Berlin Shore Excursion

Right. Berlin is landlocked, so when you see it on a port of call for a large cruise ship you know you aren’t docking next to the main sites. In fact, you are likely docking in Warnemunde, a darn site away. A minimum of three hours if all goes well. Your options are essentially bus, train or car to the city.

Cruises are generally the antithesis of solo travel. Some lines like Norwegian have begun offering inside cabins for solo travelers with no single supplement and common gathering spaces. Often solo travel is in large part about charting one’s own course, and that can’t happen on a cruise while under way. Once on dry land, however, your time can usually be all your own.

Like a lot of cruisers I have a love/hate relationship with shore excursions. I often avoid those offered by the cruise line itself because of the inflated expense. Even if offered credit toward one the same itinerary can be that much less with an independent operator. This is where review sites like Cruise Critic and Rick Steves are very helpful for assessing options. The biggest plus for me is the “guaranty” that the ship will not leave without you if you are on one of their own excursions, and this leads me to the mad dash through Berlin.

I have never visited Germany in all of my time in Europe, despite circling the border from most sides. But on the NCL Baltic cruise, the stop was on the itinerary. The ship would dock on the northern coast and several long, expensive trips (over $900.00 for three people) were available for a very quick overview of the city. Of course passengers could opt for industrial Warnemunde and neighboring Rostock, or the spa on board. I was traveling with my 12 year old son and my friend Dana, and we agreed we’d go into the city. We knew time would be short. We did not know that the country famed for on-time trains would have a significant rail delay and ticket machine gob-up.

The short of it is, we were able to experience a meaningful visit of Berlin from East to West for about a tenth of a guided shore excursion. Take the train to the east side and follow westward across Museum Island toward the Brandenburg Gates, past the Reichstag and finish at the Hauptbahnhof train station. Sending the kid at a sprint while the older ladies hobbled, skipped and galloped to join him was a gamble but it was unlikely, although not guaranteed, that the ship would embark with an orphaned child aboard. This is very poor cruise ship etiquette!

Follow the photo story to traverse Berlin from east to west to witness the transformation in architecture, culture and urban reality of an historic and evolving world center. Like this story? Please give it an “enjoy.” Danke!

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