The Manderin Oriental
Like The Augustine, the Mandarin Oriental is made up of a number of buildings – including a monastery – the oldest of which dates back to the 14th century.

With 99 rooms, ten of which are in the spa building, this is also the smallest of the three. Unusually for a Mandarin Oriental, most visitors to the hotel are visiting for pleasure rather than business, and this is reflected in the hotel. You approach the hotel across a charming, cobbled courtyard surrounded by grass, flowers and shrubs.

Rooms are divided between the original buildings, where the corridors have vaulted ceilings, and the new building, where double doors leading onto the Monastery Garden, planted with roses and lavender, compensate for the lack of monastic character. Rooms at the front of the hotel on the fifth floor have fantastic views over the rooftops to Prague Castle; the bathroom of room 508 has a wonderful view of it lit up at night.

Still, rooms with street views are equally charming as the streets are quiet and full of beautiful buildings, including one with a pink Renaissance façade.

Décor is consistently subtle and stylish, with wooden floors, dark grey headboards and navy throws. Elsewhere, the interiors are not always successful, particularly in the bar, with its conical, blue light fittings, but the Monastery Lounge serves afternoon tea amidst the wonderful colonnade of the original cloisters.

The piece de resistance, however, is the spa. Built in 1329, this was once the Church of Maria Magdalena; parts of the old church walls have been maintained and the original foundations are preserved under panes of glass that you cross as you enter.

With corridors lit only by floor level candles and big, beautiful treatment rooms, it is the ideal place to relax after a busy day’s sightseeing.

Further information
Tel: +42 233 088 888
Website: www.mandarinoriental.com/prague/
Doubles from €325, including breakfast

The Four Seasons
As with many Four Seasons hotels, the defining qualities here are location and service. The hotel is positioned on the banks of the Vltava River, just steps away from the Charles Bridge and perfectly situated for your first taste of Prague.

The lobby here is warm and inviting, a welcome comfort when arriving somewhere unknown.

There are huge bowls of flowers, dusky lighting, lots of candles and classical music. Just off the lobby is the excellent, Michelin-starred Allegro restaurant, which serves exceptional Italian food with a minimal amount of Michelin fuss in an intimate atmosphere.

If you’re not staying at the hotel, a meal here is highly recommended, particularly when you need a break from dumplings and other beer-soaked Czech delicacies.

Some of the guest rooms have been renovated and the blue silk wallpaper, heavy, patterned carpets and antique furnishings create a sumptuous feel and an elegance that corresponds with the building’s opulent façade.

Rooms yet to be refurbished follow a more austere, 1970s colour palette of mustard and pale yellows but are still attractive and in good condition.

Whichever room you end up in, old or new, it is essential to go for one with a view: the floor to ceiling windows in the suites allow you to capitalise on the hotel’s riverbank position and drink in the magnificent vista.

Further information
Tel: +42 022 142 7000
Website: www.fourseasons.com/prague/

The Augustine
One of the most refreshing things about The Augustine is its lack of ostentation.

There are no flags or fanfare: this is a surprisingly discreet hotel, in keeping with the building’s humble beginnings. Converted from seven existing buildings, one of which was the Augustinian monastery from which the hotel takes its name, the hotel is a fascinating maze of interconnecting corridors that reflect its rich ecclesiastical heritage. The whole project took six years to complete, much of which was spent on restoration and many of the building’s original features have been maintained, from the windowpanes to 18th century frescoes.

The interiors, styled by Rocco Forte’s sister Olga Polizzi, have a strong monastic feel. Original doors line the long corridors, maintaining the idea that each leads to a small, monastic cell. In fact, some of these doors are blind because the guestrooms are, as you would expect, comfortably big.

Ecclesiastical colouring – purples, greens and reds – finds expression in the cushions and bedspreads while more muted walls are lit up by restored artwork on loan from Augustinian monasteries across the Czech Republic.

The lime-washed wooden floorboards and heavy oak doors are contrasted with white bed linen and colourful striped rugs that add a contemporary feel. Rooms to go for are number 235, a studio with magnificent iron doors and beautiful windows that were unearthed by builders during construction, and the Tower Suite, which is spread over three floors and has views over the terracotta-tiled rooftops of Prague to the dome of St Nicholas Church.

Elsewhere, there is a restaurant and a pretty courtyard with trees and umbrellas, a spa and two bars: Tom’s, where you’ll find frescoes of angels holding symbols of the Augustinian order, and The Brewery, a subterranean cellar with a dramatic glass floor revealing the original foundations beneath.

There is plenty of outside space, and wicker sofas from which to enjoy it, and the Sundial Garden is enclosed by bits of the original monastery walls discovered during the building’s excavation.

Further information
Tel: +42 266 11 22 33
Website: www.theaugustine.com
Doubles from €300, including breakfast.