We are taking this cruise in early October of this year. We got a reduced rate of $1999/per person (not yet advertised) for the best available cabin - which was the Deluxe cabin "A" on a refurbished ship.

We are thinking about private tour guides as well. Ones I've looked up are quite expensive. So also thinking of doing things on our own instead, on those days that we have free. I've learned the Cyrillic alphabet - took two weeks. Heard that you can get to the Metro from the docks in St. Pete's and Moscow.

Did the trip and if you do a private guide it would be for Moscow, but they will leave you in town and you can take the metro back on your own from town. I found the private tours go to the exact same places and say the exact same thing. Your group on the bus isn't that large. Is there something special that you want to see that isn't covered in the regular tour? You can also go in early a couple of days and do your own thing before you get on the ship. Many folks did.

Now thinking that on the day(s) off we will go on our own around Moscow and St. Pete.

What did you think of the cruise? Did you go on your own? I wouldn't sign up with a private tour that covers the same things that our tours through Viking already will be covering. But there's obviously a lot more to see in these two cities.

Oops sorry. I kind of hijacked this thread.

The guides we had on our Viking Russian cruise were excellent. All had Master's Degrees in English, should have been teaching, but made more money as guides. Sometimes we left the group and went off on our own, but I don't see any reason to hire a private guide. The guides also mingled with us onboard the boat.
Moving about Moscow and St. Petersburg on our own wasn't difficult. A guide book and learning the cyrillic alphabet before you leave will be helpful.

We were passengers on the Pakhomov in July 2007, from Moscow to St. Petersburg. Since most shore tours were included we saw no reason to hire private guides and we were not disappointed with our choice. In Moscow we went to the circus, Red Square (with some time on our own to visit Gum or whatever we wished to do), The Kremlin, touring the Armory Museum, and visiting one of the five cathedrals (an optional tour to the Tretyakov Gallery was available).

We had a guide onboard who did all the shore excursions with us, but a local guide was provided in each location and we felt all were excellent.

We particularly liked Yaroslavl and the guide there spoke excellent English, had a great sense of humor and taught us a great deal about the city. Another favorite was the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery. We stayed with the group for a museum tour and then explored on our own. We never felt stifled or confined by our tours.

In St. Petersburg we toured the Catherine Palace, Peter & Paul Fortress and St. Paul Cathedral, the Hermitage (on our second day there). We also saw the Cathedral of Kazan, Smolny Convent, Resurrection Church, St. Isaac's Cathedral. We had stops at most places for picture taking. Peterhof and Yusupov Palaces, and a canal ride were optional tours. Ballet that evening.

We have never taken an escorted trip; only escorted day trips occasionally, but as noted above we were very comfortable with all of our shore excursions and local guides, and felt all were well planned, educational and allowed us free time. We considered this one of our best trips and look forward to another Viking river cruise, hopefully in the near future!

I thought that the guides on the Viking Kirov were excellent on our trip last year and saw no need for a private guide in either St. Petersburg or Moscow.

In both cities the river ports are some distance from the centre. In Moscow the metro station is a 15 minute walk away, but in St. Petersburg it is necessary to take a bus from where the ships berth to the nearest metro.

We did attend a ballet performance at the Mariinsky in St Petersburg on our own one evening and the ship arranged for a taxi to bring us back after the performance, while in Moscow we stayed in town after a morning tour and returned at the end of the afternoon by metro.

laverendrye - Yes, we're thinking to stay in the city after the morning tour. unfortunately the ballet won't be performing on the exact days we'll be in St. Pete's.

Saw the Bolshoi a month ago at Lincoln Center in NY. Very disappointed. They did "Anna Karenina". Terrible ballet.

We'll be on the Viking Kirov too. Who was your guide?

Whoops- It wasn't the Bolshoi, it was the (Kirov) Mariiinsky.

Kenav

Our guide on the Kirov was Nadezhda (Nadya) and she was very knowledgeable. She has been a guide with Viking for 11 years and is a university professor of English during the rest of the year. She put together a chorus of passengers for the talent night and taught us Russian songs to sing!

