A beloved visit to St. Petersburg, led to a return visit to Russia with three days in Moscow that included visits to Red Square, St. Basil’s Cathedral and fabled Cafe Pushkin.

Award Trip Report by SFO777

My wife and I loved St. Petersburg when we visited two years ago and have always wanted to return to Russia. And what better way to go than Singapore’s almost daily IAH-DME 77W service? Since Singapore Airlines does not release first class award seats to partners (except for the glitch last year), KrisFlyer first award seats are pretty easy to find on most routes.

It’s been three long years since our last Singapore Airlines flights. Despite being nearly seven years old, the cabin still looked pretty new. And the crew was as wonderful as always, providing flawless service the entire trip.

We stayed at the Hotel National in Moscow. Not the best hotel in Moscow, but a SPG hotel in a great location right across from Red Square. We were upgraded to a Kremlin View Junior Suite and one of the Platinum amenities was a complimentary breakfast buffet.

I had arranged a private guide for both Thursday and Friday and we explored Moscow on foot with our wonderful guide, Sophie. We visited Red Square and St. Basil’s Cathedral and the famous GUM (pronounced Goom), once a Soviet-era sparsely stocked “department store”, now a beautiful upscale shopping center.

We took the famous Metro to the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour, rebuilt in the 1990’s after Stalin had ordered it destroyed in true Soviet fashion in which religion was considered “opium for the masses.” Lunch near our hotel at Vatrushka was the best restaurant of our visit. And we went to the fabled Café Pushkin, a must for anyone visiting Moscow.

One of the highlights of our trip was two front-row balcony tickets to the Bolshoi on opening night of the new ballet “Marco Spada.” The dancers, the sets, the staging, choreography, the music were all unbelievable.

Moscow was fascinating to visit but three days was just the right amount of time for us.

FFP miles spent:
115,000 KrisFlyer miles per person (transferred from AMEX and SPG points)

Hotel points spent:
None

Approximate fees:
$450 per person

Airline(s) / Routing:
Singapore Airlines IAH-DME-IAH

How booked:
Online

Type of award(s):
First class

Hotel(s):
Hotel National

Month/year of trip:
November 2013