Great Cruise in the wonderful Baltic region - Baltic & Northern Europe "Ports" Review by TomSailor

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Home > Member Reviews > TomSailor's Port Reviews of Warnemunde, Stockholm, Helsinki, St. Petersburg, Tallinn, Aarhus

TomSailor's Port Reviews of Warnemunde, Stockholm, Helsinki, St. Petersburg, Tallinn, Aarhus
Emerald Princess cruise in August 2011

Member Name:	TomSailor
Cruise Date:	August 2011
Embarkation:	Copenhagen
Destination:	Baltic & Northern Europe
Member Review:	TomSailor's Emerald Princess Review

	Warnemunde Port Rating: Not Rated Our fist port of call and therefore our tour to Berlin was cancelled by the captain at around 07.00 hrs in the morning due to strong winds that made it impossible for the ship to reach the port. Princess tried hard to find an alternative solution and they really made the best of it. They decided to anticipate the sea day and to arrive the next day (ahead of schedule) in the afternoon in Stockholm.
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	Stockholm Port Rating: The change of the schedule allowed us to have an unexpected overnight stay in the Swedish capital. Princess managed it to arrange shuttle buses and even evening tours. We took the shuttle bus and used the time to explore the beautiful city centre and the lovely old town (Gamla Stan) by night. On the next morning we went on a Princess tour (3 hrs, city drive and Vasa Museum), which was very interesting especially for the Vasa Museum. We just would have wanted to have more time at this interesting museum.
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	Helsinki Port Rating: Not Rated We used the shuttle bus to get to downtown Helsinki. Helsinki is also a very nice city and like in all Scandinavian countries and Estonia the people are very, very friendly and helpful. We just strolled around the tourist port area where you find a beautiful market with local products and nice places inviting you to have lunch “al fresco” on a sunny day. We also saw two cathedrals and some of the government buildings and the main shopping area . Probably it would have been a good idea to do a Princess tour to see also something of the Finnish countryside.
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	St. Petersburg Port Rating: Not Rated We stayed overnight in St. Petersburg and were on the Princess two-day / 18-hrs.tour. St. Petersburg was supposed to be the highlight of the cruise and although the tour was worth its money and we saw the most important points of interest (Peterhof Palace, Hermitage, Church of the spilled blood, St.Isaacs cathedral and some more), in our opinion it would have been better to have less time in St. Petersburg and more time in other places. Of course all the palaces and churches in St. Petersburg are very important but for us in the end it was just a bit too much and too long.
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	Tallinn Port Rating: The Estonian capital is a small medieval treasure to explore on foot. We took the ship’s shuttle bus and started our walking tour on our own at the “Fat Margaret’s” tower. Just a few yards from the tower you will find the entrance to the lower old town. Our first stop was the St.Olav’s Church and Tower. For just Eur 2, you can climb up to the top of the tower from where you have a very beautiful view. But be aware that the staircase of the tower is very narrow and there is traffic from people going up and down at the same time but you’ll get used to it. After this we strolled the streets of the old town up to the city hall with its great place, surrounded by restaurants and bars. In every street you can find nice shops. We then arrived at he upper old town with the Estonian parliament, some beautiful churches like the Russian-orthodox church. We had also a snack and a couple of beers at the Beer House, which is a great pub you really should see! They brew their own specialty beers inside the pub (BH Premium was our favourite). The Beer House reminds you a medieval tavern and it is a rustic and pleasant place for a break. Tallinn was also the port where the area close to our pier was developed best compared to the other ports. There is quite a big local market with quality souvenirs and several bars to taste local specialties before you go back on the ship. Tallinn was definitely the best place we visited during this cruise.
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	Aarhus Port Rating: Although we read some negative comments about Aarhus before, we really liked the place. We found out that there is plenty to do in the area of Aarhus (thanks to our Princess port lecturer), but as time is never enough we had to choose and went to the Old town (Den Gamle By) which is a beautiful open air museum with old Danish houses, shops like a century ago and friendly employees, dressed like in the old days and always willing to explain you everything with a smile and in fluent English. We took take a Taxi, it costs around US$ 20 each way and is much faster than the shuttle bus. The shuttle bus in Aarhus makes 4 stops, and the last one is the museum, so with the bus you would lose only time without saving money, as it costs Eur 5 per person each way and if you decide to get off the bus let’s say at stop number two and then take another bus to get to stop number 4 you will have to pay again.
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	Oslo Port Rating: In Oslo we took the ship’s shuttle bus (US$ 8 per person each way) which drops you off by the Nobel peace museum, close to the famous city hall building. The main shopping street and the royal palace are in a short walking distance. When we came back to the ship it was raining, but Princess staff was there with a lot of umbrellas, so you could make the short walk to the ship without getting wet,
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