A Cruise through the Baltic Sea taking in many historic and fascinating stops. A cruise used to be only affordable to the rich and considered a luxury, however nowadays more and more companies have started to provide affordable Cruise Vacations. You now can choose between luxurious cruises at the top end of the market to budget deals with just the basics. What ever you choose it will be an experience different to any land based vacation.
This article is on a cruise through the Baltic taking in many of the major cities on the Baltic Sea; it starts in the capital of Sweden, Stockholm and finishes in Dover on the south east coast of England. This is a popular travel route and many Cruise ship companies offer this itinerary or something quite similar.
Obviously on a cruise ship you will be staying on board at night and during the evening all of the food and entertainment will be included in the price of the vacation. During the days you will have the time to go and visit sights around your stops and in this report we will explain what there is to do.
EMBARKATION: Stockholm, Sweden
The cruise starts in Stockholm and so you will get the chance to see the city for a day or two, before you join the liner to begin your Baltic journey.
Stockholm is a beautiful canal City which sits on the Baltic coast, where Lake Malaren empties. It may be an expensive City but it is also a really pretty one and most people believe the cost to be worth it when they stroll down Norrmalm enjoying all of the shops and boutiques, or Gamla Stan the old Town.
There are plenty of museums and other attractions around the City and if you purchase a Stockholm tourist card you can get in free in many of them. Gamla Stan, the old Town, has many winding streets which are extremely pleasant to walk and has many old buildings which house small stores, restaurants and cosy bars.
The Royal Palace is the biggest Royal household in the world and walking around the pomp and glory of it, takes you back to the Hanseatic heyday of the 1700s. The treasury is fascinating as well and holds the crowns and sceptres of the Swedish Royal family.
The Royal park of Djurgarden has the first ever open air museum and this has over 100 examples of traditional Swedish housing, a lovely little zoo and an aquarium.
Your cruise will now begin!
Helsinki
The first stop on the cruise is Helsinki, the friendly capital of Finland. With a day in Helsinki you could spend some time walking around some of the fantastic art galleries, like the Kiasma which is full of wonderful modern pieces, the Amos Anderson and the Yrjonkadun Uimahalli which has some 1920s deco art.
Helsinki is compact enough to make it an easily walkable City and this is one of its highlights with many colourful buildings and elegant Churches. The Senaatintori square is ringed by some magical 19th century buildings and is a hive of activity in the summer. The Uspensky Cathedral which sits near to the harbour is a magnificent example of Scandinavian Christian architecture and its red brick construction and Russian influences will warm your heart.
Another must see is the huge Heritage listed fortress on the island of Suomenlinna, which was built by the Swedes in the 1700s and can set your imagination running wild.
St Petersburg
Surprisingly for a major European City, St Petersburg has only been around for the past three hundred years. But what a three hundred years it has been, with almost all of the key historic happenings in Russian history stemming from the City.
This former capital of Tsarist Russia is everything you would imagine an imperial capital to be, with gorgeous and elegant buildings, opulent Cathedrals and Churches and some of the best culture and cuisine the country has to offer.
As you will only be having a day (or two with some cruises) the amount of things you can see and do is limited, but don’t let that stop you from enjoying one of the most unique Cities in the world.
Dvortsovaya Ploshchad, the Palace square, is where most people begin their tour of the imperial wonders of St Petersburg and this is not a let down! The stunning Winter Palace in its whites, greens and gold is simply lavish beyond your dreams and it is not hard to see why the impoverished citizens looked at anger towards the Tsarist regime. The Admiralty building on the western side of the square has some beautiful gardens and fountains and is a pleasant place to take a stroll if you are having sightseeing fatigue. St Isaac’s Cathedral was the Royal Church for the Tsars of Russia after its construction in 1858 and it is only recently that services have resumed after the atheism of Communism.
The Hermitage is one of the biggest draws to St Petersburg and the size of the place and the amount of treasures it holds can be intimidating. As time is short you should find out what interests you and go straight to that section, as you could find yourself walking through the five buildings for days and maybe even weeks! The Hermitage has such a collection it is like the whole of the western civilisation’s history all in one (rather big) place. Booklets are sold at the entrance which will tell you what sections are where so that you can find them with relative ease. The only problem with coming here is the fact that you will want to come back another time to see the rest; but is that a problem?
