Some people say that if you haven't been to Norway, you don't know what a paradise on earth is. So what do you think of when you mention Northern Europe? Haruki Murakami's Norwegian forest, beautiful fjords and Andersen's fairy tales, or do you want to know what it's like to live in the region with the highest welfare and income in the world?
After a long selection, my family and I finally set foot on the princess's trip to northern Europe in early May this year. As for why I chose a cruise to visit northern Europe, please allow me to make a statement later. Let's take a look at the charming northern European scenery in my trip first. We arrived in Copenhagen, Denmark, by Finnair from Beijing on May 12, and started our 14-day trip to Northern Europe.
Copenhagen was chosen as the first stop of this trip because it is the largest city in Northern Europe. We stayed here for one night and enjoyed the "most livable city" and "best designed city" rated by UN-Habitat.
Drink a glass of beer or coffee in the sunshine of Xingang, and your steps will definitely slow down and you will be in a trance for a moment. Did we travel hundreds of years ago?
Denmark is famous for its design, and fine designs can be found in roadside shops.
Even the most famous restaurant in Tivoli Park is not only delicious, but also can enjoy the architectural design and tableware audit of the restaurant while tasting delicious food. Every pair of knives and forks is a fine product.
After visiting Copenhagen, our imperial princess came to meet us to see if our princess is as tall as the Nordic people. This140,000-ton luxury cruise ship will welcome 3,500 guests to set sail together. Ladies and gentlemen, please allow me to show you all kinds of high-altitude enjoyment on board later. I am eager to show you the beautiful scenery along the way.
The cruise ship set sail from Copenhagen in the evening, and the next morning, we had docked in Oslo, Norway. This is the magic of cruise travel, and we simply don't feel the rush on the road. When we fell asleep, we had reached our next destination.
Oslo is the oldest capital of Scandinavia, built in 1 1 century. It is located on the hill at the northern end of Oslo Fjord, facing the sea and backed by mountains.
When you come to Oslo, you must see the works of two world-renowned artists. One is a painting by Monk. The master's painting "Scream" shocked the world in 20 12 with an auction price of $65438+200 million. Another sculptor, the Sculpture Park in vigeland, is his close friend and rival in love.
Such an ancient and young city once hosted the 1952 Winter Olympics. Snow jumping is the local people's favorite sport. How can you miss the opportunity to visit the world's highest ski jumping platform?
If you are interested here, you can also sit in the simulation cabin and simulate jumping snow.
Visit ski jumping, and the beautiful scenery on the mountains along the way will definitely make you unforgettable. Even the king of Norway has a holiday resort on this mountain. Here, I must recommend the restaurant where we had lunch. In a hotel. The buffet was delicious and the dessert was first-rate. What impressed me most was the scenery outside its window. You can see the beautiful scenery of Oslo harbor, overlook the snow-capped mountains and see the lake. This is definitely a restaurant with beautiful scenery.
After a day of sightseeing, our minds are still full of the beautiful scenery of Oslo, but our bodies are already very tired. Then return to our Princess Cruise, take a hot bath and enjoy our champagne and dinner. If you are not satisfied with your food, go shopping, go to a spa, exercise, go to a bar with friends or try your luck in a casino. But don't be too tired, there are more wonderful places waiting for us tomorrow.
When we opened our eyes in the morning, we had arrived in Gothenburg, the second largest city in Sweden. When it comes to Gothenburg, some people may not be familiar with it, but when it comes to Volov cars, I believe everyone knows it. Yes, this is the headquarters of Volvo. Gothenburg is a small city. Here we recommend the trip to the canal that we have been to. Because the main scenery of the city is on both sides of the canal, and the scenery from the canal has a different taste.
Say goodbye to Gothenburg and set sail. Unconsciously, our trip has reached the fourth day. Traveling by cruise will take you to your next destination. Shore sightseeing has been arranged, so you don't have to worry about making the next stop strategy every day. Time seems to have quickened its pace unconsciously.
The purpose of the fourth day is Berlin, Germany, and I am looking forward to it. I have been to many places in southern Germany, but I gave up this stop because it was a detour to Berlin on land. But Berlin, a famous city in World War II, has so much history, how can it be abandoned? This time I finally made up for this regret.
