Hotel Astoria (Saint Petersburg)

Hotel Astoria (Russian: гости́ница «Асто́рия») is a five-star hotel in Saint Petersburg, Russia, that first opened in December 1912. It has 213 bedrooms, including 52 suites, and is located on Saint Isaac's Square, next to Saint Isaac's Cathedral and across from the historic Imperial German Embassy. Hotel Astoria, along with its neighboring sister hotel, Angleterre Hotel, is owned and managed by Rocco Forte Hotels. The hotel underwent a complete refurbishment in 2012.

Hotel Astoria
General information
LocationSaint Petersburg, Russia
OpenedDecember 23, 1912
OwnerRocco Forte Hotels
ManagementRocco Forte Hotels
Design and construction
Architect(s)Fyodor Lidval
DeveloperPalace Hotel Company
Other information
Number of rooms169
Number of suites86
Number of restaurants2
Website

History

The building (originally a four-story apartment building) was bought by the English joint-stock company Palace Hotel to turn it into a hotel with European quality standards. It was designed by Russian-Swedish architect Fyodor Lidval, who developed a style based on Art Nouveau and also influenced by Neoclassical architecture. The hotel was constructed by the German construction company Wayss & Freytag AG.[1]

It was built to host tourists visiting Russia for the Romanov tercentenary, a huge celebration of 300 years of Russian imperial rule in May 1913. Hotel Astoria opened on December 23, 1912.[2] The luxurious hotel was used during the celebrations to house guests of the imperial family, and was afterwards popular with the aristocracy.[1] Rasputin was said to stay there with some of his married lovers.[2]

The Angleterre and the Astoria in 1930

After the Russian Revolution, the Hotel Astoria housed members of the Communist Party. Lenin spoke from its balcony in 1919.[2] During World War II, the hotel served as a field hospital during the Siege of Leningrad.[2] There is a legend that Adolf Hitler reportedly planned to hold a victory banquet in the hotel's Winter Garden. He was so convinced Leningrad (now Saint Petersburg) would fall quickly that invitations to the event were printed in advance.[3]

The hotel was managed by the state-run Intourist group during the Soviet period, until it closed in 1987 for renovations. It reopened in 1989, completely restored. Rocco Forte Hotels purchased the hotel in December 1997[4] and spent $20 million on further renovations.[1] The hotel was renovated again in 2012 for its centennial.[2] Rocco Forte Hotels also owns and manages the adjacent Angleterre Hotel.

Famous guests

The hotel's many famous guests have included Lenin, Isadora Duncan, H. G. Wells, Alexander Vertinsky, Prince Charles, Luciano Pavarotti, Madonna, Elton John, John Denver, Jack Nicholson,[2] Vladimir Putin, Alain Delon, Gina Lollobrigida, Marcello Mastroianni, Dmitri Hvorostovsky, Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Pierre Cardin, Jean Paul Gaultier, Margaret Thatcher, Jacques Chirac, Tony Blair and U.S. President George W. Bush.[1] Writer Mikhail Bulgakov spent his honeymoon at the hotel in 1932 and is said to have written parts of The Master and Margarita in room 412.[2]

Awards

2014

  • Conde Nast Traveller Awards: inclusion in Top 100 Hotels and Resorts in the World by Conde Nast Traveller Awards

See also

References
  1. "Luxury St Petersburg Hotels - Hotel Astoria - Rocco Forte". Thehotelastoria.com. Archived from the original on 28 August 2013. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  2. "St Petersburg's Hotel Astoria: If these grand old walls could talk..." The Independent. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  3. Ed Vulliamy. "Orchestral manoeuvres (part one)". The Observer. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
  4. "Rocco Forte Hotel Astoria, St Petersburg : Five Star Alliance". Five Star Alliance. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
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