In any contest for the title of Europe's most photogenic city, Prague would surely be a finalist. The cobbled streets and soaring spires of the Czech capital have made it a prime location for movies from Amadeus to Misson: Impossible, as well as numerous TV period dramas. And since the fall of the Iron Curtain, the city's pastel beauties and affordable prices have proved irresistible to tourists from all over the world.
But there is more to Prague than medieval architecture – the capital is also the country's leading industrial centre. Manufacturing still accounts for over a quarter of the Czech Republic's GDP (Source: Prague Information Service 2007) and is led by the likes of Škoda, which posted a jump of 34.5 per cent in operating profits last year.
Flying into the city's airport, the bands of concrete-clad apartment blocks which house the workforce are grim testimony to the years of communism that followed the Soviet "liberation" of Prague from Nazi occupation after the Second World War. Some 40 years of oppression were finally shrugged off in the "Velvet Revolution" of 1989.
Since that time and the introduction of a free-market economy, Prague has begun to feature more readily in the plans of large corporate organisations looking for a centre from which to launch their eastward expansion. Accession to the European Union in 2004 saw a further influx of foreign investment.
And nowhere is this better seen than in the burgeoning hotel market. All the large international chains are or will be represented, attracted by the revenues derived from the city's seven-day-a-week corporate and leisure business. Analysis from The Bench, a benchmarking company, recently placed Prague 13th in a survey of four and five-star hotels in European cities measured by revenue per available room (Prague was the only Central or Eastern European city to make the top 15).
Passenger numbers through Prague's Ruzyne airport hit a record high of 11.5 million in 2006, up a staggering 700,000 on the previous year. A new terminal was completed last year, bringing capacity to 20 million passengers. No fear here of the collapse of the low-cost airline businesses, which together comprise some 20 per cent of traffic.
The greatest challenge to hotel owners and operators is finding a landmark site capable of development and free from onerous heritage protection. It might be expected that such a barrier to entry would provide some level of comfort at the deluxe end of the market. But the groundbreaking Four Seasons Hotel is finding its territory chiselled away by the opening last autumn of the Mandarin Oriental across the Vltava River. To say nothing of the arrival in the next two years of hotels from Le Méridien, Rocco Forte and Kempinski, of which more later.
Nevertheless the Four Seasons was there first, a decade ago, and snapped up without doubt the city's prime location. The hotel's Allegro restaurant serves sublime Italian food to local and visiting notables making the most of the superb riverside terrace. Like the best rooms, the terrace has unobstructed views of the castle from the right bank of the Vltava. "Right" also in terms of being on the "business side" of town.
With the churning up of the market, it is no surprise that the three historic buildings which make up the Four Seasons will, together with the linking modern construction, undergo a rolling refurbishment programme over the next two years. Not that the hotel looks like it needs a refurb, such is the exemplary standard of maintenance. The programme, under the auspices of designer Pierre-Yves Rochon, will be staged to ensure no disruption to guests' use of the hotel.
The other side of the river, on the apron underneath the castle, is less business-oriented, but as the city is so compact a location here is not a serious handicap. Especially if, like the Mandarin Oriental, you have at least some rooms with castle views. That these vaulted rooms are in the top floor of the former monks' cloister adds even more character to the experience. The 99-room hotel is a masterful trilogy of Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque architecture set around a large courtyard. The ensemble of cream tones is all "held" together with subtle yet consistent fabric motifs, furniture and lighting. The oriental touch is limited to restrained decorative elements here and there. This fresh, modern approach to the interiors ensures they will appeal to a younger, design-aware guest profile. Large function and meeting rooms, plus an extensive spa housed in a 14th-century former church, provide a one-stop shop for the business traveller, while the Essensia restaurant offers an excellent non-fusion menu of Asian and European dishes.
The choices from the multinational hotel brands are numerous and often large. Hilton has 788 guest rooms and extensive meeting facilities at its large atrium hotel, while the Marriott and Renaissance hotels account for more than 600 rooms between them.
The Intercontinental Hotels Group is represented by the Express by Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza and the flagship Intercontinental Hotel, with 372 guest rooms alone. The first Crowne Plaza Prague is notable for occupying the grand former quarters of the Red Army. Joining it this month is the Crowne Plaza Prague Castle, which is situated alongside the castle walls, with 138 guest rooms spread over four floors and set around two adjacent courtyards.
Other smaller hotel groups are also well represented. Vienna International Hotels and Resorts has seven independently branded hotels in the city ranging from the modern glass construction of the Andels and the long-stay Andels Suites to the more traditional Savoy and Palace hotels. Their eighth property is expected to open in 2008.
Malta-based Corinthia Hotels have just two properties in the city, the Towers and Panorama, but together they offer almost 1,000 guest rooms, conveniently located for the conference centre to the south of the city.
To the south-west of the city, in the up-and-coming neighbourhood of Vinohrady, is the new Courtyard by Marriott Prague Flora. Opened in spring 2006, the 161 rooms are housed in a remarkable new cubic building alongside a large shopping mall much favoured by the locals. The hotel features some elements of the new Courtyard concept, with an open kitchen in the Purple Basil restaurant plus The Market, a self-service shop with pre-prepared snacks, drinks and other essentials.
