Western European vs Northern European with kids

[OffToDWD]

We're debating between the 7 night Western Europe from Barcelona to Dover (Cadiz, Lisbon, Vigo and Cherbourg) and the 7 Night Northern Europe from Copenhagen (Tallinn, St. Petersburg, Helsinki, Stockholm). Any experiences or recommendations? We will have 2 kids. 5 and 10 year olds. We originally considered the Fjords but not sure it's the best fit for the younger kids. Thanks!!

 

[Mommb]

We did the Northern European cruise in 2015 with kids ages 16 and 12. We're doing Western Europe (with Le Havre, Cadiz, and Lisbon) this July. Based on what I saw in the Northern Europe and what I've researched for the Western, the options for younger kids seem better on the Northern Europe cruise.

On the Western European cruise, we're doing walking tours in Cadiz and Lisbon and visiting Mont St Michel because the kids are old enough to appreciate them. Disney has excursions that include a maritime museum or Oceanarium in Lisbon, and a Beekeeper for the Day excursion in Cadiz, but not much else geared to kids. (There are also trips to Disneyland Paris from Le Havre, but those are very expensive.)

In the Baltic, we walked around Tallin on our own but I know Disney did have an excursion specially geared to kids. In St. Petersburg, the palaces are interesting for all ages. We did a private tour -- I know several companies do tours geared specifically for families. In Stockholm, we visited the Vasa museum (with a large ship that sank on its first sailing and is very well preserved) and Skansen, which is an open-air museum with many buildings and petting zoo, among other things. We did a walking tour in Helsinki; I don't remember what options there were for younger kids.

We never considered the Fjords, so I don't know how interesting those would be for kids.

 

[dcassetta]

These are both port intensive. The one advantage the Western has is the sea day before Cherbourg. That would give you a little break from all the touring. I prefer not to do three port days in a row, four is a row would wear me out.

 

[RedSox68]

These are both port intensive. The one advantage the Western has is the sea day before Cherbourg. That would give you a little break from all the touring. I prefer not to do three port days in a row, four is a row would wear me out.

They are both wonderful itineraries -- I guess it would depend on what would most interest your kids. I will tell you that when we did the 10-night med, we had 4 ports in a row and it was tough. The day at sea in-between the next set of ports was a major blessing.

 

[ldo]

N. Europe is the best bet, IMHO and has the following for kids of these ages:
Both easy DIY from the port.
Stockholm: take DCL shuttle or the HO-HO that picks up right at the pier (get SEK for the Ho-Ho (Swedish $$) before you leave the US--they are not on the euro). Take the Ho-HO to downtown and walk around. You can go into the Palace, etc. but the BEST place was the Livrustkammaren. Founded in 1633, it is also Sweden's oldest museum. Set in the palace vaults, this armory isn't just about weapons but displays some of the world's most magnificent state coaches and coronation robes, even the costume worn by Gustav III at a fatal masked ball. (The king was assassinated at the 1792 ball, and the incident inspired Verdi to write his opera The Masked Ball.) They have a free kit that you can borrow for the kids--it is a box with a fake mouse and y ou find clues throughout the museum. My kids (9, 13) spent 2 hours doing this--super fun. They also have a good dress up place, as well. We got the combo Ho-HO ticket and also took a boat tour. We did not have time to see the Viking ship (on the HO-HO bus/boat line).
Tallin--easy to walk from pier to town and they have costumed persons selling nuts, sodas, etc.--very festive. Plus, you can do archery outside the fort with Red Riding Hood type costumed workers. Large square in center of town to get food, etc. Tallin looks like a storybook village from a fairy tale.
Loved the Baltic cruise--St. P was DD9's favorite spot. Long day with private tour. Too much for a 5 year old. This would be a good day to consider leaving him/her at the kids club. Or, taking on one day and leaving the 2nd day.
CPH has TONS to do for kids these ages, including Tivoli.

I have also been on the other cruises. I think kids would like Baltics better. DCL fjords is fine--we did the following: Stavanger-boat ride to fjord, Movie onboard after lunch, Alesund--walk around town, climb 400 stairs (5 years old were climbing) to lookout on mountain, Bergen-funicular to top of mountain and walk down (can b/c of rain), Museum, Hanseatic league museum (old house) with fishing museum (included in ticket--5-10 yr olds would like this a lot--lots of hand on stuff), Geiranger-bus to Mt D and kayaking--you could do panoramic bus to lower lookouts and boat ride instead. for the West, we did the following--Vigo-bus tour to St ?? Cathedral, Portugal-bus tour to Sintra and all around (adults loved it), Cherbourg (we were at a LE Havre) DDay beaches tour and Rouen (too long and too boring for kids your ages, IMHO). Elaine

 

[OffToDWD]

Thank you, everyone!! Elaine & Mommb - appreciate the details on the ports. Extremely helpful. Thank you!!

 

[GrantFam]

Just in case you're still deciding, we recently returned from the May 28 sailing to Northern Europe with a 6 year old and a 4 year old and had an amazing time! We explored each port on our own except for St. Petersburg where we booked a private with Anastasia travel. Both kids enjoyed the cities we visited, but St. Petersburg was a VERY long day for them and they were both asleep before we got back to the port.

We found the cities to be family friendly overall. Museums have children's exhibits and areas that keep them entertained.Also, we found it convenient that each of the ports is relatively close to the city centers and DCL provided free shuttle buses making the trips into the centers about 10 minutes each way. Both of our children enjoyed exploring the cities more than we actually thought they would, lol. In fact, our 4 year old declared that he wished he lived in Stockholm. Overall, it was a fantastic family vacation and we highly recommend the Baltic cruise!

