MOSCOW, February 19 (RIA Novosti) - Four and five star hotel rooms in the Russian capital are the most expensive on the planet, with a one-night stay costing an average of $483, according to the annual HRG Hotel Survey.

Experts believe that unusually high prices for land and the shortage of space in the center of Moscow are to blame for the exorbitant prices, which are expected to peak in 2008. Moscow has also been classed as the world's most expensive city for business people by a number of surveys.

The Russian capital is notorious for its lack of mid-range and budget hotels. As of September last year, Moscow had a total of 217 hotels, most of them business-class, providing around 35,000 rooms. Moscow authorities, however, expect that the number of hotel rooms in the capital will increase more than five-fold by 2010.

According to the survey, New York was second for high-priced accommodation, with an average price of $374, followed by Paris ($333.8) and Dubai ($320.8). London, in 10th place, remained relatively cheap, with an average price of $300.