Besides sightseeing, Berlin is also a good place to shop during this trip. Prices in northern Europe are relatively expensive, but those in Germany are very attractive. Especially after this year, the depreciation of the euro is really a good thing for us China people to go shopping. The department store industry in Berlin is very developed. The prices of H&M and ZARA are cheaper than those of China, and the styles are more diverse. There are also ROMOVA's box and Zygon's knife, the price is only about half of that in China. How can we miss this opportunity? Let's buy it all at once. :-)
After four days of sightseeing, everyone is a little tired. The fifth day is actually the day when the princess sets sail. What a thoughtful arrangement! We can sleep in, then order free room service and have breakfast in bed like the British. :-) Then have a good rest on the boat, chat with friends, drink coffee, play cards, go to the atrium to watch performances, learn to dance, go to the gym to keep fit, go to the hot springs, or stare blankly at the sea on the balcony with that book. As for eating, I'm afraid I'm only worried about my stomach.
After a day of adjustment, we are all full of blood, because on the sixth day we will go to Tallinn, the capital of Estonia, which is the most beautiful ancient city in this trip. Tallinn, which means "Danish bunker", was built by Danes in13rd century. Now the ancient city has completely maintained its original appearance, and 80% of the buildings in the ancient city are primitive buildings. In other words, when we step on the cobblestone road under our feet, pass by the small shop and climb the city wall, we can have a panoramic view of the ancient city. In fact, we have been crossing these buildings for hundreds of years. The waiters in the restaurant here are all dressed in national costumes, and all the young girls and boys have fine eyes. This is really an unforgettable town.
While everyone is still talking about the charm of Tallinn, our princess has docked at the port of St. Petersburg, Russia on the morning of the seventh day, which is the most anticipated city in this trip. My friends were surprised to hear that I went to St. Petersburg: "Aren't you going to northern Europe?" How do I get to Russia? "Yes, this is one of the main reasons why we choose to visit northern Europe by cruise. Although St. Petersburg is the second largest city in Russia, it is located on the Baltic Sea. Taking a cruise here will save a lot of time and money than traveling by land in Russia, because even if you come here from Moscow, you have to take the train overnight. More importantly, you don't need to prepare a Russian visa to go to St. Petersburg by cruise. They give cruise guests extra preferential policies, visa-free.
St Petersburg is Russia's window to Europe. It has been the capital of Russia since Peter the Great established its capital here in 17 12 until the October Revolution in Russia. St Petersburg is still called the science, culture, art and capital of Russia. St Petersburg is not only of special significance to Russia, but also one of the major cultural centers in Europe. There are more than 200 museums here, and the objects hidden in them are amazing. The Neva River flows quietly, and the wide water surface makes people confused whether it is river water, sea water or lake. Most of the buildings on both sides of neva river were built in 18 and 19 centuries. Influenced by the Renaissance in Western Europe, the architectural style has Russian characteristics and is magnificent. Walking along the river, or visiting neva river by motorboat, I suddenly feel that the city is much like Paris, and it is wider than the north of Paris. People in St. Petersburg call it Venice of Russia, because there are many rivers and more than 400 bridges in the whole city, each of which is a landscape.
Speaking of the architecture of St. Petersburg, Russian classical architecture and historical sites left by the Imperial Capital abound, such as the Winter Palace and the Palace Square, the Summer Garden and the Summer Palace, and St. Isaac's Cathedral. .....................................................................................................................
On the morning of nine days, our princess stopped again and we arrived in Helsinki, the capital of Finland. When we arrived in Helsinki, it was raining in Mao Mao and it was a little cold. Northern Europe is a summer resort all over the world, and the best tourist season is from May to September every year. For me from Beijing, this is the best place to wash my lungs.
Helsinki is a garden city with a clever combination of urban architecture and natural scenery, and the forest echoes with urban architecture, which makes me envious. We drove for more than an hour to visit the local ancient town of Bolva and see how it is different from the ancient town of China.
Although we were reluctant to give up, the trip was over. In the early morning of the tenth day, we arrived in Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, one of the four Nordic countries. The capitals of the four Nordic countries stepped down one after another. Personally, Sweden is the most developed and Stockholm is the most beautiful. Stockholm has been the economic and cultural center of Sweden since13rd century. It was never destroyed by the war, and everything remained so intact.
After selling for a long time, why did you choose the Imperial Princess cruise to visit northern Europe? I did my homework before I decided.