I thought that the Mariinsky ballet (Swan Lake)was very good indeed. We had bought tickets online before the cruise, and were surprised to find out that the free excursion the night before was a performance of Swan Lake at the Hermitage Theatre--it was a small company with a pick-up orchestra and although it was a good performance, it couldn't compare with the Mariinsky.

I saw the travelling company when they came to town this past February (La Bayadere) and it confirmed for me what a magnificent company they are. You must have hit them on an off night with a mediocre work.

"Anna Karenina" got one of the worst reviews I have ever seen in the NY Times.

I would love to see the company is some worthy work.

I do not know what is covered on the Viking Tours in Moscow and St.Petersburg.

But I do know that what Viking covers is not the amount you would see with a Private Guide.

For example, Viking will take you to Catherine's Palace BUT the Peterhof Tour is option. ( unless they have changed this lately).

The next day it was the Hermitage and then you were on your own ( free time) , unless you wanted to take one of their option tours.

I was disappointed in this so called Viking's Office and spoke to one of the people handling the Russian Tour.

I asked "How come we just start to leave for Catherine's Palace at 9:30 AM?"

His answer: "People want to sleep in a bit and then have breakfast and by 9:30 everyone will be ready!`

I then asked,`` After Catherine`s Palace why not go to
Peterhof ``.

He said : After Catherine`s Palace we come back to the ship for lunch.

I then said LUNCH!!!

``We are about 15 miles from Peterhof and we are coming ALL the way back to St. Petersburg for lunch ``!!!

Then at 2:30 PM after the lunch, you would go to St. Peter and Paul Cathedral.

and that was it for the day.

Next day was the Hermitage!

The situation is this then.... how much do you want to see.

Your tours are paid for and are included with Viking ( for those that are not optional).

It takes extra money to get a private guide.

You could come to St. Petersburg or Moscow a few days earlier and book a private guide.

I had a private tour guide ( from Alla Tours in St. Petersburg) and we started at 7:15 AM.

Yes !!!! 7:15 AM, it is Private Tour , you are the boss!

And if you know a lot of places in St. Petersburg ( like I did,I did my homework) then you can see them all.

I saw all that Giovanna mentions in St. Petersburg plus a lot more.

I told Alla our Private Tour Guide, that I did not want to spent 1 to 1 and a half hours for lunch.

So let us just have a light Russian snack and Russian beer ( drink) and we are off again .

So the question remains, how much extra do you want to spend and how much (what) do you want to see.

Oh yes ....

I was in St.Petersburg for two full days with a
private Tour Guide and Driver

We are going on the Viking River Cruise October 9th.

I know that the 1st full day in St. Petersburg covers St. Isaac's, Peter & Paul Fortress, Nevsky Prospekt. Then a "picnic lunch" (might be a bit cold for that). Then winter Palace for the Hermitage.

Next day is Pushkin - Catherine's Palace. Yes, after that the itinerary says back to the ship for lunch and then "rest of the day is at leisure". Night time ballet performance. If ballet performance is in the city, we won't choose to take the time to go back to the ship for lunch.

The 3rd day is free.

Sounds like the itinerary has changed a bit from Percy's experience.

Percy - when did you take this cruise?

OK now I'm confused. Percy did you take the Viking Cruise?

Hi kenav

No I did not take the Viking Cruise.

I took the Baltic Cruise and spend two full days in St.Petersburg.

I was going to the Viking Cruise early this year with a friend but when I found out how little I would see in St. Petersburg...

I decided against it, only because I knew how much my friend would be missing !!!!

I already saw almost everything I wanted to see when I was in St.Petersburg a couple years ago....but I told my friend that

for his one and only time in St. Petersburg, he should see more.

I made a list of all the places I wanted to see and Alla (Private Tour Guide) made sure I saw them all.

You are there for 3 days which is good.

Hopefully you can book Alla (or one of the other noted tour guides like Red October) for your 3rd day.