 

[RedSox68]

Just in case you're still deciding, we recently returned from the May 28 sailing to Northern Europe with a 6 year old and a 4 year old and had an amazing time! We explored each port on our own except for St. Petersburg where we booked a private with Anastasia travel. Both kids enjoyed the cities we visited, but St. Petersburg was a VERY long day for them and they were both asleep before we got back to the port.

We found the cities to be family friendly overall. Museums have children's exhibits and areas that keep them entertained.Also, we found it convenient that each of the ports is relatively close to the city centers and DCL provided free shuttle buses making the trips into the centers about 10 minutes each way. Both of our children enjoyed exploring the cities more than we actually thought they would, lol. In fact, our 4 year old declared that he wished he lived in Stockholm. Overall, it was a fantastic family vacation and we highly recommend the Baltic cruise!

Were you happy with Anastasia Tours? We were going to use them in 2010 when we were planning a Baltic cruise, but couldn't go in the end.

 

[GrantFam]

Were you happy with Anastasia Tours? We were going to use them in 2010 when we were planning a Baltic cruise, but couldn't go in the end.

We were very happy with them. The booking process was easy and they were responsive to emails and questions while we planned the itinerary and worked out the details. We received our tickets in advance of the tour with instructions regarding what we would need to bring with us to pass through passport control in St. Petersburg. Our guide was waiting for us when we got off the ship, and we were delivered right back to the terminal at the end of the tour.

 

[RedSox68]

We were very happy with them. The booking process was easy and they were responsive to emails and questions while we planned the itinerary and worked out the details. We received our tickets in advance of the tour with instructions regarding what we would need to bring with us to pass through passport control in St. Petersburg. Our guide was waiting for us when we got off the ship, and we were delivered right back to the terminal at the end of the tour.

Did they obtain the Visa for you?

 

[laceltris3]

Our kids are 11, 8 and 5, and we are doing Northern Europe this year. We are mixing it up on excursions to keep it fun for the kids. In Helsinki, we are going to see the reindeer, which the kids are excited about. In St. Petersburg, we have a full day with the Hermitage and Catherine's Palace for us and the older two. My parents are coming and have already been to SP, so they're taking the 5 year old to a shorter excursion that includes a glass painting activity. He has food allergies so we were worried about the lunch on the full day trip. In Tallin, we are doing a half day excursion that includes the exclusive youth activity so the youth activities staff will keep the kids busy while the adults do a museum. I Stockholm, we are splitting up between the Vasa and the city tour that ends in the Ice Bar, but neither is more than 3 or 4 hours, I believe.

 

[aggiedog]

Did they obtain the Visa for you?

I obviously can't speak for Grantfam, but standard practice is the tour company sends you a secure link to a site where you put your names and passport numbers in. They then email you the visa paperwork which you bring with you when you get off the ship and present with your passport at passport control. If I remember correctly it was just one piece of paper per person. Easy peasy.

We used TJ tours and can't speak highly enough about them either. My kids were 9,12, 15 and loved our Baltic cruise. FWIW, Iceland Air has a stopover deal that lets you spend up to 7 days in Iceland either there or back. We took advantage of that and LOVED Iceland as well.

 

[RedSox68]

I obviously can't speak for Grantfam, but standard practice is the tour company sends you a secure link to a site where you put your names and passport numbers in. They then email you the visa paperwork which you bring with you when you get off the ship and present with your passport at passport control. If I remember correctly it was just one piece of paper per person. Easy peasy.

We used TJ tours and can't speak highly enough about them either. My kids were 9,12, 15 and loved our Baltic cruise. FWIW, Iceland Air has a stopover deal that lets you spend up to 7 days in Iceland either there or back. We took advantage of that and LOVED Iceland as well.

Thanks!

 

[GrantFam]

Did they obtain the Visa for you?

I don't think an actual visa was issued. When we went through passport control, we showed the officer our passports and the tour tickets that we printed at home, our passports were stamped, and we were on our way. Heading back to the ship, we had to go through passport control again. Our passports were stamped a second time and we were then allowed to return to the ship.

 

[PHamrick]

We are headed to the Baltic cruise next summer (August of 2018). We are extending on the front end in the Netherlands and the back end in Copenhagen. There appears to be a HUGE variety of things for kids to do. And, for us, the cities seemed more interesting. We have three families going with 6 kids total: 7, 8, 9, 9, 10 and 11. Some of the things that we have found that are interesting for the kids are:
--painting marzipan in Tallinn
--day tour in SPB (Don't think there is a better way to do it) that includes painting matryoshkas and running around the Peterhoff fountains
--feeding the reindeer in Helsinki
--Vasa museum and outdoor museum in Stockholm (although husband is lobbying hard for the ABBA museum too. I say we can stand on the deck and play ABBA as we arrive in port)
--Tivoli Gardens (the inspiration for Disney) in Copenhagen, Kronborg Castle (the Hamlet Castle)

What I thought made this cruise especially interesting for us is that was a wide variety of things to do that would interest a larger group of people. FWIW, we've got ages from 7 to 70 on this cruise. I can't tell you how excited we are and it is still 14 months away!!!

I'd be happy to share any of our planning if you are interested. I'm waiting another two months for flights to come out!

 

[RedSox68]

I don't think an actual visa was issued. When we went through passport control, we showed the officer our passports and the tour tickets that we printed at home, our passports were stamped, and we were on our way. Heading back to the ship, we had to go through passport control again. Our passports were stamped a second time and we were then allowed to return to the ship.

I love getting stamps in my passport!

 

[aggiedog]

That paper is the "visa."