You Are Not The First To Pass This Way: 2nd Magic Baltic Cruise, 6/24/2010

[mehaul]

Time/place for MiniMeet and FE sounds great. Never been on the ship, but I'm sure promenade is easy to find. See you then!

On another note, has anyone calculated gratuities for this cruise? Haven't cruised in years, but how much and to whom? Lastly, since Room Service is "free", what is a decent tip?

Thx!

Don't worry they'll tell you what the expected tip amounts are for all the different servers before the cruise is over.

Here is the DCL FAQ link, towards the bottom is a tip calculator

http://www.disboards.com/showthread.php?t=2068966

 

[babym66]

We're joining the 24th Baltic. We were late-booked April 26.

My family is: DH (Jeff) 45, DD (Rachel) 9 and me (Charlene) 45. We live in Dallas, TX

DD wants to meet some other girls. It's always more fun with kids your own age.

This is our 5th Disney Cruise.

We are staying in London from 6-19 to 6-24.
DD is huge Harry Potter fan.. Doing a HP walking tour in London and a trip to Oxford. Hitting some of the other big London sites.
We will be taking the train to Dover on the 24th.

DH and I have been to St. Petersburg on a Volga River cruise from Moscow to StP in 1996. We can't wait to show our DD, it is amazing!
Wanted to do the Royal Ball but too $$$$!!!
We will probably do a private tour also. We hope to meet another family to share.

After we return to Dover we will be going to Paris, via the ferry & train. Staying in a hotel near the airport and doing a Paris city tour and a day at Disneyland Paris. Returning back to Dallas July 9.

I'm finding that the planning is overwhelming at times but I was able to get some good information from this thread.

We look forward to meeting everyone!

 

[cindy18]

Welcome aboard! Nice to have you. Your DD will definitely find lots of friends. Judging from the ages of the kids in this group, she's going to have lots of company with girls her age. You're lucky to have the time for things in London and Paris before and after. We are flying in the morning of the cruise (I know, dicey) and flying out the evening we get back. 2 weeks of vacation at one time is about all I can manage!

 

[jarudinski]

We're joining the 24th Baltic. We were late-booked April 26.

Welcome aboard.

My family is: DH (Jeff) 45, DD (Rachel) 9 and me (Charlene) 45. We live in Dallas, TX

I have two daughters 11 & 6 and we are right around the corner from you in Keller, Tx (closer to Fort Worth). How exciting is that =)

DD wants to meet some other girls. It's always more fun with kids your own age.

This is our 5th Disney Cruise.

We are staying in London from 6-19 to 6-24.

We are heading to Dublin on 6-19 and then to London 6-22 to 6-24, we using the DCL transpotation to grt to Dover, though.

DD is huge Harry Potter fan.. Doing a HP walking tour in London and a trip to Oxford. Hitting some of the other big London sites.
We will be taking the train to Dover on the 24th.

DH and I have been to St. Petersburg on a Volga River cruise from Moscow to StP in 1996. We can't wait to show our DD, it is amazing!
Wanted to do the Royal Ball but too $$$$!!!
We will probably do a private tour also. We hope to meet another family to share.

After we return to Dover we will be going to Paris, via the ferry & train. Staying in a hotel near the airport and doing a Paris city tour and a day at Disneyland Paris. Returning back to Dallas July 9.

We area also going to paris after the cruise and are leaving on the the 10th.

I'm finding that the planning is overwhelming at times but I was able to get some good information from this thread.

We look forward to meeting everyone!

 

[parkaroo]

babym66 we are going to Paris via ferry and train also. Have you had luck planning a time for ferry departure? I am not sure what to plan so we don't get to paris too late.

 

[macassi]

The MiniMeet time sounds great!

We are looking forward to it. I'm booking the dog sitter and already worrying about what to pack.

