7 hotels in Prague that take travelers on a journey through time
The Czech capital is like a time capsule—and its hotels provide the perfect opportunity to see it all, from medieval monasteries to the gilded opulence of the baroque era.
The most astounding thing about Prague may be that it’s still here. Located at the epicenter of the two World Wars in the 20th century, the Czech capital somehow survived intact. This remarkable preservation can be seen on a stroll through the historical districts, especially Staré Město, Nové Město, Malá Strana, Vinohrady, and Hradčany.
This time capsule has also been a boon for hotels. Today, history fans and art aficionados can stay within buildings that range from the 13th to the 21st century.
Medieval: The Augustine, a Luxury Collection Hotel
In 1284, Augustinian monks established a monastery in Malá Strana, under the gaze of Prague Castle. There they lived, prayed, and brewed for centuries while wars, fires, revolutions, and restorations swirled around them. Rescued from severe neglect in the 2000s and meticulously renovated, the Augustine joins seven monastic buildings—brewery included—to bring the Middle Ages into the modern day.
Beneath the boutique sheath, the monastic spirit pervades, in original vaulted ceilings, wooden beams, iron fixtures, interior gardens, and angelic frescos in spaces like the Refectory Bar. In fact, Augustinian friars still reside here, administering the attached St. Thomas Church. Father William Faix leads hotel guests on a tour of the monastery, church, and library.
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Renaissance: The Golden Well
The Italian Renaissance arrived in Prague in the 1500s and turned golden under Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II. Images and names throughout the city echo this era—the golden beehive, the golden sun, the golden tiger. The Golden Well is another. In fact, it belonged to Rudolf, and his gold-nosed astronomer Tycho Brahe lived here.
Brahe inspired the name, too, legendarily timbering the well with manufactured gold after the Virgin Mary revealed the alchemical secret. The front gate, a wall on the second floor, and ceiling of the Tycho de Brahe suite also date to the era, and the palatial feeling permeates the five buildings. The rooftop restaurant, the Golden Terrace, shares Rudolf’s view of Prague, and many rooms look onto the Royal Gardens.
Baroque: Alchymist Grand Hotel and Spa
The gilded opulence of the baroque era recast many Prague buildings during the 17th and 18th centuries, including this hotel in Malá Strana. Originally a Renaissance building, it went full baroque in the late 1600s, adding a gabled façade, expanding its space, and erecting a tower—all visible today. Confiscated by the communist regime, the building took several renovations to shine yet again.
And shine it does, offering the opportunity to steep and sleep in baroque grandeur. The suites and spaces drip with rich, red fabrics; glimmering, golden trim; ornamental stucco, crystal, and Italian marble. Several rooms contain original wood beam ceilings filled with history-faded images of fruit, animals, flora, and symbols, while others include vaulted ceilings embossed with clamshells.
Belle epoque: Le Palais Art Hotel Prague
It’s fitting that any belle epoque hotel in Prague carries a French name. So much of the era’s design was driven by Czech artists in Paris, especially Alfons Mucha, the “father of Art Nouveau.” Another was Luděk Marold, who also applied his talents to this 19th-century mansion of Antonín Chmel, a Prague ham magnate. His Parisian sketches hang throughout, but the stunners are the ceiling frescoes and woodwork in the Belle Epoque and Marold suites.
The building itself is a work of belle epoque art, too, and boasts period mosaics, ornamental stucco, chandeliers, vaulted ceilings, iron fixtures, plus a library you’d half expect Marold to walk into. The breakfast terrace, overlooking the Nusle Valley, offers a brilliant perspective of the building’s elegant pilasters, undulating stonework, and rounded tower.
The First Republic: Mosaic House Design Hotel
Prague roared through the 1920s before crashing into the Great Depression in the ’30s. In this sober reality, art deco glam surrendered to Functionalist austerity, as depicted in this comparatively plain 1935 building near Karlovo Náměstí built by architect Oktáv Koutský for a trade union. Step inside, however, and discover several treasures of the day.
Chief among these are the historically protected mosaics that inspired the hotel’s name, which are immediately underfoot. They celebrate the marriage of art and industry with pixelated imagery that strangely evokes 1980s-style video games. Bookending the old stage in the hotel’s café are further mosaics depicting the goddess of art and god of trade. Alongside are original windows reminiscent of Mondrian paintings, while a grand dual staircase leads to the rooms.
Communist: Jalta Boutique Hotel
After bombs opened a crater in Wenceslas Square during World War II, the communist government filled with a luxury hotel. Foreigners were encouraged to stay here, but with more than hospitality in mind. Below, a secret nuclear bunker contained a listening station for bugged rooms. Today, this Cold War Museum is open to all, while the hotel atop hosts travelers—microphone free.
And it’s a handsome one, too, built by Czechoslovakian architect Antonin Tenzer and adorned by his artist peers. Built in marble and travertine, it contains several gems of the social realism style, including four monumental statues on the facade, a circular marble and red oak staircase, etched glass, ceramic cladding, and coffered ceilings.
Contemporary: Hotel Josef
The first step inside this hotel in Josef bring a breath of fresh, architectural air to history-heavy Prague. Sunlight floods the glass and steel lobby, sandwiched between an epoxy, terrazzo floor and full ceiling mirrors that seem to expand the size. In the back, natural green bursts forward from the bushy interior garden, while Moustache and Baleria armchairs gird inverted pyramid tables. The centerpiece, a glass-and-steel staircase, swirls downward.
All comes care of renowned Czech architect and designer Eva Jiřičná, whose work has graced Victoria and Albert Museum, Prague Castle, and the New York Historical Society. Her vision continues throughout the rooms and common areas, somehow achieving the trick of feeling both minimalist and luxurious at the same time, demonstrating why Josef is a member of Design Hotels collection.
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