ST. PETERSBURG, Russia—Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. and its brand, Aloft Hotels, announced the signing of Aloft St. Petersburg. The opening of Aloft St. Petersburg in 2015 will mark the debut of Starwood’s Aloft Hotels brand in Russia.
Owned by Remstroyintour LLC and Ludmila Kudryavtseva, Aloft St. Petersburg will be located in an emerging business district within close proximity to galleries, restaurants and green spaces. This deal was announced at a press conference in Moscow with Starwood president & CEO Frits van Paasschen and Roeland Vos, president of the company’s Europe, Africa and Middle East (EAME) Division.
“We are delighted to partner with Remstroyintour LLC and Ludmila Kudryavtseva to open the first Aloft hotel in the country,” said Vos, in an announcement. “We see great opportunities to grow our Aloft portfolio in markets like Russia where there is a strong demand for affordable yet stylish, innovative hotel brands. The signing of Aloft St. Petersburg underlines Starwood’s continued commitment to expanding our portfolio of mid-market brands in Russia and throughout Europe.”
“Aloft has become a popular choice for owners and developers looking to fill the void in the mid-market hotel category,” said Bart Carnahan, Senior Vice President, Acquisitions & Development, Europe, Africa and Middle East Division, Starwood Hotels & Resorts. “We are focused on growing Aloft in secondary and tertiary markets throughout Russia and CIS, where we see the greatest demand for an alternative to the mid-market category.”
Aloft St. Petersburg will offer public spaces where guests can mix and mingle, read the paper, work on laptops, play a game of pool, or grab a drink with friends at the re:mix lounge and w xyz bar.
All 200 loft-like guestrooms will feature high ceilings, oversized windows, and platform bed as well as walk-in showers. Guests will be able to re-energise in the re:charge fitness center and grab a bite to eat at re:fuel by Aloft, a 24-hour grab-and-go food and beverage area. For work meetings, training courses, and presentations, the hotel’s two board rooms will be equipped with the latest generation of audio-visual hardware.
Starwood currently operates three hotels in Russia, including Hotel National, a Luxury Collection Hotel and the Sheraton Palace Hotel in Moscow, as well as the recently opened W Hotel in St. Petersburg. Aloft St. Petersburg will be Starwood’s second hotel in the city.