 

[cindy18]

OK, so last weekend I tackled Oslo (we're thinking about just waiting until we dock to buy the pass -- unless people think we'll really save time by buying it now and just picking it up when we dock) and this weekend I tackled Stockholm. The big question mark is how we get into town from the dock, since the #76 bus appears not to run. A taxi doesn't sound like a bad idea (I'm reading approximately $26 to the center) but I can't figure out whether there will be shuttle buses waiting for us and whether that's a good approach. Anyone know anything? Otherwise, it seems like you hit Vasa and Skansen and then ferry to Gamla Stan until you run out of time or energy, and then probably a taxi back to the ship. Sound right? And the Stockholm Card, for sure.

What am I missing?

 

[babym66]

At the end of the cruise, I have two different arrival times 10:30am and 9:30am in Dover. I don't know which is correct. That will determine the ferry we take..I will e-mail Disney
Here is the website I've been using to check ferries. http://www.poferries.com/

 

[ktkspider]

OK, so last weekend I tackled Oslo (we're thinking about just waiting until we dock to buy the pass -- unless people think we'll really save time by buying it now and just picking it up when we dock) and this weekend I tackled Stockholm. The big question mark is how we get into town from the dock, since the #76 bus appears not to run. A taxi doesn't sound like a bad idea (I'm reading approximately $26 to the center) but I can't figure out whether there will be shuttle buses waiting for us and whether that's a good approach. Anyone know anything? Otherwise, it seems like you hit Vasa and Skansen and then ferry to Gamla Stan until you run out of time or energy, and then probably a taxi back to the ship. Sound right? And the Stockholm Card, for sure.

What am I missing?

According to Cruise Critic the bus runs on Saturdays but not on Sundays.. I hope that is the case...

 

[ktkspider]

OK, so last weekend I tackled Oslo (we're thinking about just waiting until we dock to buy the pass -- unless people think we'll really save time by buying it now and just picking it up when we dock) and this weekend I tackled Stockholm. The big question mark is how we get into town from the dock, since the #76 bus appears not to run. A taxi doesn't sound like a bad idea (I'm reading approximately $26 to the center) but I can't figure out whether there will be shuttle buses waiting for us and whether that's a good approach. Anyone know anything? Otherwise, it seems like you hit Vasa and Skansen and then ferry to Gamla Stan until you run out of time or energy, and then probably a taxi back to the ship. Sound right? And the Stockholm Card, for sure.

What am I missing?

You had me worried so I have been searching frantically... Here is what I found plugging in Frihamnan departure and Vasa museum arrival leaving at 8:45 on Saturday the 12 (I know that isn't our date but the furthest out Saturday there was available)...

From: Frihamnen Saturday 12 June approx. 09:06 to Nordiska museet/Vasamuseet approx. 09:26Take Bus 76 from Frihamnen towards Norra Hammarbyhamnen.
Your departure from Frihamnen is at approx. 09:06,
your arrival in Djurgårdsbron is at approx. 09:12.

At Strandvägen change to Bus 44 towards Skansen.
Your departure from Strandvägen is at approx. 09:25.
You arrive in Nordiska museet/Vasamuseet at approx. 09:26.

The duration of your journey is 20 minutes.

Have a nice journey!

So I think we are ok...

 

[TDC Nala]

The big question mark is how we get into town from the dock, since the #76 bus appears not to run.

The info I am getting from Cruise Critic says the 76 bus will run. Where are you hearing that it will not? (There was a Stockholm native on that board that said the bus runs on Saturdays but not Sundays. We are there on a Saturday)

 

[ktkspider]

The info I am getting from Cruise Critic says the 76 bus will run. Where are you hearing that it will not? (There was a Stockholm native on that board that said the bus runs on Saturdays but not Sundays. We are there on a Saturday)

I found a schedule on June 12 (Saturday) bus 76 leaves Frihamnan at 9:06 and takes you to Vasa (transfer in between) so I think we are ok.. I will check again in a couple of weeks when our day is available to check the schedule.