Tallinn
Tallinn’s popularity is gaining momentum with each new year and more and more people are starting to realize its Scandinavian-Eastern mix is as beautiful and tantalizing as any other in the region. Tallinn’s old center is now World Heritage listed and the old medieval cobbled streets are wonderful to stroll down. The old town hall is the oldest Gothic medieval town hall in Europe and with the rest of the buildings in the surrounding area coming from the same era it is like stepping back in time. Yes, a lot of European Cities have the same feel but there is something fresh and different about these newly independent Baltic nations and even though it is getting busier, it is still not dogged by the crowds of Prague and Krakow. The whole of the Town hall square, Raekoja Plats, is magical with its Churches and cafes and it is this part of the City which will hold you for the longest part of your day.
Another old part of the City is the district of Toompea, in which to get to you will pass through the fourteenth Century gate tower. The Russian Orthodox Alexandr Nevsky Cathedral was part of the Russification of the newly subjugated state and it is nearly like being back in Russia. There are some great little Art exhibitions around here too and with some more middle ages structures and churches is as handsome as Raekoja Plats.
If you have time, you should venture to the lower Town and the Great coast gate which is lined with some great examples of Fifteenth Century merchant houses. The Ajaloomuuseum is down in this part of town as well and this documents the some time tragic history of Estonia. By the end of your visit of Tallinn, you will feel like you have been transported back to the future and we promise that you will find it difficult to find another City with such preserved medieval streets and buildings.
Riga
Riga, the capital of Latvia, is the second of the Baltic Capitals you will visit and is similar to Tallinn in many ways. The historic old quarter of the City is preserved by the World Heritage just like Tallinn, but while it is just as pretty it is not as extensive and while in Estonia you could feel like you were almost in the 1400s, here you are never far from the modern world.
The old quarter has many old buildings, Art galleries and Museums and one of the highlights is the Red bricked Cathedral, which is very similar to the German style rather than a lot of the Russian styled Churches you will find elsewhere in the City.
There are quite a few museums documenting the Second World War and the actions that took place on Latvian soil and a very poignant museum dedicated to the occupation of the country by both the Nazis and the Soviets.
The Freedom monument east of the old town and set in a ring of parks is an emotional reminder of what Latvians have had to endure in order to get self-government and is a must for those interested in the history of the country. It was only after independence that the monument was allowed to be visited again, as the Russians used the area as a depot. Close by is the memorial to those who died on the 20th of January 1991, when Russian troops stormed the Ministry of the Interior.
Visby (Gotland)
The medieval trading Town of Visby is on the island of Gotland, which is part of Sweden and is the largest of the Baltic Islands. Gotland is a history buffs dream destination with well over a hundred prehistoric sites including burial mounds and earth forts that sit on top of hills. Add this to the 92 medieval Churches scattered about the Island and the cobbled streets of Visby and you have a delight.
All of the Churches on the Island are still active and represent the villages in which they sit. It is a real pleasure to explore the Island going from Church to Church and each Church has its own unique features ranging from elegant frescoes to brightly colored stain glassed windows.
In Visby itself, with its many towers and ruined churches, you will find a heritage listed town with as much history as you could fit in a City much, much larger. The wall which surrounds the town has no less than 40 towers and proudly protected this former Hanseatic Town from would be invaders. Visby is the perfect place to relax after the rushing around of St Petersburg and Tallinn and you should take the time to relax before the cruise heads off to Poland and Germany.
Gdansk
Gdansk is the major City of Poland’s Baltic coast and was formerly known as Danzig before it was taken over by the Poles, it was another of the Hanseatic Ports. Gdansk is merging with the two large centres of Sopot and Gydnia to form the Tri-City area. All of the sights that are of interest to the visitor are in Gdansk however.
