Didn't know what to expect in Talinn. Estonia was a total blank slate to us, so our Regent-sponsored shore excursion, "Soviet Navy and the KGB" seemed like a good way to get a little recent historyand to see the oldest Soviet submarine still in the water. Another walled medieval city, but the history here is so moving to hear, when told by a guide in her 30s who grew up during the "Soviet times."  The everyday things we take for granted were totally absent in her childhoodas a child, she would spend hours and hours waiting in line for things like a new bath towel. The government allotted one per person, and each person had to collect her own towel. Her stories made a big impression on the boys.    
The tour was run totally smoothly. Our group was 17, which was not too big. Nice, cool motorcoach.  

Tallinn

The longest port of the trip, three full days. We hired our own private guide through SPB Tours, because we wanted the most freedom to see the things we thought would interest the boys the most. This turned out to be a brilliant move (thank you for the advice, Cruise Critic message board!!!!), because we could stop for a minute when we needed to, for a snack or a souvenir or some fresh air. Three days with big group tours would have been very tough for any family, so we were glad we did this, even though it meant forgoing Regent's many, many free shore excursions. Pricey ($1900 for 24 hours of touring time for the four of us) but a brand-new Mercedes van, a resourceful English-speaking guide, and a driver made this splurge worth it. We never waited in a museum line; we went all over the place; and we saw some very unusual things. (The memorial to the siege of Leningrad was incredibly moving.)  I heard that the Regent-sponsored shore excursions were good, too; they just didn't fit our needs.  

St. Petersburg

A quick day here, but unexpectedly delightful. Again, we just wandered with the fellas, eating a DELICIOUS salmon lunch at the portside open-air market, peoplewatching at the Esplanade, and wondering about how weird art can be at the Kiasma, the Museum of Contemporary Art. Incredibly, they had an exhibit on skateboard art, which my son loved. And the Finnish design shops were inspiring to browse. So sleek, so minimal!  

Helsinki

Our cruise ended here, and we were sad to say farewell to our beloved trivia contest leader, Ray Solaire, who was also the ship's all-around ambassador, announcer, and puppeteer.     
We transferred to the Hotel Rival after disembarking. Hotel Rival is the hotel owned by Benny Andersson, one of the members of Abba, so we thought it would be kind of a hoot. Well, it's actually a very well run hotelsupermod, sleek rooms, with a big stack of Abba CDs just in case you left yours at home. Our breakfast the next morning was epic and delicious; it was included in our room price.     
The neighborhood outside the hotel, Sodermalm, is in a great locationGamla Stan, the medieval part of townis an easy walk, and there are tons of restaurants and shops around.  

Stockholm

We viewed the cruise ship as a cushy hotel on the waves, as a sort of transportation that would be fun for the fellas and relaxing for us parents.We thoroughly enjoyed our 7-night cruise in the Baltics on the Voyager.

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Supercushy Hotel on the SeaLoved It!

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