It would be nice to see:
1. Church on the Spilled Blood
2. Russian Museum
3. Yusupov's Palace
4. St.Nicholas Cathedral
5. See the Rostral Columns..walk about here , take pictures
6. The Aurora
7. Peter the Great's Original Lob Cabin
8. Field of Mars.
9. Peter the Great's Summer Place
10. See the House of Faberge where those famous eggs were made.

But for your second day, you have a free afternoon, try to book the Peterhof optional tour..Do not miss Peterhof,it is really something to see..

Wait until you stand on the Balcony at Peterhof and see and hear those Fountains !!!!

If you do it after lunch ,you will probably take the Hydrofoil ( Water Taxi)

Private guide or included tours is up to kenav, but on our Viking Cruise we did go to the Church of Spilled Blood and stopped for picture taking.

We also went to the Rostral Columns, which was a must for me because I love visiting lighthouses, which they originally were. It was fun seeing the newlyweds posing for pictures.

So while our tour didn't include all the things you listed (we may have driven by some but didn't stop--I don't remember) those two were included with ample time to walk about and take pictures.

Yes ...and wedding pictures abound at the Bronze Horseman also.

Everyone's desire to see things and places is different.

I only mentioned 10 things/places that you (kenav)could contemplate on see...although

Church of Spilled Blood and Yusupov's Palace are major places.

I am sure my list of places would be different from kenav.

Because I knew where many places were I asked my Tour guide to take me there for a few pictures at least.

Like Menshikov's Palace, 12 Colleges and area.

Mariinsky Theatre and Palace etc. etc.

I paid more but I saw more !

Like I always say:

It is your holiday and your money.

I do not mind paying more if I am seeing more.

Who knows I may never be in St.Petersburg again!

but with three days in St. Petersburg kenav...there is no reason why you could not see what you would want to see.

Thans for the information Giovanna and Percy.

Giovanna - When did you go? Did you do any other things besides those set out for you with Viking when you were in Moscow?

July of 2007. Our days in Moscow were pretty well filled with tours, so we didn't adventure out on our own. However, some passengers did. Percy has given you good advice I think and whatever you decide, have a wonderful time. We sure did!

Do remember what you tipped the staff on the boat? I have no idea what to do.

Since all our meals were open seating, we didn't have a regular waiter and asst. waiter like we do on cruise ships, but there were three young women we particularly liked and got to be friendly with. We tried to always sit in their area if we could. We had an envelope for each of them and for our room stewardess. There was also a small keg with a slot on top in the dining room toward the end of the cruise, where you could put money that was to be divided among the crew. I honestly don't recall how much we gave each young woman, but I imagine it was probably around $20 or so. We also put some money in the keg.

I can add to what Giovanna has said.

I just got back from a month in Europe ( June 2011)

I did a River Cruise with Uniworld for 15 days.

This is what was recommended on Uniworld cruise...therefore I do not think Viking would be too different.

For the Cruise Director...we gave 3 euros per person per day.
She was worth every penny of the 3 euros per day.

For the Staff..... we paid 10 euros per person per day and this was divided among the staff.

We had open dinning also ,but we were able to sit at the same window table throughout the cruise .

Pretty hard not to sit by a window on a River Cruise.!!!

We mainly had the same waiters at dinner ,but not always because...

there were days when the waiters themselves changed around, which was nice also.

If you happen to like someone because they were extra special to do...then of course you can tip him/her over and above what you already gave for the staff.

( But this is a personal matter !)

Our cabin fellow , we tipped extra and also gave him some of our new ( never used clothes and sundries).

The Internet was free !!!
Doing your laundry was free also.

Before I left home for Europe I separated the money for tips and labelled them into envelopes.

For example:
1. One envelope contained 45 euros for the Cruise Director ( 15 days x 3 )
2. One envelope contained 150 euros for the staff ( 15 days x 10)
3. Another envelope had 50 euros ( extra) for the Cabin person

You will like your River cruise.
it is different from a large cruise ship .

Giovanna - Did you pay in U.S $$ or rubles?

