The 2010 Baltic Thread--Cruise Tips and Planning

[Andrew DEREK UK]

I can't believe we leave very soon for Baltic #3... Or the Magic's Farewell Voyage to Helsinki.

Not Farewell, maybe Au revoir.

 

[Flossbolna]

THANKS for posting ! I'm really interested in what you have to say.

Please post more Berlin info,like what to see.

We booked a tour, but are thinking of touring on our own, once we're in the city. Would you advise that since we only have a few hours ? Are most things walkable ? We're ok with the subway if need be.
What will the weather be like late July ? Will it be too hot to walk around ?

Thanks again !

Oh, there is so much to see in Berlin, it is really difficult where to start.

I think wether you want to take a tour or not rather depends on which kind of experience you want: try to see as many things as possible or just experience some highlights, but have more time for them...

A lot of the main sights are walkable, but keep in mind that Berlin was divided for quite some time and therefore has not one main city center, but rather two (also it grew together from two towns).

Most of the main sights however are very close together, the ones that are further away are the Kaiser-Wilhem-Gedächtniskirche, the KaDeWe (Kaufhaus des Westens, the largest department store) and Charlottenburg.

But one can make quite a nice walking tour from the main station (Hauptbahnhof) over a pedastrian walkway to the parliament building (Reichstag) while passing also the chancellor's residence (Bundeskanzleramt) on to the Brandenburger Tor. From there follow the Ebertstraße past the Holocaust memorial to the Potsdamer Platz (the Berlin Wall was standing in the middle of this street), then turn left into the Leipziger Straße where you will pass the former Prussian parliament (which houses today the Federal Assembly). The turn right into the Mauerstraße and follow this to the Friedrichstraße where you have to turn right and walk one block down to Checkpoint Charlie. The turn back on the Friedrichstraße and walk this towards the north (you will then cross again into . Turn right into the Mohrenstraße towards the Gendarmenmarkt (and wave to me when you are there, this is where my office is ). Have a look at the Fassbender and Rausch chocolate shop at the south-west corner of the Gendarmenmarkt. Then turn left onto the Gendarmenmarkt and just cross the square. Continue north on the Markgrafenstraße and then turn right into the Behrenstraße which will lead you to the Bebelplatz. In the middle of that square is a memorial for when the Nazis burned books by authors they did not approve of. You have to look for it, is on the ground: a basement of empty shelves. Then walk Unter den Linden towards the east: you will pass the Opera house, the Humboldt university, the Neue Wache, the German Historical Museum (and many more buildings) and then the Museumsinsel (museum island) and the Deutscher Dom (German cathedral). If you want and have the time, continue to the Alexanderplatz to the TV tower. You can take an elevator to the top and on clear days you will have a wonderful view of Berlin. There is generally a line, but it moves quite well.

Then hop on a bus with the number 100 or 200 and get off at the stop Unter den Linden/Friedrichstr. (or walk Unter den Linden all the way back towards the west), walk a bit further west towards the Brandenburger Tor and have a look at the Pariser Platz (including the US Embassy). Then either walk through the Brandenburger Tor and back to the Hauptbahnhof to get on your train or get into the underground (U-Bahn) U55 to travel to the main station. If you buy a single ticket on the bus it will be valid for the U-Bahn as well.

This is quite a lot of walking. I tried to measure it with google and it seems that one way would be about 3.5 miles to the museum island.

End of July can be really hot, but also cool and rainy. I think anything between 60 and 90°F is possible, most likely somewhere around mid 70s. However, keep in mind that we don't have as much air conditioning here. So most restaurants won't be good places to cool off inside.

Two places which might be nice for lunch along the route outlined above are: Schinkelklause (Unter den Linden 5, east of the Opera House) or Augustiner am Gendarmenmarkt (http://www.augustiner-braeu-berlin.de/), which is Bavarian, so not really that authentic. But my sister tried it and said that it was pretty much the real Bavarian thing (we grew up in Bavaria). The Schinkelklause is more real Berlin food. Oh, and next to the Schinkelklause there is also a very nice cafe with cakes!

And of course if there are any more questions, just ask away!

 

[RJAYL]

Day 2 video posted on cruise critic!



http://www.cruisecritic.com/articles.cfm?ID=1128

 

[Flossbolna]

Me too
Touring with Berlin Walks-doing their Discover Berlin tour. So far we are expecting to just hit the highlights-not enough time to go into the museums.
Anything you can tell us Flossbolna would be greatly appreciated

I have seen lots of advertisement for Berlin Walks here. They seem to be a very popular company.

I think one advantage of taking a tour like this might be that you have someone who puts everything into a context: you don't just see the sights, but learn about the history behind them. And German history is so complex on many levels, not only the Nazi period, but also the creation of the modern German state out of many different kingdoms in 1871, the revolution after WW I, the cold war and then reunification....

I personally like walking tours and I think this might be something I would choose for myself. Taking a bus tour of course you would be able to see much more.

How much time do you have in Berlin?

 

[cindy18]

I have seen lots of advertisement for Berlin Walks here. They seem to be a very popular company.

I think one advantage of taking a tour like this might be that you have someone who puts everything into a context: you don't just see the sights, but learn about the history behind them. And German history is so complex on many levels, not only the Nazi period, but also the creation of the modern German state out of many different kingdoms in 1871, the revolution after WW I, the cold war and then reunification....

I personally like walking tours and I think this might be something I would choose for myself. Taking a bus tour of course you would be able to see much more.

How much time do you have in Berlin?

