Orient to Put Its Mark on Hotel.

(From The Moscow Times)

ST. PETERSBURG -- British hospitality chain Orient-Express Hotels has announced its first steps as the owners and managers of St. Petersburg's historic Grand Hotel Europe, in which it recently acquired a 93.5 percent stake in a $100 million deal.

Orient-Express has earmarked $30 million to be spent on the hotel in the next few years, said Pippa Isbell, vice president for public relations. This year, it will spend about $5 million.

The hotel's new general manager, Thomas Noll, said the first key investment this year would be made into updating technologies, installing wireless Internet and outdoor lighting, and improving the electrical supply.

The managers plan to work on room renovation and increase the number of suites, as well as bring in an Orient-Express designer who will work with a local artist to create a more traditionally Russian interior and spirit at the hotel.

"We are very much about experiences. Our philosophy as a business is to maintain the spirit of the place in which our hotels are located," Isbell said. "In this respect the Grand Hotel Europe is very much what the city of St. Petersburg is all about, and we won't change that."

In terms of experiences on offer to guests, Noll mentioned several ideas, including a luxury boat to tour the canals or a troika ride to the Hermitage.