Percy sounds like there was an extra 250 euros for tips. Approximately $375 in U.S.

kenav:

Actually there was 195 euros extra for tips.

150 for the Staff and 45 for the Cruise Director.

It was my personal choice to give the cabin steward 50 euros extra, as he is part of the Staff and will also share part of the 150 euros .

Our cabin steward became like a new friend after 15 days and he always did extras for us.

Then there were also tips( about 2 euros per person per day for places where you had a Local Guide).

For example:

When I arrived in Belgrade Serbia, our tour was included in the River Boat cruise fare.... but we had a Local Guide in Belgrade, so at the end you tip him ( 1-2 or 3 euros ).

We had a free day in Belgrade,but since I knew the city well..I went on my own.

Now you may get Local Guides at some of the place you stop off at in your Russian Cruise..

I will let Giovanna answer this.

I too am interested to hear what Giovanna has to say about the Local Guides ( if any)

Because I was in Europe, they preferred euros...I could have paid in US$.

Yes, the US$ is lower than the euro...that is our tough luck !!!... it is not the tour guide's fault and that is the way you have to look at it.

I can only say that when I was in St.Petersburg...they did not want US$.

For small puchases it was credit card or Rubles.

I managed to get by with US$ and a Visa card ..but that is another story

As of today One euro cost $1.45 US$ ( ouch !!)

We tipped in US dollars. We also tipped our onboard guide. We had a local guide in each city we visited, except St. Petersburg (our onboard guide lives there and directed the tours). We tipped each local guide, as well as a few dollars to the bus driver.

We too used a credit card and I think we sometimes spent rubels for shopping purchases, but dollars were accepted some places (not as flat as they are now).

I just remembered a couple of little booklets we bought prior to the trip: "Russia by River - The Moscow-St.Petersburg Cruise." by Howard Shernoff; River Cruise Phrasebook also by Howard Shernoff with Sergey Salivanov. I'm sorry I can't remember where online we bought them, but if you can find a source I think you'll find them helpful.

Thanks Giovanna I was curious about the tipping on the Russian Cruise.

Yes, I forgot about the Bus Driver... but it is nice to tip him also.

This poor bus driver takes that bus through some pretty tight place.

For kenav:

Our Local St. Petersburg Tour Guide said that the three best Gift Shops in St. Petersburg are in:

1. Peterhof
2. Hermitage
3. Church on the Spilled Blood

So if you are thinking of getting some souvenirs these are the three main ones.

I remember seeing several gift shops in the Hermitage. Also at the Catherine Palace. There were some lovely pieces of jewelery in both. Amber is in abundance and very beautiful, alone or combined with other stones. A lady on our cruise bought a gorgeous necklace of amber and pearls at the Catherine Palace. I bought several bracelets and even a hair barrette. Also some Faberge mini egg pendants. I bought one in Moscow with the double headed eagle on it that opens and my husband surprised me with one he bought for me at the Hermitage.

Might not get to Peterhof, but definitely will get to the Hermitage.

Am also looking at some clothing stores which have Russian designed wear. Trying to find out if the price would be way too high for me. Considering how expensive I've heard Moscow is. I'll probably have to skip this. (Although I found a Russian sports clothing/gear store. Good for t-shirts.)

Good Luck on your shopping

I only brought Postcard back !

Question for kenav

$1,999 per person for Cat A is an excellent rate. Out of curosity, did you get that rate directly through Viking or with a TA?
Thanks
Pat

Hi mystic -

Got it though Viking.

Got an offer from Viking about this trip for July. Got it via email. We wanted to go then, but realized we couldn't. So I called the customer service and spoke to "Barb" and told her that we were very interested, couldn't do July, but if anything came up at that price for Sept or Oct, to let us know.

Well, 5 days later she called me back. Offered two dates (I believe) in October for "best available" which was Category A, for the same $1999. Worked for us so we agreed.

Thanks Kenav

I will have sign up for their emails. You did very well, it never hurts to ask and it worked in your favor.
Anxious to read a review

Thanks