Are you 100% obsessed with the idea of a cruise? I think that from a splendor standpoint, it's going to be very difficult to top Coastal AK, especially this summer as the weather was ludicrously good, especially compared to 2002. Plus, the topography of the Inside Passage lends itself to a good time.
If you are set on a cruise, I would think that the next best place would be coastal Norway (if available) or that Baltic trip you mentioned. If the Baltic trip is duty-free, and there are Swedes, Finns or Russians or Estonians on board, then you may be in for a voyage that is awash in alkool. This is second-hand information from friends, so this is just a guess.
I would recommend going to Slovenia or Estonia and farting around on a land tour package there for a bit. Slovenia is a really cool place--Slavic language, but influences of Austria and Italy. You can get by on sewer-worthy German in the North. There are a lot of vineyards, and the place is fairly funky. You can get a pint of beer for $1 in the bars.
Norway and Finland also kick ass, but the prices are more in line with vacationing in the US. I couldn't give a rat #$5 about Germany and especially France, and the rest of western Europe. Pretty much worthless from what little I saw of them.