The 2010 Baltic Thread--Cruise Tips and Planning

[Rogillio]

RUN AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER WHEN YOU HIT LATE NIGHT PANIC MODE! I'm not sure if there is or isn't a cap or if this was worth it. I do know the London Pass website on sale was more expensive than visitbritainshop is. I keep calling the listed phone number and it says the line is busy, call back later. I'm disappointed in myself, but I need to move on. Thank you again for everyone's help and sorry about the whining. If you are in London the week before the cruise, you will know it is us as we will be the crazy family running from activity to activity.

Keep in mind you get the guidebook and you to avoid waiting in lines. That alone could make the card worth it. In the grand scheme of things, the $15 dollars you saved or didn't save on the pass is no big deal. How much is this vacation costing you?

And you won't be the only family running around like mad-tourists trying to get all we can out of your time in London!

We've already decided we're going to run ourselves ragged in London...and we take comfort that we have a sea day on Sunday where we can sleep late and recover from jet lag and lack of sleep etc.

 

[Cptjackandcrew]

Keep in mind you get the guidebook and you to avoid waiting in lines. That alone could make the card worth it. In the grand scheme of things, the $15 dollars you saved or didn't save on the pass is no big deal. How much is this vacation costing you?

And you won't be the only family running around like mad-tourists trying to get all we can out of your time in London!

We've already decided we're going to run ourselves ragged in London...and we take comfort that we have a sea day on Sunday where we can sleep late and recover from jet lag and lack of sleep etc.

Thanks for the pep talk! It is going to be an amazing vacation and you are right, the London Pass was only pennies (pence) in the scheme of things.

 

[Arizona Rita]

I really liked the portofolios that the kids got. DD liked it, DS wasnt into it but when I scrapped that trip I keep going back to it for info.
Did anyone see the "box" that was given on the EBTA cruise this past time?
Very nice box, but how do we get it home?
Maybe they will have something different for the Baltics.

 

[xangav]

I want one too
How wasted is this on the kids

Ok, I'm sure there are some kids out there that will have a great time with this, just not sure if my DD will be up for it
I may have an extra one if she doesn't want it.

It's not a waste, just that mine didn't quite appreciate it as much as I did! It's great if your kids get bored on the bus ride to an excursion and I think it is better for the younger ages.

I liked it because I took pictures of the pages with the maps and incorporated them into my album when we got home.

 

[Rogillio]

Trying to figure out what to do in each port and realizing that we are really just in each port long enough to get just a sample of each place. Traveling on a cruise ship and seeing different ports of call is kinda like having dinner at the buffet. You get to sample a lot of variety but don't really have time to totally take in anything completely. e.g. Roma and Florence. One could spend several days in each of those places and make a meal out of them...but we got only a little nibble....just a taste. The good side of that is, some things are best to blow in, do a quick look-see and head off to the next place.

I think we'll probably have the best times in St Petersburg and in London as we'll have more time and be able to dive a little deeper.

Töölönlahti Bay, Tuomiokirkko Cathedral....I'm just gonna tape my mouth shut in Helsinki and not even try to pronounciate these words...I have a hard enought time with English.

~Mike

 

[MrsScooby]

this is from their site.. hope it helps clarify....
PASS DURATION , adult cap , child cap
1 Day ; £70 , £40
2 Days ; £140 , £80
3 Days ; £210 , £120
6 Days ; £420 , £240

for us, we got a one day cost = £35 (ordered from VisitBritainShop.. saves a little bit more) so it will save a bit and get us on the fast track for Tower of London. The cap is a bummer and something to look into to make sure you are actually saving money. We are fitting everything we are wanting to do included on the pass onto one day. It will be a busy day but I think we will be fine.

We just got the London Pass for one day and yes we are cramming in as much as we can too. I definitetly didn't want to spend time in long lines if I could help it.
Since we are going before our cruise we will have 2 days to kind of relax and kick back a bit. Wish I had found that VisitBritainshop first and saved some money...but it's bought now so no use agonizing over it-Now I know better for next time.

Does your child like to do the restaurant puzzles on menus? Actually, the book was a puzzle so, that you could earn the mediallion in the center. You had to complete the activities. I thought some were hard for my 5 year old. I'd say the ideal range was 7 to 10 years olds. Even though it was a great keepsake and had interesting facts about the different ports we visited. I thought it was great and not a waste.

No I meant it sounds wonderful and that I wished my kids would appreciate something like this more
I get frustrated with my kids some times and the incredible things they have available to them that they don't appreciate. I did show my DD13 the pictures of the albumn and she did get excited and scolded me for offering to give hers away Now I hope they get one or she is going to be disappointed
I always plan to scrapbook my vacations but have yet to get around to it yet

RUN AWAY FROM THE COMPUTER WHEN YOU HIT LATE NIGHT PANIC MODE! I'm not sure if there is or isn't a cap or if this was worth it. I do know the London Pass website on sale was more expensive than visitbritainshop is. I keep calling the listed phone number and it says the line is busy, call back later. I'm disappointed in myself, but I need to move on. Thank you again for everyone's help and sorry about the whining. If you are in London the week before the cruise, you will know it is us as we will be the crazy family running from activity to activity.