Worthy of mention is the super-kitsch Hotel Praha. Its recently refurbished 1980s interiors are all smoked glass bauble chandeliers, black leather and chrome – reminiscent of an old Habitat catalogue. The hotel was built to entertain visiting communist heads of state; don't be put off by the bronze reflective glass of the "command post" at the hotel entrance.
The suburban location to the north of the city is on the way in from the airport and offers unusual views of the distant castle. This slight remove from the city makes it an attractive conference venue, as a cinema, large meeting room and banqueting facilities testify.
The floors of the hotel step down a gardened slope in a resort-like way, offering terraces for all 126 guest rooms. The guest rooms are amongst the largest in the city but have décor that is a tad on the soulless side. All in all a reasonable package, which is unfortunately rather let down by surly service stuck in the same time warp as the hotel's design.
The boutique hotel market has been led by the Eva Jiricna-designed Hotel Josef, now celebrating its fifth year (and second opening after the "worst in living memory " floods of 2002). The Josef comprises two new buildings, the Pink and Orange Houses, which face each other across a splash of emerald grass. In the same vein, its nearby sister property, the Maximilian, has a Black House and a Red House. The Maximilian, re-opened after a total refurbishment also by Jiricna in spring 2005, is furnished with 1930s-inspired design of a Bauhaus genre.
Competition is hotting up in this sector too; good news for the price-conscious traveller in a city where demand in the main outstrips supply and prices are not the lowest. The Yasmin is a centrally located four-star hotel remarkable for two design features: the extensive use of Tom Dixon mirrorball pendant lamps, and the out-of-this-world, red fox-tail creations of dyed Asian grasses that spring from the floor and curve across the ceiling. Both decorate the hotel's restaurant, Noodles, which serves all varieties of its namesake.
Local design talent Barbora Skorpilova has also produced a gentle interiors concept for the 198 rooms, the majority of which overlook a narrow courtyard. The pale greens and jasmine-flower motif contrast surprisingly with the reflective surfaces of the all-black bathrooms.
Another new entrant to the boutique market is 987 Prague, named after its plot number. This 80-room hotel is stacked with enough iconic furniture from Starck, Le Corbusier, Jacobsen and Saarinen to satisfy the most avid design fan. The hotel is well located just to the east of the centre, with some rooms looking across a grubby park beside the main railway station.
At the top end of the market there has clearly been a feeling of undersupply and accordingly plenty of new stock is coming on stream, including Le Royal Méridien. Niall Kelly, vice-president of development for Starwood Hotels and Resorts, says: "We've been looking hard at Prague for some time now based on the amount of corporate business our centralised delivery system was requesting. We're delighted to have found the right property in the right location."
The 165-room hotel, a converted bank, is due to open in early 2009 and is credited with two firsts for Starwood: its first hotel in the city and the first new Le Méridien hotel signing following last year's merger of Le Méridien with Starwood. Expect further development in the city of the group's eight other brands.
In a move to reinforce its European roots, Kempinski will open a deluxe property with 75 residences in early 2008 to take advantage of the long-stay business travel market. Also due early next year is the latest in the rapid European expansion of Rocco Forte Hotels. Their 100-plus room property will be situated on the castle side of the city, with the five ancient adjacent buildings presenting something of an operational challenge.
Looking to the future, the city's strong attraction for both the leisure and business traveller ensures that hotel development will continue apace. With the finite supply of suitable city-centre buildings, expect more in the way of new hotel supply to come in non-protected, less central areas and from more mid-market brands, such as the new Courtyard by Marriott at the airport, which opens this month.
Depending on who you talk to in the hotel market, the golden years are either over or yet to come. But for business travellers, the increasing choice means things can only get better.
FACT FILE: Prague Hotels
Four Seasons Hotel Prague
Veleslavinova 2a/1098
tel + 420 221 427 000
fourseasons.com
Rooms from €389
Mandarin Oriental Hotel Prague
Nebovidska 459/1
+420 233 088 888
mandarinoriental.com
Rooms from €271
Hotel Praha
Susicka 20
tel +420 224 341 111
htlpraha.cz
Rooms from €294
Crowne Plaza Hotel Prague Castle
Strahovska 128
tel +420 221 476 651
crowneplaza.com
Rooms from €163
Courtyard by Marriott Prague Flora
Lucemburska Street 46
tel +420 236 088 088
marriott.com
Rooms from €173
Hotel Josef
Rybna 20
tel +420 221 700 111
hoteljosef.com
Rooms from Euros 203
Courtyard by Marriott Prague Airport
Aviaticka 1092/8
tel +420 236 077 077
marriott.com
Rooms from €110
Hotel Maximilian
Hastalska 14
tel +420 225 303 111
maximilianhotel.com
Rooms from €171
Hotel Yasmin
Politickych veznu 12/913
tel +420 234 100 100
hotel-yasmin.cz
Rooms from €179
Hotel 987 Prague
Senovazne Namesti 15
tel +420 255 737 702
987praguehotel.com
Rooms from €170
Rates quoted are for a flexible midweek stay in mid April.
Others
Hilton hilton.com
Marriott & Renaissance marriott.com
InterContinental Hotels Group ichotelsgroup.com
Vienna International Hotels & Resorts vi-hotels.com
Corinthia Hotels International corinthia.cz
Le Méridien starwoodhotels.com/lemeridien
Kempinski kempinski.com
Rocco Forte Hotels roccofortehotels.com
Other useful contacts
Czech Tourist Board czechtourism.com
Prague Information Service pis.cz/en
