Northern Europe/Baltic cruise with kids?

[Snyders22000]

Has anyone done the Northern Europe Baltic itinerary with kids- especially kids under age 10? We are considering the 11 night Northern Europe/Baltic DCL 2018 cruise that visits Amsterdam, Berlin, Stockholm, Helsinki, Tallin, and St. Petersburg. Our kids will be 9,8, and 5. We've done the 11 night DCL Iceland/Norway cruise 2 years ago with kids and loved it but I'm wondering how younger kids enjoy the sights/excursions of Northern Europe (more museums, palaces, historical sights, etc) vs the more natural sights/excursions of our last Iceland/Norway cruise. I would love to visit these ports but wonder how other kids my kids ages have enjoyed/appreciated them?

If you have been, what were some of your kids favorite sights/excursions. Any input would be much appreciated!

 

[PurplePencil]

If you plan to do the Baltic, I highly suggest a private tour in St. Petersburg, the DCL excursions aren't as interesting and custom as a private tour can be, and it eases the stress of trying to navigate the visa process on your own

 

[cruiser21]

I'm sure your kids will have fun. Appreciate the sights...hmm not so sure. Do kids really appreciate traveling? I don't think I appreciated the traveling I got to do as a kid until I was an adult and then I realized how fortunate I was. That being said if it's something you'd like to do go for it. I can't imagine any kid not enjoying an 11 night DCL cruise.

 

[Snyders22000]

I'm sure your kids will have fun. Appreciate the sights...hmm not so sure. Do kids really appreciate traveling? I don't think I appreciated the traveling I got to do as a kid until I was an adult and then I realized how fortunate I was. That being said if it's something you'd like to do go for it. I can't imagine any kid not enjoying an 11 night DCL cruise.

True! It's so hard to know what will inspire kids. I don't need them to necessarily appreciate it in the sense of understanding it's full historical significance at a young age. Although we would of course try to use it as a learning opportunity to expand their knowledge. More like- are there tours/guides of some of the famous historical sights that can help make it more accessible to kids.


I know from our trip to London 2 years ago we toured Hampton Court and learned about Henry VII and the history of that time period. They had cloaks the kids could borrow to dress up in, storytellers in period wear acting out parts of history, beautiful gardens to explore, etc. My 8 year old was very interested and still talks about it 2 years later and shows an interest in historical fiction from that time frame. And we saw some Viking ships in Norway which interested my 6 year old and he has wanted to read books and learn more about the Vikings since we got home. In Scotland we visited But I'm wondering if sights like the Berlin Wall and Catherine's Palace in St Petersburg will be kid friendly sights to visit with tours that are kid friendly (I'm sure the DCL tours are kid friendly but we usually like to branch off and go with private tours) or if the tours will be too long and dense.

I am probably overthinking this, but just would love to hear from someone who has been with kids our age and what their experience was like. And if you have a particular excision or private tour that kids especially enjoyed I'd love to hear about it!

 

[janiebubble]

I did the Northern Europe this year, we don't have kids but there see,ed to be plenty of options that would work for children. I have a trip report that gives you an idea of what we did, but the seaplane museum in Tallin was really kid friendly, there is Tivoli in Copenhagen, reindeer excursions in Helsinki, outdoor Skansen museum in Stockholm ... lots of options! I wouldn't rule it out. People in our fb cruise group with children found many activities they enjoyed

 

[jrabbit]

• Berlin = a very long day. 13+ hours. About 3 hour train ride each direction. Seemed like they were mostly "bus tours" with a few stops.
• St. Petersburg: Hermitage I think the art would be lost on the kids. Catherines Palace - again lots of rooms with art, but we had some time on the grounds after the tour of the palace. Peterhoff - Too Much Fun!!! All of those fountains!!! And then there was the "inside" tour again, lots of gold and art again.
• Tallinn: I know that they had Kid Friendly tours. We did a walking tour and got to go up in one of the towers. Loved It.
• Stockholm: There is the "outdoor" museum that shows how life was (Skansen) , and close by is the recovered sunken ship - the Vasa. And who can resist ABBA! It seems to me that there were several kid friendly tours to palaces in Stockholm.
• Helsinki: the Russian Orthodox church is beautiful, the Lutheran Church is interesting (but "boring" in comparison - so stop by here first ) - and then there's the Church of the Rock (we unfortunatly didn't make it there) that I understand is pretty cool. Or for a non DCL excursion, go out to Suomenlinna Island - an island with an old fortress and other museums. If its a nice day, it's a great place to walk around (and let the kids run) for several hours.

As for me, I'm not sure that I would attempt this cruise with a 5 year old (BUT my kids are about 30, so that makes me "old"). There will be a lot of long days. Berlin I WOULD go with the ships tour (66% of the ship was on DCL excursions to Berlin - they will NOT leave without you!!). St Petersburg - either ship or private tour group - you don't want to have to deal with the visa issue on your own (and the expense of those). Tallinn, Stockholm and Helsinki you could do on your own if you want.