Oops, sorry about this. If it makes you feel better you are not alone

Keep in mind you get the guidebook and you to avoid waiting in lines. That alone could make the card worth it. In the grand scheme of things, the $15 dollars you saved or didn't save on the pass is no big deal. How much is this vacation costing you?

And you won't be the only family running around like mad-tourists trying to get all we can out of your time in London!

We've already decided we're going to run ourselves ragged in London...and we take comfort that we have a sea day on Sunday where we can sleep late and recover from jet lag and lack of sleep etc.

Ditto

Trying to figure out what to do in each port and realizing that we are really just in each port long enough to get just a sample of each place. Traveling on a cruise ship and seeing different ports of call is kinda like having dinner at the buffet. You get to sample a lot of variety but don't really have time to totally take in anything completely. e.g. Roma and Florence. One could spend several days in each of those places and make a meal out of them...but we got only a little nibble....just a taste. The good side of that is, some things are best to blow in, do a quick look-see and head off to the next place.

I think we'll probably have the best times in St Petersburg and in London as we'll have more time and be able to dive a little deeper.

Töölönlahti Bay, Tuomiokirkko Cathedral....I'm just gonna tape my mouth shut in Helsinki and not even try to pronounciate these words...I have a hard enought time with English.

~Mike

Oh, yeah, I've got a copy of Rick Steve's Scandinavian guide and the John Lawrence Baltic DVD and have picked out the things I hope my family will like in each port. Also looking forward to St Petersburg the most
I keep having to remind myself and my DH (now that he is starting to get interested) that we need to prioritize the sites we want to visit -certainly not enough time to see everything that is worth seeing, but still thrilling

 

[Cptjackandcrew]

this is from their site.. hope it helps clarify....
PASS DURATION , adult cap , child cap
1 Day ; £70 , £40
2 Days ; £140 , £80
3 Days ; £210 , £120
6 Days ; £420 , £240

for us, we got a one day cost = £35 (ordered from VisitBritainShop.. saves a little bit more) so it will save a bit and get us on the fast track for Tower of London. The cap is a bummer and something to look into to make sure you are actually saving money. We are fitting everything we are wanting to do included on the pass onto one day. It will be a busy day but I think we will be fine.

I can't find this on the London Pass website, but did you notice if the 420 pound cap is for the week or is it 70 pounds per day? Thanks.

 

[ktkspider]

I can't find this on the London Pass website, but did you notice if the 420 pound cap is for the week or is it 70 pounds per day? Thanks.

Check under "How Does the London Pass work?" on the London Pass website. the 420 pound cap is for the 6 day pass. I read it as, when your cap is met the card is no longer valid. so if you use all of the 420 pounds the first day (impossible I would imagine) it would no longer be a valid pass. but you have 420 pound cap for the 6 day period whichever comes first.

Don't beat yourself up too much. If we use the full 70 pound cap (for our one day) we will still get into all of our places at 1/2 price. not such a bad deal when you look at it that way. (Pd 35 pounds/70pounds of free) even if you paid a little more it is still "almost" 1/2 price

 

[Cptjackandcrew]

Check under "How Does the London Pass work?" on the London Pass website. the 420 pound cap is for the 6 day pass. I read it as, when your cap is met the card is no longer valid. so if you use all of the 420 pounds the first day (impossible I would imagine) it would no longer be a valid pass. but you have 420 pound cap for the 6 day period whichever comes first.

Don't beat yourself up too much. If we use the full 70 pound cap (for our one day) we will still get into all of our places at 1/2 price. not such a bad deal when you look at it that way. (Pd 35 pounds/70pounds of free) even if you paid a little more it is still "almost" 1/2 price

I don't know how I missed that cap as it is plain as day. It's the same philosophy as Disney's multi-day pass. The more you play the less you pay. Thank you once again.

 

[MrsScooby]

Just started watching the John Lawrence Baltic DVD last night. It is still pictures with a commentary. It is 5 hours total, but we are doing one port a night to break it up a bit. So far Oslo was good Nice to see pics of everything that I am reading about and my DH listens better to the DVD than he does to me

This was recomended by a fellow Diser on our thread-thanks Scrapycruiser

You can find it by google if anyone else wants one.

