Savoy Hotel, Moscow Explained

Hotel Savoy Moscow
Location:3/6, b.1, Rozhdestvenka Str.
Location Town:Moscow, 109012
Location Country:Russian Federation

The Hotel Savoy Moscow is a historic hotel in Moscow, opened in 1913. The symbol of the hotel is a salamander.

Location

, at 3/6, b.1, Rozhdestvenka, Moscow, 109012, Russia.

History

The Savoy Hotel opened on March 30, 1913.[1] It was built to host tourists visiting Russia for the Romanov tercentenary, a huge celebration of 300 years of Russian imperial rule in May 1913. In 1959, in honor of the 10th anniversary of the German Democratic Republic, the hotel was renamed Hotel Berlin.[2]

In 1987, the hotel closed for a $16 million restoration, funded by INFA, a joint venture between Intourist, the Soviet state tourism monopoly, and Finnair, which reserved 80% of the rooms for its own passengers.[3] It reopened on October 3, 1989, under its original name, as the Hotel Savoy Moscow. The hotel was aimed exclusively at wealthy Western guests. Like most other luxury hotels in Moscow at the time, it did not accept Rubles, but unlike others, it did not accept western hard currency cash either. Instead, the Savoy required that all payments be made with credit cards, to cut down on corruption. Among its amenities was a casino, operated by another Finnish firm, Casino Amherst International Ltd.[4] In 2005, the Savoy was renovated, at a cost of $20 million.[5]

Current ownership

The hotel is owned by OAO Infa-Otel, whose stock is shared between Musgrave Holdings (84%), a member of the Guta Group, and the government of Moscow (16%).

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Hotel Savoy (1913), Moscow | Historic Hotels of the World-Then&Now.
  2. Web site: Hotel Savoy (1913), Moscow | Historic Hotels of the World-Then&Now.
  3. Web site: Moscow Gets a Touch of Class : The Soviet Union's new Hotel Savoy harks back to the splendor of the czars . . 7 September 1989 .
  4. Web site: Moscow Gets a Touch of Class : The Soviet Union's new Hotel Savoy harks back to the splendor of the czars . . 7 September 1989 .
  5. Web site: Savoy Hotel Moscow .