Thread: Constellation - July 27, 2010 - Baltic and Russia

Looks like I'm going to need to start up another thread! We've decided we're going to be Constellation junkies this year, and somehow we've managed to miss out on these Baltic/Russian cruises in the past, and figured we were about overdue to give this a try.

FWIW: As of the date of this thread, there are still some amazing cabins left. When I went to investigate the possibility of booking this last night, I found that the C1 cabins closest to the Penthouse cabins (6133 and 6134) were available, as was at least one of the adjacent SS cabins (6145 or 6146). I'm wondering if a large group backed out or something -- these cabins are rarely available this close to any European sailing (or most any other, for that matter).

Chris, congratulations on booking this cruise and getting such great cabins! Bob and I loved our Baltic cruise and if either one of us can answer any questions, please let us know.

My favorite ports were Stockholm and Tallinn. Tours aren't necessary for either one of these ports and just walking around was great. When approaching Stockholm be sure to get up really, really early and enjoy the cruise through the archipelago. It's breathtaking and amazing. Tallinn is an old gated city and quite interesting.

We took a private tour for the 2 days we were in St. Petersburg and used Denrus. If you have enough people, it's very cost effective. We had 8 people and tailored the tour to our interests. We had lunch with a Russian family (favorite thing) and even road the Metro.

Garry

Originally Posted by gkm

Chris, congratulations on booking this cruise and getting such great cabins! Bob and I loved our Baltic cruise and if either one of us can answer any questions, please let us know.

Yup - I logged into Celebrity last night, and was shocked to see those cabins as the "sample" selections on the web page for C1 and SS. Needless to say, I called Lori first thing this morning and booked one. Oddly, she didn't see any afts available, but we'll keep a watch.

I think you've been in 6143 or 6144. I'm working from memory, but what I do recall is that 1) the decor is quite different (more wood, or something), and 2) that these cabins were actually wider than normal, and 3) that the verandas, while not as deep as the aft ones, are really big since they run alongside the penthouse suites. Did I get that right?

My favorite ports were Stockholm and Tallinn. Tours aren't necessary for either one of these ports and just walking around was great. When approaching Stockholm be sure to get up really, really early and enjoy the cruise through the archipelago. It's breathtaking and amazing. Tallinn is an old gated city and quite interesting.

Charline lived in Stockholm for a while, and is really looking forward to a return. We also have a good friend who lives in Stockholm (he married us up lo those 28 years ago, and then moved to Sweden), so there's no telling what we might do there.

My knowledge of Estonia, apart from the political history, is nada, so it sounds like I've got some reading to do.

We took a private tour for the 2 days we were in St. Petersburg and used Denrus. If you have enough people, it's very cost effective. We had 8 people and tailored the tour to our interests. We had lunch with a Russian family (favorite thing) and even road the Metro.

Garry

It's going to be a very strange experience in St. Petersburg. For the first time, I will actually have a reason to put my only "2nd language" to some good use on a vacation!

We don't know anyone else taking this cruise, so not sure how we'd put together enough people to do the private tour. I wouldn't like to think I'd have to wander over to "The Dark Side" to scare up fellow travelers. I look forward to the food, that's for sure. It's not like you can just "pop out for a little Russian food" anywhere near here.

As I do more homework, expect to be tapped for more info!

Originally Posted by CAnderson

I look forward to the food, that's for sure. It's not like you can just "pop out for a little Russian food" anywhere near here.

As I do more homework, expect to be tapped for more info!

Chris, you won't be able to pop out to get food in Russia. You must be on a tour to leave the ship and the port is way, way far away from anything. They have guards at the entrance and we all had to show our passports to leave and return (a guard boarded our bus and checked). So you MUST be on a sanctioned tour to go anywhere.

Garry

Originally Posted by gkm

Chris, you won't be able to pop out to get food in Russia. You must be on a tour to leave the ship and the port is way, way far away from anything. They have guards at the entrance and we all had to show our passports to leave and return (a guard boarded our bus and checked). So you MUST be on a sanctioned tour to go anywhere.

Garry

Point was, there's no Russian food around here. I didn't expect to wander off there - at least not without going though the requisite visa hassle, and no doubt a ton of hassle from Celebrity at the gangway for trying to make an exception to their usual circumstances. I doubt many cruise visitors arrive with the necessary paperwork.

As for the "arrangements" there, I remember all too well our Intourist "minders" from years gone by. I remember too well the hotel "security" staff that wasn't really sitting at those desks at the end of every doggone hallway in the hotel for "our protection" as they claimed, but rather, to assure that we didn't wander away in the middle of the night. Unless the maid service was cleaning my underwear drawer, we also had some "room visits" while we were out. What a pain. Would have been nice to prescribe lithium for the whole lot of them back then. In the 70's, it was even money that if you had Levi's in your luggage, they wouldn't be there by the time you arrived at your hotel. Bigger pain.

So that no one would take it as a general rule that might read this, the commentary above is all "old hat", and your description is pretty specific to our cruising situation. These days, Intourist has a new charter, and is more of a money-maker (extracting the hard currency from your travel budget) than it is any kind of "watcher" group. They even have their own branch just for retailing goods to foreigners, and will be happy to take you to their state sponsored stores. Gack. Worse than the shops in cahoots with the cruise lines. Unlike the bad old days, it is possible to do an independent wander, even renting a car and just taking off, throughout the majority of Russia, just not from a cruise ship. If you plan to come in another way, and move around independently, there's the whole visa thing to deal with that is avoided by arriving by cruise ship and sticking with the tighter oversight. So we pay for the convenience with an abundance of control over our movements. I can live with that. Their English is probably a boatload better than my Russian anyway.

Given that we probably won't be in a position to gather up a crowd for the event, we'll probably take a ship's tour for this stop.

Garry -

Just had a look on the web at what all is available to see in Tallinn. WOW! A person could spend weeks there just paying short visits to their dozens of museums - a few pretty unusual ones, too!

When you and Bob were there, what did you see that most took your interest?

Chris, we spent most of our time just browsing in the shops. We were with Phil and Marti and had such a good time. We sampled the local beer and had a wonderful lunch at one of the outdoor cafes. Here's one of my favorite pictures!

Garry

THAT was NOT in the town's web guide to their museums!

Hey Chris, do you want to chat here or on my site? I left you a note on the 16th site!!!

Linda

Chris and anyone else going to the Baltic. A big HELLO!!!

I am going to be gone for 2 weeks on a RC cruise I will catch you all when I get back, and hopefully there will be more chatter by then.

Linda