 

[scrapycruiser]

Just started watching the John Lawrence Baltic DVD last night. It is still pictures with a commentary. It is 5 hours total, but we are doing one port a night to break it up a bit. So far Oslo was good Nice to see pics of everything that I am reading about and my DH listens better to the DVD than he does to me

This was recomended by a fellow Diser on our thread-thanks Scrapycruiser

You can find it by google if anyone else wants one.

Laurie, From one Virginian to another, glad you're enjoying the DVD. Wouldn't it be nice to have him as a CD on DCL instead of Princess ! We let our son and dau-in-law borrow it. They'll be on the cruise with us. Getting sooooo excited !!

 

[MrsScooby]

Laurie, From one Virginian to another, glad you're enjoying the DVD. Wouldn't it be nice to have him as a CD on DCL instead of Princess ! We let our son and dau-in-law borrow it. They'll be on the cruise with us. Getting sooooo excited !!

So funny how many people from Virginia are on these Baltic cruises
Just finished Copehagen tonight. Gotta get some stair climbing in so I can climb some of these buildings

Getting very excited about this trip

 

[cindy18]

So funny how many people from Virginia are on these Baltic cruises
Just finished Copehagen tonight. Gotta get some stair climbing in so I can climb some of these buildings

Getting very excited about this trip

We got and made our way through the John Lawrence CD as well. It was definitely helpful and worth the purchase. I scribbled notes on each port. We have the Rick Steves Scandanavia book, but I haven't made the time to sit and work through it to figure out exactly what we want to do and how. Hoping that between those two travel guides and this thread (and others), we'll figure it out!

 

[DL1957]

So funny how many people from Virginia are on these Baltic cruises
Just finished Copehagen tonight. Gotta get some stair climbing in so I can climb some of these buildings

Getting very excited about this trip

Are we (DH, DS BIL and I) the only ones from VA on the 6/12 Cruise???

 

[aurorafan65]

DVR alert - tomorrow on the Travel Channel is Samantha Brown Passport to Europe Helsinki & Stockholm - they're on at noon Eastern

 

[MrsScooby]

We got and made our way through the John Lawrence CD as well. It was definitely helpful and worth the purchase. I scribbled notes on each port. We have the Rick Steves Scandanavia book, but I haven't made the time to sit and work through it to figure out exactly what we want to do and how. Hoping that between those two travel guides and this thread (and others), we'll figure it out!

I used a highlighter on the Rick Steves book on the info I wanted and also on the sides of the pages of the sections related to the sites in the specific ports we wanted-made it easier to find things that way.
I also check with tripadvisor alot too.
Having fun planning this

Are we (DH, DS BIL and I) the only ones from VA on the 6/12 Cruise???

Have you checked your cruisemeet thread yet? That would be the place I would try first.

DVR alert - tomorrow on the Travel Channel is Samantha Brown Passport to Europe Helsinki & Stockholm - they're on at noon Eastern

Cool
Thanks for the headsup

 

[cindy18]

I used a highlighter on the Rick Steves book on the info I wanted and also on the sides of the pages of the sections related to the sites in the specific ports we wanted-made it easier to find things that way.
I also check with tripadvisor alot too.
Having fun planning this


Have you checked your cruisemeet thread yet? That would be the place I would try first.



Cool
Thanks for the headsup

Thanks for the suggestions on attacking the Rick Steves book. I think it's going to look pretty worn by the time we're done with it! And DH has been instructed to tape the Samantha Brown Stockholm episode for weekend viewing!

 

[MickeyWatch]

I took the Rick Steves book out of the library yesterday and found so much good information in it that I ordered the book on Amazon today. Now I can mark it up and not worry about defacing library property.
I am going to set my DVR for the travel channel tomorrow. Thanks for the heads up.

 

[NancyIL]

I just returned from a 2.5-week vacation yesterday, so I didn't know about the Baltic cruise price reduction until I returned. DCL is finally offering a price I would be willing to pay for their Baltic cruise, but I am already committed to another Europe cruise with my daughters. While I wouldn't have booked a balcony cabin in the first place, it would sure be worth the mega-bucks to give up a pricier cabin for the cat. 12, and get my butt to an outside deck to view the sailing into and out of Oslo and Stockholm! The price difference may be only money to some, but it would mean another cruise for me.

 

[RJAYL]

I took the Rick Steves book out of the library yesterday and found so much good information in it that I ordered the book on Amazon today. Now I can mark it up and not worry about defacing library property.
I am going to set my DVR for the travel channel tomorrow. Thanks for the heads up.

I have the book I received the Baltic DVD yesterday & have watched Wunermunde & Copenhagen so far!

Watching Wunermunde has me split between hanging around the port & going to Rostock (Barb R U Watching Always Watching) anyway doing it NonDCL.

Copenhagen there is so mutch to do & see I will use Wise guy terminology (Forget About It!) I think I will stick with DCL & do Tivoli & the sightseeing cruise! then I have free time if I want to do or see or drink anything else!