New Year in St Petersburg: apartments for a large group

New Year in St Petersburg is more than the chimes at midnight. It's two weeks of illuminations, ballets, fairs and snowy embankments. If your group is larger than four or five, a hotel quickly becomes awkward — separate floors, a shared table only in the restaurant. Renting one large apartment is more convenient, cheaper and warmer.

What happens in the city

• Illuminations across the centre from late November to mid-January — Nevsky, Bolshaya Morskaya, Palace Square
• The main tree on Palace Square — sleigh rides, slides, a fair
• The Hermitage on a holiday schedule — and a light show on the Winter Palace facade on the night of 1 January
• Ballets at the Mariinsky and Mikhailovsky — The Nutcracker, Swan Lake; tickets sell out a month or more ahead
• The rink at New Holland — the city's prettiest

Why an apartment, not a hotel

For 8–12 people a hotel means 4–6 rooms with no common space. The Panoramic apartment is 350 m² — six bedrooms, a dining room for twelve, a living room with a fireplace and a grand piano, a Finnish sauna and a jacuzzi. Gather everyone for dinner on 31 December, watch the fireworks from the window at 1 a.m., then retreat to your own rooms.

Location over the holidays

Voskresenskaya Embankment is the quiet right bank, between the Liteyny and Bolsheokhtinsky bridges. Nevsky is a 15-minute walk; the Hermitage a 10-minute taxi ride; the Smolny Cathedral and its tree 5 minutes on foot. The windows face the Neva — the New Year fireworks are visible right from the balconies.

When to book

For the peak (30 December – 8 January) demand for premium stays in St Petersburg outstrips supply 4–6×; good apartments go 4–6 months ahead, and rates run 1.5–2× the standard. Message the manager now to reserve dates and lock the price. Send a request.