My recommendation would be to get the Rick Steves guidebooks for the countries / cities you are visiting. He now has books on cruising to Europe so that could be a resource as well. Additionally, he has a travel show on PBS (and DVD's). These will help you decide what you really want to see and do.

and finally, Have fun planning and have a great trip!

 

[belac]

It depends on your children. Will they like the ship... yes if they did before. Will they like the cultural ports... depends on their personalities. My DS, 8 at the time, had us all over when we visited Europe. Wonderful thing the IPad. He would look the country up and pick things he wanted to see, and yep we saw. So why not ask them and show them on the computer some things and see how interested they are.

I also add that our DS had us out and about from 8am to 8pm daily so again depends on the kids. (this was land based trip)
You are the best judge on what they can and can not handle.

 

[o&smom]

Did the shorter version with kids 10 and 5 a couple of years ago. Great cruise for our whole family!

Tallin Sea plane museum by taxi with lunch in their cafe. Taxi to palace at upper end of town. Leisurely stroll through old town down to the ship with a stop at a cafe for dessert treats and hot chocolate.

St Petersburg We chose the "shopping excursion" to get us into town. We walked to the Church on the Spilled Blood and were some of the first in when it opened - only about 20 other people in the church with us! We walked along the canal and enjoyed a caviar tasting, vodka tasting, borscht and stroganoff and then some souvenir shopping before meeting the bus back to the port. My husband and I did the evening private tour of the Hermitage with a lovely concert before returning to the ship and enjoying a midnight snack at Cabanas with the kids while we pulled out of port.

Helsinki we took a taxi to the Church in the Rock and then walked down a couple of blocks to a natural history museum where we also had a light lunch. We walked through town and enjoyed some fresh strawberries from a street vendor and enjoyed other landmarks.

Stockholm We took a taxi to Junibakken near Skansen and the Viking museum. The kids loved the Astrid Lindgren play wonderland. We spent WAY more time here than we expected to and also a enjoyed a very yummy lunch in their wonderful cafe. We spent a little time exploring Skansen before grabbing a taxi back to the ship.

You will all have so much fun! Enjoy!

 

[Mommb]

With planning, you can find interesting activities for kids on your own. In Tallin, Helsinki, and Stockholm, the ship will dock within a short bus ride of the main tourist area.

In many European ports, Disney has an excursion in which kids have an activity geared toward them while adults can do something more geared to them. These tend to be pricey, but would provide a way for the adults to see sights or do activities that are less kid-friendly. We didn't do any of those in the Baltic, because my kids were 12 and 16 and old enough to go where my husband and I went.

Several of the established tour companies in St. Petersburg have tours designed explicitly for families, and if you get a tour for just your group you can customize it however you want.

If your kids have done well with previous travel, then they should be fine in Northern Europe. They may not like everything, but they should find plenty that will engage them.

 

[KashasMom]

We did a 13 night last year (RCI) with our daughter who just turned 7 at the time. We mixed up our excursions (all private) and had a great time. We were constantly on the go (only 1 sea day) and I think my daughter held up better than some of the adults.

I highly recommend TJ Travels for St. Petersburg. We did 3 days with them - great experience. We used them for Warnemünde as well and took the train to Schwerin (Palace) and Rostock. Berlin is just too far and we really didn't want to spend all those hours traveling from the port to Berlin.

We spent an extra night in Stockholm and explored the city (walking tours), went to the Vasa Museum, did an Under the Bridges boat ride, etc. All very family friendly. In Helsinki we took a bus and the subway - went to the Church of the Rock, the Cathedral, and a great market on the waterfront. We did a walking tour in Tallin - very interesting - a great city to explore.

Didn't go to Amsterdam on the cruise but it's a good city with kids - the canal boat rides are fun, there are great museums (possibly not age appropriate for your kids), interesting markets, etc. Another option if you have time is to see/explore the windmills in Zaanse Schans. Definitely a fun day for kids.

 

[Ladybugx87]

We did the 7 night with 2 and 7 year olds. We enjoyed it. Only thing for us that others said we missed was evening in SPB. We chose to come back to ship and enjoy ship as a family.

I say go for it.

 

[aggiedog]

Mom of 4 here. Let's face it, until a kid has gone thru World History, they're not going to "appreciate" the experience that way adults do. Get them young enough, they won't even remember you were there. That is not a reason not to bring them, though. We've traveled a lot with our kids, and have always been able to find a good mix of activities to keep everyone satisfied. We did the Baltic 2 years ago, and like a PP listed, there are lots of things kids would like. When we travel, we also do some things the adults want to do, and the kids know that just the way it is. For every Hermitage, there is a Cat Museum. For every history discussion there is a gelato stop, etc.

We definitely prefer private or small group tours to DCL/cruise line tours. More flexible to work with the kids and what we all want to do.

 

[michellekcm]

We did the Baltic 2 years ago with a 6 year old and a 2 year old. We did all DCL excursions. They were :

St Petersburg: The basic sightseeing during the day and the river sight-seeing at night. The night one was fun with singing and dancing and the kids enjoyed that.

