| Arguably the best time to visit St Petersburg is in October. The first snows of winter sprinkle a frosting of icing sugar on its wedding-cake palaces, but the extreme cold, darkness and ice have yet to set in, ad the canals are still alive with boats. The city is now becoming more attractive thanks to developments in its hotels. First, Orient-Express has acquired a majority stake in the Grand Hotel Europe (00 7 812 329 6000; www.grandhoteleurope.com) on Nevsky Prospekt, on which it is spending US$125 million over three years. Nearby is a new Kempinski property, Hotel Moika 22 (00 7 812 335 9111; www.kenpinski.com). It is a converted palace overlooking the River Moika from the embankment, a few doors away from Pushkin's former apartment. A special opening rate at the hotel, available until 31 October, gets you an upgrade to a suite, including breakfast and a spa treatment, for 344 euros per night. |