I am considering a cruise in May 2006. The possibilities are Princess (Star Princess), Holland AMerican (AMsterdam), Norweigan Cruise (Norweigan Dream) and a Costa ship. I am taking my 31 year old daughter. I would like feedback on others' experiences with these lines and ships in the Baltic.

I can't help you with those ships, but i wrote a web site about my baltics trip, with photos etc.

The address is http://members.optusnet.com.au/~boblorel/

If you need more info contact me via email because i am just passing through this site at the moment.

Have you considered Oceania Cruises? They're offering free airfare and discounted cabins on some of their Baltic itineraries. Given the price of add-on airfare, they're pretty price-competitive. We've heard positive things about Princess and HAL, although some cruisers have complained about the prevalence of smoking aboard Costa, given their largely European clientele.

I would definitely stay away from the Dream. I was aboard two years ago for a canal and was very disappointed overall.

I am also not a Costa fan.

I suggest you check out Brilliance of the Seas (RCI), and Celebrity's Baltic options.

Oceania has smaller ships and is very well regarded. It is also quite a bit pricier and the nightlife much more limited for a 31 year old.

Stay away from Costa. I found their guest relations very insulting, even though they were sweet to your face. And should anything serious come about, get ready to be on your own. It is a good line if everything is smooth, and you have no silly requests like "have they found your luggage which has been missing since you embarked." BTW, have NOT yet received a response to my letter, it's only been since July.

I"m currently researching Baltic cruises myself, and find myself looking at the same lines you're looking at (obviously NOT Costa). I've included Celebrity in my search, and will now also look at Oceania (thanks drwong).

Also check out cruisecritic.com. I'm checking everywhere to be honest. I'm looking for the most for my money since time is not a limiting factor (lucky me).

I've done this itinerary on HAL and it was OK but our best Baltic cruise was on the Radisson Voyager. Very Very Nice! I have cruised on NCL before but never again. They treat their passengers like cattle. The Star Princess could be nice but it sure carries a lot of passengers. I've never been on Costa so don't have any opinion. I think Radisson or Oceania may be good options for you. I'm partial to smaller ships with fewer passengers with better food & service. If cabin size is important, Radisson would be your best bet, large standard cabins (no need to upgrade just go with the least expensive) and every cabin has a balcony. I would also recommend Red October for touring while in St. Petersburg. Excellent and much cheaper than the cruise excursions.

Have not done one but it is on our short list. I just wanted to add that I have come across the Red October tour company name several times in my research and always positive comments about them both from cost and service view points. Plan to research them some more before we go and most likely book with them for land portions in Russia.

We did the Star Princess Baltic cruise in late August 2005. The ship leaves from an unusual port in Copenhagen, not where the other ships dock. We found another couple and shared a taxi instead of the $80 pp r/t bus offered by Princess. The ship is nice, as is the food and entertainment. Be advised that the sight seeing is INTENSE. Where else can you visit all capital(Oslo,Stockholm, Helsinki, Copenhagen, Tallinn) or major cities (St Petersburg, Gdansk,) The 2 days in St. Petersburg are amazing, but at the same time tiring for some folks. Most of the sight seeing in Gdansk, Poland and Tallinn, Estonia is done on foot. They are cities with old world charm. Our cruise had 7 days in ports out of 9 total. Again because these are all major cities, we did not want to miss anything. Who knows when or if we will get a chance to return to any of those places. So be prepared for an amazing trip.