First of all, from the economic point of view, as we all know, Northern Europe is a region with high income and high consumption. In Sweden, even if you take a bus casually in the city, it costs 5 euros. If you travel from one country to another, you may get a relatively cheap short-distance ticket if you issue the ticket earlier, but even if you travel from the city to the airport, the one-way public transportation will cost more than 30 euros, not to mention taking a taxi. Then someone wants to say, take the train. I don't know much about it, but according to others, the train fare is not more cost-effective than flying. So when it comes to accommodation and meals, they are more expensive than those in China. It costs about 400 RMB for two people to find the simplest small restaurant in Copenhagen, and about 1000 RMB for a Chinese meal in Stockholm. In this case, if you choose land tourism, I'm afraid you can only scrimp and save, which really affects the quality. Then why not spend almost the same money to enjoy the whole five-star service? In this way, cruise tourism is very cost-effective.
The second reason is time. When I first came to northern Europe, I always wanted to see more places, and the holiday was so long. For me, a two-week holiday is already the limit, and I'm afraid I'll be fired if it's longer. This time I went to the capitals of four Nordic countries, plus Berlin, Gothenburg, Tallinn and St. Petersburg, and I went to eight cities altogether. If I choose to travel by land, I must take time to travel between cities. Even if the distance between the two cities is only two hours by plane, plus the waiting time to the airport, it will take at least half a day, not to mention the flight time may not be appropriate. Then I can't go to a place like 12 days anyway. Choosing a cruise makes everything possible and easy. The boat will set sail in the evening when the tourists are tired of playing and return to the boat to rest, and arrive at the next destination in the tourists' sleep. The princess's schedule is very reasonable. On the fifth day, everyone is tired, and there will be a day of sailing at sea, so that everyone can have a full rest and enjoy the facilities and food on board. For a big city, such as St. Petersburg, because there are so many things to go, you will choose to stop here for two days, which will give you enough time to go sightseeing on the shore.
The third reason is quality. I used to travel by land in America and Europe. I changed to a new city every day, and I didn't even dare to unpack my luggage when I slept every day, because I knew I would be called to get on the bus and dragged to the next city before dawn tomorrow morning. The impression now is that I am tired. I can't sleep on the bus every day. When I arrived at a scenic spot, I was called down to take pictures. When I came back, I often forgot where it was. As for choosing to go to road trip, I think it's best to stay in a region not too far away, and do your homework, book all the hotels and do a good job. The distance between each stop is no longer than 300 kilometers, otherwise it will only be exhausted. Choosing a cruise ship will not have these problems. Eating, living and playing on the boat will only be better than that in a five-star hotel. The quality of five-star hotels in Europe and the children's shoes they often go to must be very clear, which is incomparable to our five-star hotels in Asia. But cruise ships can definitely be of better quality than. There is no need to make any strategy. Shore sightseeing is the choice of cruise companies. Every city will have at least 5-6 shore sightseeing routes for you to choose from, including sightseeing, food tasting and fishing. No matter where your interests are, I believe you will always find something suitable for you. The first time I went to northern Europe, the first sightseeing route of every place was "the best XXX" and Chinese was "the best XXX". This route will arrange the essence of this place into a sightseeing route, which is most suitable for newcomers. Moreover, the daily boat report will be sent to the room regularly, which introduces the history and situation of various scenic spots in detail. Where can I use Bala as a guide? Spend time doing raiders and bask in the sun on the balcony.
The fourth reason is the attraction of the cruise ship itself. This is a five-star hotel with a height of 19, carrying 3,500 guests and 1500 staff, but you don't feel crowded at all. Buffet is provided from 6: 00 to 24: 00 in the morning, including restaurant, bar, coffee shop, pizza bar and ice cream bar. No matter when you return to the boat or stay on the boat to enjoy it, you can enjoy delicious food anytime and anywhere. Not to mention, if you are lucky, you can book a chef's table worth $3 million, or a king crab feast that you can enjoy for only $20. How important this is to a foodie. Princess Imperial's room has also been expanded. Not only is the area increased, but the mini suite is also equipped with two large-screen LCD TVs. The movie channel actually has programs with Chinese subtitles. It was on the boat that I saw the simulation game I had missed before. As for the amusement projects on board, there are countless more. In addition to the professional performances in the theater every night, the ship will also organize various activities, and the activity preview will be published in the daily ship newspaper, so you can choose according to your own interests. If you are an athlete, the super-large professional gym, basketball court on deck, simulated golf and circular track will definitely satisfy you. I think choosing a cruise gives us another kind of enjoyment besides enjoying the beautiful scenery of the destination, so the cost performance is by no means comparable to that of ordinary land tours.