Hotel Astoria, St Petersburg

By Jeremy Atiyah

Published: 12 May 2003

Two grand old hotels in St Petersburg survived Lenin and Stalin to become five-star establishments of the 21st century. The Astoria is one of them. (The Grand Hotel Europa is the other.) Not that the Astoria's pre-Communist glory amounted to much: the hotel's opening could not have come in a less auspicious year, namely, 1914, on the eve of the war that was to end Tsarist rule in Russia. Three years later, the Bolsheviks were in charge of St Petersburg and the toffs for whom the Astoria had been designed – aristocrats and rich foreigners – faced an 80-year wait until they could claim the hotel as their own.

Despite being named after the crooked American capitalist John Jacob Astor, the hotel entered legend during the Soviet era, as the place in which Adolf Hitler planned to hold his victory party after the surrender of the city. During the Nazis' three-year blockade of Leningrad, Hitler was even reputed to have had invitations printed and ready to send out to guests.
Today there is no sign of either revolution or blockade. The ballroom and the winter garden have been restored, and a harp tinkles in the lobby as St Petersburg's wealthiest foreign visitors take afternoon tea.


LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION
Bolshaya Morskaya 39, 190000 St Petersburg, Russia (00 7 812 313 5757, www.astoria.hotels.spb.ru), right next door to the colossal St Isaac's Cathedral. It has a prime view over the statue of the most hated Tsar of them all, Nicolas I. The major sites of the city, such as the Hermitage, the Russia Museum and Nevskiy Prospekt are within a few minutes' walk.


Time from international airport: the Hotel Astoria is only 17km from Pulkovo Airport, but in traffic-clogged St Petersburg the trip can take an hour. The hotel will charge about US$50 (£31) to send a car. If you are arriving by train from Moscow, the fare from Moskovsky railway station will be about $20 (£12.50). These charges are high by local standards but if you are staying at the Astoria it would be unseemly to make a fuss.


ARE YOU LYING COMFORTABLY?
The views of St Isaac's Cathedral are a selling-point, but rooms are on the small side, and are restrained and classical rather than sumptuous and extravagant. The flooring is traditional Russian parquet, and the furniture is comfortable but not eye-catching. Those who wish their luxury to be ostentatious and glamorous are likely to be disappointed; connoisseurs of discreet class will enjoy it.


THE BOTTOM LINE
Double rooms cost from $328 (£204). However, for the best deals and minimal bureaucracy, consider holiday packages from the UK. For example, Abercrombie & Kent (0845 0700 612; www.abercrombiekent.co.uk) offers four night-packages from £880 per person. This price is based on two sharing a standard double room and includes breakfast, flights from the UK and transfers.


I'm not paying that: cheap rooms are hard to come by in St Petersburg. One UK company offering cheap stays and help with visas is the Russia Experience (020-8566 8846, www.trans-siberian.co.uk). A budget hotel booked through the company will cost £125 single/£200 double for three nights.