We are using Berlin Walks and will be there on the 28th of June. We expect to be in Berlin for about 6 hours and agree about the historical element. We found out that our guide is an historian in his low 30s with 2 small children and we have quite a full day planned but are hoping really to get a sense of the city from its extraordinary historical perspective. Thanks very much for sharing your thoughts about the city!

 

[slg]

Is it confirmed that there is only one formal day and one semi-formal? I had packed for one formal and two semis. It'll change up our packing a bit (for a family of 5) if there is only one and one. I thought that villains night was a semi formal as well.

Can anyone report on this who has been on the boat or knows officially? I don't want to take clothes unnecessarily but I also don't not want to take stuff.

Thanks in advance.

 

[cindy18]

I have not been on the boat yet (but will be really soon), but the general view appears to be that the 2nd "semi-formal" night is Villains night, so you can go semi-formal or go as your favorite villain, or something like that. I believe it's the night between Warnemunde and St. Petersburg. The DDs and I are dressing all in black for that evening. I think the semi-formal night is the 11th night, the first of the two sea days that end of the trip. Hope that helps.

 

[slg]

Hi All

Just got this from DCL regarding the dining rotation. Unfortunately they didn't put in which restaurants we'd be in but at least it gives us all an idea about what to pack. I notice there's only one formal and one semi formal night, so only one set of posh clothes needed.

12-Night Northern European Cruise:
*Nights 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12: cruise casual
*Night 2: "formal night" - formal wear for men: tuxedo or suit; for
women: gown or dress
*Night 9: pirate night with deck party - cruise casual or bring your
best pirate outfit!
*Nights 11: "semi-formal night" - semi-formal wear for men: suit/jacket;
for women: dress or pantsuit.
babybear42 is offline Report Post

Someone on my thread posted this so I guess I only have to take two fancy outfits. It doesn't say anything about villains night.

Does this help anyone else? Sigh...packing is so stressful. Its the worst party of travelling for me.

 

[lzj21428]

DH and I were having a "discussion" about the need for passports when getting off the ship in the various ports. I said you only need your passport when in St Petersburg. He thinks we will need them at each port. Does anyone know who is right here?

 

[jilljill]

DH and I were having a "discussion" about the need for passports when getting off the ship in the various ports. I said you only need your passport when in St Petersburg. He thinks we will need them at each port. Does anyone know who is right here?

You only Need to take it off with you in StP, but I take it off in each port for all of us.
If you are someone that will make a large purchase while in port and plan on getting your tax back when leaving the EU then you will need your passport to get the VAT reclaim form filled out.

 

[scrapycruiser]

DH and I were having a "discussion" about the need for passports when getting off the ship in the various ports. I said you only need your passport when in St Petersburg. He thinks we will need them at each port. Does anyone know who is right here?

You are correct, but we always carry a copy of our passport in the other ports and leave our "real one" in the safe in our cabin.

 

[scrapycruiser]

Hi All

Just got this from DCL regarding the dining rotation. Unfortunately they didn't put in which restaurants we'd be in but at least it gives us all an idea about what to pack. I notice there's only one formal and one semi formal night, so only one set of posh clothes needed.

12-Night Northern European Cruise:
*Nights 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 12: cruise casual
*Night 2: "formal night" - formal wear for men: tuxedo or suit; for
women: gown or dress
*Night 9: pirate night with deck party - cruise casual or bring your
best pirate outfit!
*Nights 11: "semi-formal night" - semi-formal wear for men: suit/jacket;
for women: dress or pantsuit.
babybear42 is offline Report Post

Someone on my thread posted this so I guess I only have to take two fancy outfits. It doesn't say anything about villains night.

Does this help anyone else? Sigh...packing is so stressful. Its the worst party of travelling for me.

The 6th night is Villians Night. I read somewhere that that was semi-formal OR Villians costume .

 

[MJGirl]

DH and I were having a "discussion" about the need for passports when getting off the ship in the various ports. I said you only need your passport when in St Petersburg. He thinks we will need them at each port. Does anyone know who is right here?

Hi from the ship ... You will need your passport with you in Stockholm as well!! All passengers had to get off the ship in Stockholm, whether they were on an excursion or not. They stamped your passport in Russia and Sweden. I wish we had more time in Stockholm. I envy the rest of you. To you folks hitting Helsinki, I will say that Porvoo was beautiful. I'm glad I went there!

 

[MJGirl]

Most did not dress up for Villain's night. They did have a villain dance party in the atrium. During the day you could decorate masks, and some wore them to dinner!

 

[mom_rules]

Did they cancel/change the St Petersburg excursion to Hermitage/Catherines Palace?

 

[cindy18]

Most did not dress up for Villain's night. They did have a villain dance party in the atrium. During the day you could decorate masks, and some wore them to dinner!

Great to hear from you MJGirl and thanks for the blog postings!

 

[TDC Nala]

Did they cancel/change the St Petersburg excursion to Hermitage/Catherines Palace?

When she was talking about the royal wedding, that took place in Sweden, not Russia - she meant there was a change to the Stockholm excursion.

Not sure why else you'd want to know if they changed the Hermitage/Catherine's Palace excursion. did you hear about something else going on in Russia?

 

[Andrew DEREK UK]

Have posted before but this will clear up some questions.

Dinner of the Tzar's is St Petes night.

 

[TDC Nala]

Dinner of the Tzar's is St Petes night.

Which one, the first night or the second night?

 

[Andrew DEREK UK]

Which one, the first night or the second night?

I assume the first night, but current Baltic crew can confirm as it was left off this schedule.