Photo : Arcadia
The transformation of former edifices into luxury hotels is the new fashion in Prague in the Czech Republic, and in Bratislava in Slovakia. These Central European capitals were, prior to the Communist era, royal and aristocratic centres. They thus abound in remarkable architectural heritage, often baroque.
Sleeping in Prague and seeing all the city has to offer… The Tower Suite in the brand new 5-star Augustine, opened in May 2009, now makes this dream possible. Built as a triplex, this suite, situated in the original tower of an ancient Augustine monastery dating back to the 13th century, allows you a 360° panorama of the roofs of this Central European metropolis.
The Augustine is not alone in this trend. In October 2008, the oldest luxury hotel chain in Europe, the German Kempinski opened, right in the middle of Prague, a new 5-star establishment in an ancient bohemian palace, the baroque St Hybernská, a carefully restored historic edifice just next to major tourist attractions. Underlines Sedat Nemli, the General Manager of Kempinski Hybernská Prague: “When planning out the interior and the garden, we attached great importance to timeless elegance.” Indeed, the hotel has an exceptional 1,800m2 courtyard with landscape gardening, the height of luxury in the Czech capital. Called the “magical garden” by Prague locals, it has a baroque fountain adorned with a lion and a bagatelle featuring 2,500 trees and plants. Chestnut trees, beeches, lime trees and yews, 7 metres high, were imported directly from Germany by helicopter.
With its 14 rooms and 61 suites, the Kempinski Hybernská Prague is the new address that is a must for all lovers of luxury, history and romanticism, with a dash of the contemporary. Although the edifice was constructed in the 15th and 16th centuries, now, electric-blue lights light the way along corridors that blend glass and metal. The lobby resembles an immense private lounge where simple lines dominate. The only rustic and cosy spot is the bar, situated under baroque vaults.
Of course, the winter garden is also delightful. On the contrary, despite the enormous sun-shaped lamps, the sobriety of the restaurant Le Grill sends a chill over the pleasure of tasting the Czech and international specialities concocted by Marek Fichtner. This young chef perfected his skills at the Dolder Grand Hotel in Zurich and in Saudi Arabia, where members of the royal family were amongst his clients. The past of the entirely renovated Kemp-inski Hybernská Prague is as regal as it is rich in history. Located in the historic centre of the old city of Prague, the “new city” constructed around 1348, the hotel is on the site of what were two bourgeois houses in the 15th century, transformed into a palace in the middle of the 17th century.
It was here that lived Dukes of Bohemia, before the noble imperial valet Félix Vrsovec Sekerka von Sedcice purchased the large domain made up of several buildings with a garden. This large collector transformed the site into a baro-que two-storey palace. At the end of the 19th century, the residence was converted into a neoclassical edifice with shops, offices and apartments, before being sold in 1922… to the hospital administration. The former baroque palace henceforth became a 20th century polyclinic.
In its current guise, it is possible to enjoy the Bohemia suite (90 m2) with two bedrooms and a magnificent terrace with a view over the Prague building tops; or, from 2,400 euros per night, the Presidential Suite (140 m2), as pompous as it is
modern, with a conference room, Jacuzzi and terrace.
As for the other new gem in the Czech capital, The Augustine, the vertiginous Tower Suite tells a completely different story. The hotelier Rocco Forte, from the young group Rocco Forte Collection, and the decorator Olga Polizzi have drawn together seven edifices to create this hotel, also situated at the heart of Prague, more precisely in the picturesque Mala Stranà district close to the Prague castle, the Wallenstein gardens and the Charles Bridge. The ancient Augustine monastery, dating from the 13th century, was formerly found in the largest of the seven buildings. It was known for its rich library with books going as far back as 1368. The monastery itself has undergone a number of catastrophes and fires. Extensive renovations were undertaken in 1550, and monks still live in a wing separated from the current hotel.
These days, young couples and sweethearts on the search for romanticism, and Augustine residents can even get married on the spot in the baroque Catholic church Saint-Thomas, next to the hotel. Under the ancient vaulted entrance to the monastery, Tom’s Bar reveals all the original beauty of baroque frescoes.
In the cellar of the original brewery, at the Brewery Bar, you can sip on a beer in the midst of stalactites and stalagmites, 400 years old. Remarkably, the 1930s style of the rooms is even more seductive. The wooden chairs and deck chairs by Pavel Janák and Adolf Loos, two cubist architects and designers from Prague, have been renovated, and marry perfectly with the small windows overlooking a most romantic courtyard. Other rooms offer a view over the monastery roofs or the church’s angular bell…
In Bratislava, in Slovakia, the other capital emerging from the scission of the former Czechoslovakia in 1993, the Arcadia Hotel is the city’s first 5-star hotel, opening in 2007. Two years later, it already features in the Leading Hotels of the World catalogue, which presents around 450 prestigious hotels in 80 countries. The booking company producing this catalogue recently fine-tuned its criteria and now favours small details. It checks, for example, whether clients are called by name.
Such attention is of course paid in this Slovakian 5-star hotel, lodged in a 13th century building classified as a historic monument at the core of the old centre or Stare Mesto, just next to the Opera, the city centre and Michael’s Gate, the last vestige of medieval fortifications. As the sole capital in the world to be located directly next to two States – Austria and Hungary – and holding 427,000 inhabitants, Bratislava is welcoming more and more tourists. The Arcadia Hotel reserves fine surprises for such tourists. In its impressive lobby, clients will feel as if they are somewhere between the East and the West: the white arcades of the balconies sparkle under the painted glass ceiling that allows light to be shed on armchairs from another era.
The Arcadia, a 34-roomed boutique hotel, blends gothic, Renaissance and baroque architecture. Here, the design remains extremely classic, and hotel designers have not yet taken the plunge of going contemporary. But this old style represents no drawback for its highly glamorous clientele: top model Adriana Karembeu, a Slovakian native, likes to come here, as well as former American tennis player Pete Sampras and the voluptuous Pamela Anderson, star of the Baywatch series.
Bookings
The Augustine*****
Letenska 12/33
11800 Prague 1
Czech Republic
Tel.: +420.266.112.233 or toll free: +800.7666.6667
www.theaugustine.com www.roccofortecollection.com
Launch date: 14 May 2009
101 rooms including 16 suites
from 320 euros
Kempinski Hybernská Prague*****
Hybernska 12
11000 Prague
Czech Republic
Tel.: +420.226.226.111
www.kempinski-prague.com
Launch date: 15 October 2008
75 rooms including 61 suites
from 183 euros (28 m2)
Arcadia*****
Frantiskanska 3
81101 Bratislava
Slovakia
Tel.: +4212.5949.0500
www.arcadia-hotel.sk www.lhw.com/arcadia
34 rooms from 315 euros (19 and 25 m2)
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