St Petersburg

Old Jan 22nd, 2008, 03:34 AM
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St Petersburg

We (4 adults) wish to do a private tour around St Petersburg on our two day stop over while we are on a cruise. Please advise which tour company is worth the money as they are all so expensive, and is there much difference between each tour company in site they visit? Can anyone help?
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Old Jan 22nd, 2008, 06:19 AM
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Look on the cruise forum as there was info on St P tours on there.
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Old Jan 22nd, 2008, 06:27 AM
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We used DenRus for a private tour this past July in St. Pete and had excellent results.

If you are going to the Hermitage it will help if the guide either speaks clearly or uses some sort of microphone/headset system as the place will be MOBBED and you can hardly hear..but GO anyway..in fact, go to as MANY of the so-called "touristy" places as you possibly can in your stopover such as the Catherine Palace, the Peterhof, Peter and Paull Fortress, Church on the Spilled Blood, etc., etc., and if you can see a ballet performance at night, do THAT, too.

You will, I suspect find this to be the highlight of your cruise
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Old Jan 22nd, 2008, 06:27 AM
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We were extremely satisfied with Red October. For four of us, two days with them was less expensive than two full days of ship's shore excursions. They personalized their "standard" two day itinerary to our interests and requests.
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Old Jan 22nd, 2008, 06:57 AM
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I found Olga, a private tour guide, here on Fodor's from the recommendations of others. I hired her for two days. Both days, she met us on our ship and we went into St. Petersburg with her. She is charming and extremely knowledgeable. (She is a licensed guide and holds licenses for all the venues.) It was such a pleasure to have personal tours of all the sights we wanted to visit with excellent commentary in English. She also knew the best places to dine and shop, and took us to places we wouldn't have known about. I recommend her most highly.

http://www.tourservice.sp.ru/

I know it seems redundant, but a "canal cruise" through St. Petersburg is not to be missed.
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Old Jan 28th, 2008, 08:25 AM
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We were very happy with our guide Eugenia Kempinskaya [email protected]. Can recommend her to anyone traveling to St.Petersburg. She was professional, very warm and friendly. All our sightseeing goals were met. She planned everything perfectly and had a complete knowledge of all of the sights that we visited. She always answered all of our questions. Her guidance fee was very affordable.
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Old Jan 28th, 2008, 09:16 AM
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We were very happy with [email protected].

She is very experienced, will tailor the tour for you, and seems to have the ability to get her small group in front of larger tour groups from the cruise ships.

She guides while her husband drives. They have a minivan which is comfortable for four. She will take you to local places for lunch as well, which we thought greatly enhanced the experience. The cost, with admission fees at the attractions was about half that of the ship's tours, even when you consider the cost of getting Russian Visa. She will also provide the necessary visa invitation.

Julia will also make arrangements for ballet or other entertainments in the evening.

BTW, be sure to bring a supply of Euros to St. Petersburg. The official exchange rate for rubles is dreadful and everyone we met preferred payment in Euro. (No one wanted dollars, a change from 2001.)
If your cruise starts from Stockholm, you may need to get Euro from some other source because it is possible you will not be in the Eurozone until after you leave St. Petersburg.
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