Tallin: we walked around Old Town ourselves and the kids enjoyed bits of that. They did the tram ride through Old Town which they loved, just be careful of the Gypsies that jump on during the ride. As an aside, my husband and I did the KGB Museum tour here while my mum took the kids back to the ship. That was an awesome tour - DCL doesn't do it you have to book it yourself.

Stockholm: we did the Skansen Open Air Museum and the Astrid Lindgren Museum excursion. My kids loved both of these places.

Helsinki: we did the basic sightseeing tour. None of us enjoyed that one that much.

 

[lorenni]

For every Hermitage, there is a Cat Museum. For every history discussion there is a gelato stop

This right here is just a formula for good living! Well done.

 

[bibbidibobbidibecky]

We have the 11 night booked for next summer. Our kids will be quite a bit older than yours (14, 13 and 10) BUT, we started doing European cruises with them when the youngest was 3. I ALWAYS find something kid-friendly to do in a city. And most of the museums we have visited have a kid's audio guide or a scavenger hunt or something to engage them. I hate when people say not to bring your kids because they won't remember it. They may not remember specifics, but travel and seeing things they learn about in school in person has a lifelong effect on them. I believe travel is the best education we can give our children.

I have already found several things at each port that I think my kids will really have fun doing. Look on Tripadvisor for ideas. We visited Amsterdam last fall with our kids. The Anne Frank House and the Van Gogh Museum would be awesome for your family.

And just promise to stop at the playgrounds every time you pass And YES, gelato!

I do wish there were more trip reports from this summer's sailings. I love to read them!

 

[bibbidibobbidibecky]

St Petersburg We chose the "shopping excursion" to get us into town. We walked to the Church on the Spilled Blood and were some of the first in when it opened - only about 20 other people in the church with us! We walked along the canal and enjoyed a caviar tasting, vodka tasting, borscht and stroganoff and then some souvenir shopping before meeting the bus back to the port.

I saw this on DCL's site and wondered if anyone had done this! We never do DCL excursions, but I always peek at them to get an idea of what to go do on our own. St Petersburg is unique, however, and this looked like a great and cheap way to get into town without buying the visa.

 

[aggiedog]

Any reputable SPB company will do the visa for you if that's what you're worried about. It's part of their fee, and really is just a piece of paper they email you, you print, and hand to the passport control at the pier. We used TJ, but Alla, Anastasia, and Best Guides come up frequently with good reviews. Our tour was the 8 of us, was 12 hours long, and cost less per person than the DCLL sight seeing tour. And we got lunch at a blini joint and dinner at a mom and pop restaurant.

 

[cadien]

We're doing the Baltic in 2019, when our son will have just turned 8. Based on travel we've already done, he'll definitely enjoy it. Medieval is such an easy sell. Just waiting on prices to see whether we do Disney or NCL.

If you do searches on Cruise Critic, there are accounts from people who have gone with their kids.

We're definitely skipping Berlin though. Too much driving and modern history isn't as interesting for the age. Instead we're doing Schwerin Palace.

Helsinki has Suomenlinna Island Fortress and a Lapland excursion with sled dogs.

 

[o&smom]

I saw this on DCL's site and wondered if anyone had done this! We never do DCL excursions, but I always peek at them to get an idea of what to go do on our own. St Petersburg is unique, however, and this looked like a great and cheap way to get into town without buying the visa.

It worked well for us to see some of the city, spend time in the Church of the Spilled Blood and surprise our 11 yr old son with a tasting of real Russian caviar (he fell in love with caviar on our first Disney cruise when he had just turned 7 ). We also got to grab some souvenirs from kiosks along the canal and in a shop right by where we were to meet up for the bus ride back. We pretty much were able to see and do what we had planned, but we did have less time than I had tried to calculate we would have. Our guide was very nice, but she kept us on a very tight schedule; I think to make sure that we were not late for the afternoon group. It worked really well for us with kids who were 5 and 11 at the time. I really wanted to do the full day with a visit to Peterhoff, etc., but that would have just been way too much and not as personable as experience as what we had. We all have fun memories about that time in Russia.

Are you also considering the evening private tour of the Hermitage. It is one of the best memories in my life! My husband and I went alone and left the kids on the ship. There were some people who did bring along their kids, but most of the kids looked miserable. I felt so bad for them, but hope someday they realize what they experienced. Touring with such a small group was amazing. We got to have a special showing of the peacock clock, and the concert made me cry. To be sitting in a beautiful room in a palace, surrounded by art and music being played for us was just magical. They even played the theme from The Little Mermaid movie, so special. We were then led out and down a staircase to glasses of champagne or sparkling cider. When we returned to the ship it was almost midnight. We grabbed our kids from the clubs and went up to a special midnight buffet at Cabanas. We ate and talked about our day while still enjoying the "midnight sun" as we sailed out of port.

 

[bibbidibobbidibecky]

@o&smom We are booked on the 11-night cruise that does an over night in St. Petersburg, so we get two days there. We plan to do a full day private tour to go see Catherine's Palace and the Hermitage and I'm not sure what else yet, but I thought using the "shopping" excursion on our second day would get us the church and some shopping! You sell that evening tour pretty well though! Thanks for the info.