Saint Petersburg Is the Best City in Europe!

(Source: Visit Petersburg)

High season ended on a positive note for Saint Petersburg. An award ceremony of the "Oscar in tourism" was held in Russia for the first time, and the Northern Capital of Russia was awarded as the Europe's Best Tourist Destination. A solemn ceremony of World Travel Awards took place on 30 September in the halls of the Ethnographic museum. Distinguished guests from all around the world, from such cities as New York, Dubai etc. visited the main event in the field of tourism.

The Governor of the City of Saint Petersburg, Georgy Poltavchenko, World Travel Awards President and Founder, Graham Cooke, St. Petersburg Committee for Tourism Development with its Chairman, Andrey Muskarev, and Deputy Chairman Nana Gvichiya, as well as the world's leading hoteliers, tour operators, representatives of Aeroflot airlines, media partners took part in the festive ceremony.

The Northern Venice has become the best city for the third time in a row.

Such a glittering and large-scale international event was opened by the Governor of Saint Petersburg, Georgy Poltavchenko. In his speech, he described the jury's assessment as well-deserved and very high:

"Tourism is an excellent mean of communication between countries and people, thanks to this area, our world is becoming much brighter and kinder.We believe that this is a well-deserved reward for the potential of the Northern Capital.We are proud that this prestigious award ceremony is being held for the first time in Russia, and it is Saint Petersburg!"

The Chairman of St. Petersburg Committee for Tourism Development, Andrey Muskarev noted that the main competitors of the City on Neva river were Rome and Vienna, which had become the finalists of the competition.

Among the other nominees were declared Amsterdam, Oslo, Barcelona, London and Paris.

The criteria for the World Travel Awards 2017 were the city security, the developed infrastructure and the hotel network.