While on a quieter side-street in Old Town, Prague’s Hotel Josef has it all.
Luke and I stayed here during my “Bar Trip” during September 2010. For those of you wondering exactly what a “Bar Trip” is, it’s an American law school tradition of taking a big trip after you take the bar exam and before you start working.
Stellar location, amazingly comfortable beds, really neat rooms, and a great staff made our stay so enjoyable, we wouldn’t consider staying anywhere else next time we find ourselves in this storybook city.
Garden courtyard at the Hotel Josef
We were cheerfully greeted by the reception, who were eager to help us with whatever we needed, and offered help with bringing our bags to our room, which is becoming more and more rare in even the nicer hotels in Europe, I’ve found. We took the elevator from the super-modern lobby to our 3rd floor room in the Pink House, to find a really quiet hallway leading to our room. Everything in this hotel has a hint of design and thoughtfulness, even the room numbers.
Spiral staircase to the lower floor…where there’s…nothing.
Upon entering our room, we were blown away. Hubby’s a graphic designer, who studied design and architecture in school, and he was floored.
Our superior room – view from the door.
Our room, as viewed from the window.
We had a superior room with a glass-enclosed bathroom, free umbrella for use, robes, slippers, Nespresso machine, – the works. The room was gorgeous, and we found a personalized folder on the desk with suggestions for restaurants, attractions, and more for us.
The coolest bathroom ever.
Don’t worry, the shower and toilet are behind frosted glass.
Hello Nespresso!
Beside the bed was even a jogging map (Luke was training for a marathon, so he found this to be very helpful), and a free bottle of water for each of us, every night. It was like they had thought of everything.
Custom city guides/literature based on a pre-arrival survey.
Comfy bed! We got more pillows, obviously.
As for the service, the front desk and concierge assisted us with everything from recommending restaurants, offering to arrange tickets to the FC Sparta soccer (football) game we wanted to go to (and went to!) , and mailing postcards for us, to arranging a private car service for us to the airport upon departure. They were eager to help and always greeted us with a smile.
Breakfast was delicious but we ventured out to eat mainly during our stay. There’s a bakery on site and they make fresh pastries in-house, so you know it’s all fresh.
Before I book any hotel, I do my research, and I have to say that this hotel is seriously worth EVERY penny and surpassed all our expectations. It was truly incredible, an amazing value, and the helpful staff and comfortable, quiet rooms made it the best weekend we had while in Europe during our 2010 trip.
While older travelers may prefer a more traditionally-decorated hotel, this was the perfect place for us!
Hotel Josef: important details
Hotel Josef
Phone: +420 221 700 901
Rybna 20 Prague 1 110 00 Click here for directions from the hotel’s website.
Check-In: 2:00pm
Check-Out: Noon
Do you have a hotel in Prague that you adore? Have you stayed at Hotel Josef? Tell me what you think, in the comments!
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