St. Petersburg, 9 February 2023. In early 2023, there was a total of 6,700 guest-rooms under the management of international hospitality providers in St. Petersburg, down from 9,900 in 2019. It means that only a quarter of the city’s aggregate quality guest-room inventory remained under international provider’s management (overall, St. Petersburg’s quality guest-room inventory includes three-star, four-star and five-star accommodations and totals 26,300 units).

Several international hospitality providers left the Russian market over the last year, while their hotels continue to operate after rebranding under local providers’ management. Two Crowne Plazas, three Holiday Inns and a Staybridge Suites apart-hotel, previously managed by the British provider InterContinental Hotels Group, have been rebranded. Two accommodation establishments, previously managed by the Finnish S-Group, have had to remove the “Sokos” component from their names and are currently known as Palace bridge Hotel (in Birzhevoy Lane) and Vasilievsky Hotel (in Vailievsky Island’s 8^th Line). One of Marriott International-managed hotels was renamed earlier in 2021 as a result of change of ownership to become River Palace Hotel. In 2022, the establishment formerly known as Courtyard by Marriott St. Petersburg Center was rebranded as CORT INN St-Petersburg Hotel & Conference Center and the former Marriott Renaissance St. Petersburg Baltic Hotel became Renartiss Isaakiy St. Petersburg Hotel. Also, a hotel, which used to be managed by the German hospitality provider Kempinski Hotels, was renamed Grand Hotel Moyka 22.

However, some hotels remain under international management, including those still managed by the French provider Accor and by Radisson Hotel Group (now controlled by Chinese investors). Two accommodation establishments of Hilton Worldwide – Hilton Saint Petersburg Expoforum and Hampton by Hilton Saint Petersburg ExpoForum – also fall into this category, as well as Grand Hotel Europe, which is still managed by Belmond. Astoria and Angleterre hotels continue to be managed by the British provider Rocco Forte, whereas the South Korean company Lotte Hotels & Resorts retains under its management Lotte Hotel St. Petersburg.

Nikoliers experts point out that going forward guest-room inventory under international management in St. Petersburg may shrink further by 43%, as Russia’s Cosmos Hotel Group (controlled by diversified holding Sistema) have announced plans to buy six hotels from the Norwegian group Wenaas Hotel Russia. Cosmos-targeted establishments include Park Inn by Radisson Pribaltiyskaya, Park Inn by Radisson Pulkovskaya, Park Inn by Radisson Nevsky, Park Inn By Radisson Pulkovo, Radisson Blu Royal Hotel and Olympia Garden Hotel. Note, that these hotels are to retain their current international branding in line with existing contracts with Radisson Hotel Group.