stockholm dress.  They are masters of smart casual. Torn jeans here are not a fashion statement just a sign you need a new pair.  Baseball caps are not a thing. If you are wearing one you are almost sure to be a tourist ! 

[flamingos]

6 hours ago, marielco said:

as we had tickets for the opera in the evening (Aida)

I am so jealous! We try to go to the opera houses of any city we visit, and they are dark the evening we are there. 

 

We are booked on a half day tour that will take us to the Vasa museum, as that restored ship fascinates us (if you are ever in Portsmouth, England, go see that Mary Rose. It's Henry VII's flagship that sank in the harbor in 1545.  They restored that ship using the methods they learned from the restoration of the Vasa.   Thanks for the ideas for the rest of the time in port.

 

[xxHadleyxx]

On 5/8/2022 at 3:38 PM, astangenes said:

Thanks for your live update. I really appreciate it. 
Will be sailing on Voyager by the end of this month. Look forward to updates 🙂

Concerned about they asked for Covid documents by paper. In Denmark we have all vaccine documents/Corona passports on app. 

You'll be fine.  I used my digital cov pass app from Germany fir boarding in both Fort Lauderdale and Barcelona.   They just want to see the documentation in person and not just having previously uploaded it (whether on paper like in the USA, or digital qr codes like we have in Europe)

[Norwaylady]

Hopefully @marielco is enjoying the sail out of Stockholm🤩😎☀️
 

I did make a Timelapse of the sail-in and out of Stockholm on my cruise 1-8.may. 
 

It will give a good teaser of what to expect🙃

[lionheart]

5 hours ago, Norwaylady said:

 

Hello!

 

I was on the sailing before, 1-8.may.

There are no restrictions in ports of call in this itinerary as of now, but you never know what the future brings...

So its just to ping out of the ship, and off you go. 

No screening or other things to pass. 

 

They have a shuttle for fee in Tallinn, Helsinki and Stockholm.

If you walk out of the port in Stockholm, you can take the local bus. From Frihamnen were the ship docks in Stockholm its 2,5km to ABBA, Vasamuseum and Djurgården bridge. The walk is thru a park area and embassy street. (I'm a walker and this is easy peasy for a sporty person;) 

 

Tallinn, they have a shuttle or you can walk 10-15.min to the gate to the old city. Its clearly marked and signs. Its a flat walk. But be careful in the city centre, all cobblestone and uneven surface. Narrow stairs and uphill areas.

 

Helsinki, ships dock around 20-25.mins out of the city centre. Nice walk by the ocean or thru residential area. Flat walk.

 

The Helsinki shuttle any idea where it dropped people off by? Stockman department store 

[Norwaylady]

54 minutes ago, lionheart said:

The Helsinki shuttle any idea where it dropped people off by? Stockman department store 

 

They stopped at Makasiini terminaali. Its in the city centre 2.mins from Salutorget were the ferry to Suomenlinna/Sveaborg goes from and the sightseeing cruises.

Its about 10.min walk to Stockman department store. 

[HankaM]

2 hours ago, Norwaylady said:

Hopefully @marielco is enjoying the sail out of Stockholm🤩😎☀️
 

I did make a Timelapse of the sail-in and out of Stockholm on my cruise 1-8.may. 
 

It will give a good teaser of what to expect🙃

Sailing into Stockholm is my main impetus for taking this Baltic cruise.  Back in 1999 close to Christmas time, I was living in Helsinki and I took a mini-vacation to see Copenhagen, Oslo and Stockholm. I travelled by night-ferry and lived out of a duffel bag. I woke up early after a very stormy night, took a shower and went up for breakfast. The view from the dining room at the front of that “small” car ferry as we sailed in to Stockholm was phenomenal!  There are certain events in life that we never forget and this was one of them. I was not expecting it, like the readers here might be. In my minds eye, I see the rising Sun, clear blue skies, calm waters, tall steep hills rising out of the sea, and these huge cruise ships towering over us, confounding my comprehension of how they can maneuver their turns around the islands without hitting something.  It took my breath away. And ever since that moment I have wanted to return and relive it.  This time, I am doing it in style!  I realize I may not experience the same sense of grandeur that I felt that morning, but I will be able to share an adventure with my husband, my stepson, and our 11-year old daughter.  I hope that for them it will be something they never forget. 

[Weinwalk]

On 5/10/2022 at 7:52 AM, pretzlaff said:

...

 

We brought our own Binax tests.  Trouble was that the wifi was so poor the sea day before debarkation, that we tested at 5:30 am when we docked.  I used my ipad on the cell towers to get a solid signal.

Is there cell signal only at docking? Or is it possible to have cell service while cruising from Dover to Amsterdam? 
Thanks!

[LinRon3]

On 5/9/2022 at 5:08 PM, ckmommy said:

Hi!!  Yes I am from Cypress, TX--we live near Cypress Ranch HS!  You will be getting off the ship as we are getting on!  Too bad it is not the sail sailing for both of us.  Looking so forward to this trip.  We are going with our family of 7, meeting my parents and my sister, her husband and 2 of her kids.  

If the testing requirements were gone for at least coming home, I feel I could get more excited for this cruise!  Crossing my fingers!!

Wow...family of 7!  We're busting from anxiety on covid testing to get back home, and we're only 2, ha. Stories of long lines at the airport disheartening.  We've opted to stay a few nights in Copenhagen and use hotel wifi and use the Binax eMed tests.  We'll be following intently how everyone fares on all this covid stuff.  Best of luck to everyone [and no airport sleepovers or extended stays].