World Travel Awards president Graham Cooke has been welcomed to St. Petersburg ahead of the Europe Gala Ceremony 2017.

The red carpet event will take place in the prestigious Marble Hall in the Russian Museum of Ethnography tomorrow evening, September 30th.

In the build up to the event, Cooke, was welcomed to the city at an event hosted at Journalist House and attended by Andrey Mushkarev, chairman, Saint-Petersburg Committee for Tourism Development.

Also in attendance were World Travel Awards vice presidents Chris Frost and Sion Rapson, as well as Ekaterina Galanova, general director of event partners Dance Open, who will present a showcase of Russian entertainment at the Europe Gala Ceremony.

World Travel Awards president Cooke said: “I visited St. Petersburg more than 40 years ago, when the city was still called Leningrad.

“It is amazing World Travel Awards has taken so long to return.

“Nonetheless it is a privilege and honour to be here for this event this weekend.

“This is a world-class destination with a depth of heritage, culture, and sophistication that is unmatched anywhere around the globe.”

President Cooke and chairman Mushkarev are joined by Ekaterina Galanova, general director of event partners Dance Open, far left

A UNESCO World Heritage site, St. Petersburg is home to 36 historical complexes and around 4,000 outstanding individual monuments, magnificent architectural ensembles, beautiful courtyards, splendid parks and unique museums.

St. Petersburg Committee for Tourism Development chairman, Andrey Mushkarev, added: “We will be honoured to host the leading European tourism industry professionals in St. Petersburg.

“We are confident this event will be one of the best in the history of the World Travel Awards and we are pleased to invite everyone to the Europe Gala Ceremony in St. Petersburg, a city that is the pride not only of Russia and Europe, but of the whole world.”

Earlier this year St. Petersburg hosted the final of the FIFA Confederations Cup, while next summer the city will welcome the FIFA World Cup.

In recent news, the Russian capital of culture was also revealed as host the for UNWTO General Assembly 2019.

World Travel Awards was established in 1993 to acknowledge, reward and celebrate excellence across all sectors of the tourism industry.

Today, the World Travel Awards brand is recognised globally as the ultimate hallmark of quality, with winners setting the benchmark to which all others aspire.

Each year, World Travel Awards covers the globe with a series of regional gala ceremonies staged to recognise and celebrate individual and collective success within each key geographical region.

World Travel Awards Gala Ceremonies are widely regarded as the best networking opportunities in the travel industry, attended by government and industry leaders, luminaries and international print and broadcast media.

Find out more about the event on the official website.

More Information

Take a look at a selection of images from the event here, while a video of proceedings can be seen here.