Great Ship, Exciting Baltic/Scandanivian Cities
Regal Princess Cruise Review to Europe - Northern Europe
Contributor Level:
Purser
Cruises: 2-3 cruises
Review: 1
Helpful Votes: 42
11 Night Scandinavia & Russia (Copenhagen Roundtrip)
Sail date: May 21, 2019
Ship: Regal Princess
Cabin type: Suite
Traveled as: Couple
Reviewed: 5 years ago
Review summary
Comfortable glamourous ship & exciting itinerary! A little hectic, wish there were more sea days in between. Just wanted to rest so didn't do much activities on sea days :( We are a young-ish couple who mainly do independent travel so this was only our second cruise but we loved it. Running down some ship notes: Would have done the spa but they stopped essentially offering day passes. :( Room service SO lovely! Wish they would expand menu options. Liked laundry on every floor. Balloon drop, champagne fountain night very nice. Outrigger bar nice and low key with great made to order fresh juices (extra cost) were great, most of staff and patrons there were great.Embarkation
We actually boarded in St. Petersburg on May 26 but no option on this site to pick that. No lines, but also no real "welcome." Most ppl board in Copenhagen but you can also board in Germany and maybe Oslo as well.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
Food was SO delicious. Fresh. International. Nice change from dining rooms and buffet were the handmade pizzas at Alfredo's and the fish and chips pub lunch (offered usually once a cruise). While I don't rank Italian as my favourite cuisine at all, Sabatini's is WELL worth it as a specialty dinner option. A first class dinner experience.
Onboard Activities
Fitness center great (but confusing to get to). Mostly rested on sea days though, watched some of the audience participation shows later on cabin TV. Baltic weather is a little unpredictable/cold end of May so enjoying outdoor decks unfortunately wasn't an option many days. Stuck inside ship. June probably better.
Entertainment
Best shows. Broadway quality. High quality performers, innovative shows.
Service and Staff
Some service great!! Some ok, so-so.
Ship Quality
Elegant. Ocean medallion was new, so didn't always work on the screens throughout ship. Despite apps, still lost getting to certain areas by access to ends of ship is different on different floors.
Cabin / Stateroom
Mini-suite. VERY comfortable. Good size, storage. Beds comfy.
Ship tip
Order Ocean medallion before cruise and download some of the apps. Weather can be chilly/unpredictable late May in Baltics. Layer. Bring umbrella. June and later probably safer bet for warmth.
Thumbs up
0
Ports of call
Chilly/slight rain so didn't rent bikes to tour around. Took HOHO bus from port instead which got you into center. Easy to get around that way. Christianhvan is cute to walk around and diff than downtown. Free town a bit of a walk but interesting/diff community there. Didn't have time to explore the gardens/palaces but they looked beautiful.
This is an hour from Sweden but train station is 10min walk following a blue line from port. We took 5 min shuttle bus though, provided by cruise at small cost, then train to Stockholm City. So check train schedule online. Buy day card it's perfect-use on train, trams and ferries so easy to get around Stockholm ourselves. Get map at station or download before. Did Vasa museum, lunch at Gondolen, Gamla Stan (must), enjoyed fika, walked around City Hall. Only issue was train back to Nyshamn stopped running/was delayed- so almost stranded us!! but a group of us cruise goers found each other and somehow managed to get taxis back to port in time. Costly (not reimbursed by cruise) but it didn't ruin the trip, Stockholm was just SO pretty and we lucked out with nice weather.
Debated to do HOHO bus but so crowded, everyone on ship was trying to get on. Ship offered a four stop, mini-hop on and off of their own for around $40 pp I think and we might have taken that, but decided to take a taxi when we saw one at port instead, straight to Rock Church (highly recommend). Then we walked from there to center squares of town. Nice way to see city and architecture esp if weather is good. Oodi building amazing. Download map if you can first. Try moose and reindeer or fried fish around the square. Cathedrals. Lappi restaurant is unique (opens at 4pm though). Great food in Helsinki in general though. Also for something a little different/local-- Recommend LOYLY sauna/terrace restaurant for drink, relax, views or to try the famous Finnish sauna if you have the time. Loyly is VERY near the ship if it is docked at Henesarri (four ports in Helsinki so know which one you are at. Since Regal is so big, limits where it can dock and pretty easy for drivers to see or recognize). Loyly also has a "taxi button" ----so handy for us tourists!
St. Petersburg, Russian Federation
We were a little different than most since we embarked here and spent several days here as we had visas so can't speak to the excursions. Saw a lot of busses at diff sights so I guess expect crowds! My off beaten track recs: Golitsyn Loft on Fontaka river (than walk to Faberge museum from there). A few steps away from Church of Spilled Blood is inexpensive Museum of Soviet Arcade- kids will like but adults will too for a little Soviet nostalgia look. Another tip, if you want to escape Hermitage crowds, your ticket also gets you in at the Gen Staff building (right across from main Winter Palace bldg) which is more modern but also very cool and you'll see rarely-seen Monets, Degas, Picassos. And Rodin sculptures with almost NO one else!! Other off beaten path: New Holland Island if weather is good, all of St. Pete love to go there. Foodwise, anything by ubiquitous Ginza project is kind of perfect though locals may scoff a bit at them. Marketplace is GREAT fast casual self service chain, can sample lots of dishes. Nighttime To Dos: cruise on canal, watch bridges rise at 1am, walk down super lively Rubenstein street, or a ballet.
Was really looking forward to Tallin but weather was a bit rainy so that was a bit if a damper. Ship docks within walking distance so no need for excursions if you are physically able. The Old Town from 10am on though felt mobbed with ALL cruisers/ tourists so also took away from the local "magic." Free walking tours at 12p (look up online) was VERY good- get local money so you can tip them!! Food is interesting there. Vegan spots too. Viewpoints in the old town good. Old Hansa touristy but definitely worth a visit/peek/taste. Nevsky beautiful. Small guild museum was fine, we needed a place to get dry and it was somewhat informative. Off beaten path: uber it or walk (20 mins from Old town past train station Balti Jaama-also cool markets inside) to Telleskivi aka Creative City and Depoo. Industrial/hipster/artsy cafes, shops. Lunch at F-Hoone was good. Nice contrast to old town to see young Estonia which is actually a very "e-country"
Most people do the long journey to Berlin but since I've been, I did the somewhat pricey Friends of David tour of Rostock, Wismar, Schwerin. Book online in advance. Brewery lunch and Schwerin castle grounds were def highlights (delightful surprise). Was a nice excursion.
We had less than half a day port visit time in Oslo but ship docks right near center. Although we didn't end up booking excursion, took cab to Vigeland sculpture park to save time (but tram would have been MUCH cheaper if I'd known, there's one right at entrance) which is a must. Again we took uber but Oslo streets are full of construction so that was a mistake. maybe take HOHO bus or public transpo. It's a small city. Bike tour might also be nice, saw a vendor right outside ship. Opera house is amazing architecture. Gorgeous inside and out. Then we walked to Karl Johans Gate (touristy) but Grand hotel looked cool. Took pic at Nobel museum which leads you to harbor with good fish places for lunch. Some take boat excursions (didn't have time to go to viking museums island area) which could also be nice, but you'll also see nice, small "fjords" if you go on deck of Regal as you sail out-- amazing scenery, one of the best ports to watch either sailing in or sailing away from Oslo. Don't miss it!