CRUISE VACATIONS

Cruising the Baltic

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 19^th 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.

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