Gdansk has been at the centre of many Wars and was completely gutted by the end of the Second World War, first by the German invasion and then by the Soviet ‘liberation’. Surprisingly after the War the Communist regime lovingly restored the Sixteenth Century centre and today it feels like nothing ever happened here. Glowne Miasto is the largest of the City’s three historic quarters and is home to the Royal Way, a 500 metre stretch that the Royal family would walk down. From the beautiful Upland gate to the Golden gate and on to the Court of the fraternity of St George, which has some inspiring Fifteenth Century architecture. The Royal Way ends at the Town hall which now houses the Historical Museum of Gdansk. The building itself is well worth a visit. Next door is the famous Long market the epicentre of old Danzig and now the centre for tourists to the city.
At the east of the market is the Green gate which leads to the Waterfront district by the Motlawa River, which is full of merchants houses and old stores which the boats used to sail up to in order to transport goods to the other Hanseatic seats. It is a lovely place to soak up the atmosphere and sit down and watch the world go by with a Polish pastry.
St Mary’s Church is considered by many to be the largest old brick Church in the whole world and amazingly 25,000 people can easily be accommodated inside. It was partly destroyed during the Second World War, but luckily the most valuable pieces of Art were saved from destruction and even more luckily the looting. The Royal Chapel is a highlight of the Church and holds many outstanding pieces of Art. The Great Arsenal within the church is another delight and shows the influences from the west which makes the whole of Gdansk unique to the rest of Slavic Poland.
Warnemunde (for Berlin)
The next stop is in North Eastern Germany and Warnemunde, which has fast train links to Berlin. Berlin is not just the capital of Unified Germany but it is also its commercial, cultural and artistic hub. It has always been home to those with more of a Bohemian identity and with its alternative art, thriving nightlife and its vibrant Gay scene it still draws people from all over Europe.
As the stop will be for a day and taking into consideration getting to the city from the Cruise port, you will not get as much time here as is really demanded, but alas you will just have to come back again some time. The so-called highlight sights are all found in Central-Mitte. The western part of the district is marked by the iconic Brandenburg Gate and leads onto the large Tiergarten park. North of the park and the gate is the restored Reichstag, which you can take a trip to the top of and have a fabulous view over the City. South of the Brandenburg gate is the Museum dedicated to the murdered Jews of Europe and it is a very heart-rending reminder of one of the world’s most saddening events.
The wonderful Museum Island has some of the treasures of Berlin nestled within it and the museums and art galleries are a must. The Pergamon Museum is especially good with examples from all of the Mediterranean Empires from the Hellenistic to the Persian and from the Romans to the Venetians.
On Gendarmenmarkt is the two Cathedrals of Deutscher Dom and Franzosischer Dom. The German Cathedral was originally built in the early Eighteenth Century and has an excellent exhibition on German history, the Franzosischer Dom is the French Cathedral and was the place of worship for the City’s Huguenot population and has a museum inside documenting the life of the French protestants who lived here.
Rotterdam
Rotterdam was totally destroyed in the German invasion of 1940, but unlike many other Cities that were levelled during the war, its reconstruction has been innovative and it is an enjoyable place to spend a day. Obviously Rotterdam is completely different from other places on the cruise itinerary, but nevertheless it has its attractions.
One of the first things that tourists do when they come here is take a trip out on the harbour with the Spido boats. They take you around the water whilst giving you an interesting commentary on the history of the City. The Euromast is also popular and it is the highest lookout tower in the Netherlands, having great views over the area.
There are plenty of museums in Rotterdam with some of the best being the Boijmans Van Beuningen, which houses a broad collection of art from the 1400s to today’s contemporary styles and the Maritime museum which tells the story of the City’s port and seafaring industry. Another sight which we recommend is the cute Kijk-kubas, the cube shaped homes built by the designer Piet Blom, the museum next door shows his ideas and how he came to want to build these strange little homes.
DISEMBARK: Dover (for London), United Kingdom
Well, this is the end of the trip and you disembark off the Cruise liner and into Dover. Dover has a few sights to see, but really it is just a working port, most people will ride the rail north into London, to many the capital of Europe. As this is the end of the cruise you can spend a few nights here and savor the atmosphere of one of the most cosmopolitan Cities in the world.
There is so much to see and do in London it would be impossible to list them all here and so you will have to wait until the Destination guide for London which will be coming soon. Most people who have never been to London before will want to visit the Houses of Parliament, Buckingham Palace for the changing of the Queen’s guard, Tower Bridge and some of the numerous world class Museums and galleries.
