Tourism experts of World Travel Awards have considered St Petersburg World’s Leading Cultural City Destination 2016.

December 2 the grand final took place. St Petersburg got the main prize. Beijing (China), London (England), New York (the UDSA, Paris (France), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Rome (Italy), Sydney (Australia) and Venice (Italy) were nominated together with our city.

In September 2016, St Petersburg got the prize as Europe’s Leading Destination for the second time in a row and proceeded to the world grand final. This prize is like Oscar for tourism. Thirty criteria are taken into account. This year the ones to be considered first were safety and good tourism infrastructure.

The head of tourism development committee, Andrey Mushkarev, said: “St Petersburg is now at the peak of its popularity”.

This prize was founded in 1993. Thousands of tourists and specialists vote for candidates. This prize means you have achieved the top in tourism. It is very symbolical that our city got this award in 2016 as next summer World Travel Awards Europe Gala Ceremony 2017 will take place in St Petersburg.

Tourism experts say next year is going to set a new record for number of tourists coming here. Be sure to book your holiday in advance.