 

[TDC Nala]

I was assuming this #76 bus is continually running (except on Sundays). I also intend to take the same bus back to the ship from Gamla Stan (it does stop there according to the map they put up on cruisecritic). I won't be buying anything ahead of time. Was looking into buying a day pass on location for transportation only (they do not sell this pass ahead of time) as that includes both the bus and the ferry and does not include museum admission as I plan on only the one museum.

The thought was #76 bus to Vasa, ferry to Gamla Stan, bus back to ship.

 

[cindy18]

You guys are super sleuths! I heard on the John Lawrence CD that the #76 bus didn't run on weekends, which I thought meant both Saturday and Sunday. Maybe since he made the CD, they added bus service on the weekends? Were the Cruise Critics posts that you found fairly recent? This would be great!

 

[nfowife]

do you guys know if there is anything special planned for the 4th of July since it is an at-sea day? Just curious!

 

[cindy18]

So DH just nixed the Stockholm Pass. He said that there's no way that we are going to do all the things on my list. When we stepped back and thought about it, I think he's right. I think we're going to wind up spending the morning at Vasa and Skansen and having lunch there, then taking the ferry over to Gamla Stan. Even if we do the Nobel Museum and a few of the churches, given the kids, it won't pay for itself. And I suspect that's all we'll do besides stroll the streets of the Old Town before we need to head back to the ship.

What's sinking in a bit is that we really don't have a lot of time in port....

 

[cindy18]

do you guys know if there is anything special planned for the 4th of July since it is an at-sea day? Just curious!

Haven't heard anything specific, but I think there's an assumption of fireworks...

 

[TDC Nala]

So DH just nixed the Stockholm Pass. He said that there's no way that we are going to do all the things on my list. When we stepped back and thought about it, I think he's right. I think we're going to wind up spending the morning at Vasa and Skansen and having lunch there, then taking the ferry over to Gamla Stan. Even if we do the Nobel Museum and a few of the churches, given the kids, it won't pay for itself. And I suspect that's all we'll do besides stroll the streets of the Old Town before we need to head back to the ship.

What's sinking in a bit is that we really don't have a lot of time in port....

I don't know who John Lawrence is but there is a recent thread on cruisecritic in which one of the posters lives in Stockholm. This person posted a map with the path of the 76 bus plus the path of the HOHO boat which is not really available for us to use because of where we will dock. From Friehamnen the preferred path is to use the 76 bus to Vasa and the ferry to Gamla Stan. They also said the bus runs on Saturdays but not Sundays. I posted a link to their map earlier in the thread but another poster seems to have actually turned up the bus schedule.

We do not have much time in port, but we do have more time in Stockholm than the June 12 cruise, which has to leave Stockholm at 1 PM I believe - due to tidal shifts.

 

[ktkspider]

You guys are super sleuths! I heard on the John Lawrence CD that the #76 bus didn't run on weekends, which I thought meant both Saturday and Sunday. Maybe since he made the CD, they added bus service on the weekends? Were the Cruise Critics posts that you found fairly recent? This would be great!

The post was dated April 2010, and was under "Do you need advice about Stockholm".
But I also found a route using the online Stockholm travel planner http://www.sl.se/Templates/SubStart.aspx?id=1906
It only let you plan about a month out. So I was only able to go out to Saturday, June 12. But there were options for bus 76. I really wish you could just print out a schedule for diff. spots but I haven't been able to find one.
How are the plans coming for Stockholm? We are planning Vasa, Skansen, and Galma Stan then back to the ship... hopefully on bus 76..

 

[cindy18]

TDC Nala: John Lawrence works (or at least worked) for another cruise line and was the line's guru on the Baltics. He put out a DVD that walks through the ports and a visiting route for each. It's a little dry, but it's helpful. My only issue with Rick Steves' book is that he doesn't focus on people arriving in a city by boat, so he's missing some important starting and ending point information.

KTK Spider: sounds like we're following pretty much the same path in Stockholm. Maybe there's an obvious path in each city (although in Copenhagen, I feel like there are a lot of different ways to go, especially depending on what you plan to do about Tivoli Gardens).