Five Star Service? (Eurostars Thalia Hotel (Prague))

Member Name: helencb

Product:	Eurostars Thalia Hotel (Prague)
Date:	05/05/07 (157 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: location, styling, comfort, affordable bar prices

Disadvantages: Can be a little pricy, perhaps overrated as a five star, no IRONS!

The Eurostars Thalia hotel in Prague was recently our home for a five night break in the city. Picking a hotel had been a challenge in itself – there is that much choice in Prague and it is so easy to pick a lemon. I eventually selected the five star Thalia for its value for money, location and contemporary design – I wanted something a little out of the ordinary, however I didn’t quite have the budget to stretch to something totally indulgent.

Like most hotels the Thalia yields its rates on a daily basis, depending on its occupancy etc, and my nightly rate did differ from night to night, with the three cheapest nights being €180 together with rates of €199 and €219 for the most expensive night – the Friday night. At a little over €900 Bed and Breakfast for five nights in five star, this seemed reasonable value for money, and certainly a few hundred Euro cheaper than others on my shortlist.

These rates may seem high, and indeed the hotel does offer rates from a very reasonable €99 per night, however I managed to pick a week which included two public holidays and the city was extremely busy, and can only presume this is why my rates were that bit higher.

The reservation process was very efficient and effective, and extremely responsive. I had an email response within no time at all and my reservationist continued to follow up promptly throughout. You can of course book direct from the website or indeed from any of the myriad of third party websites offering accommodation. I also asked the hotel to arrange a taxi transfer from the airport for me, which they advised would cost 800 CZK. (There are about 40 Czech Koruna or crowns to £1 Sterling at the time of writing).

Unfortunately, the aforementioned taxi did not materialize at the airport, for reasons unknown, so after hanging around for ten minutes or so we hired a cab and made our own way to the hotel for a cost of 650 CZK. Our initial impressions of location in particular were delightful, literally only a couple of minutes walk for views of the Castle, river and only one bridge away from the magnificent Charles Bridge.

The website had several pictures of the hotel interior and exterior, and it was exactly as shown in this regard. The lobby area was bright and airy, with a contemporary cocktail bar area and its eclectic mix of seating on the ground floor. The corridors to the room were well maintained and fresh as was the room itself. The bedroom was furnished in a fairly minimalist style but there was adequate storage area for clothing with a double wardrobe and plenty of shelving for two guests. The four piece bathroom suite was extremely well designed and very modern and trendy with an excellent supply of hotel branded toiletries including toothbrushes and combs, should you forget to take yours. The TV was the flat screen variety and was hung from the wall, which gives the room a feeling of space. The room itself was not overly large but was of adequate proportion and most double rooms are in fact king bedded.

We arrived late on in the evening, too late to grab a Czech beer in one of the adjoining hostelries so we made our way to the cocktail bar where we enjoyed two rounds of drink (beer and wine) for a very reasonable 350 CZK total – I was expecting at least double that.

Breakfast is taken in the restaurant which is situated on the lower ground floor. The menu was a buffet style and it did vary a little every day, which is always good when you are staying for several nights. The restaurant is absolutely huge for the size of hotel (125 beds) and it was always easy to find a set table. There were always several staff on duty, and while they did not interact particularly with any guests, they did a good job of keeping supplies topped up and tables cleaned. There was a range of hot and cold buffet items with a heavy emphasis on cheese and hams and quite a bread and cake range every day, including a “death by chocolate” type cake – not something I can face at any time of day but definitely not for breakfast.

We actually had very little interaction with the hotel staff, as we were often out for 12 hours a day or even more on some days and only had drinks in the bar on the one evening. My overall impressions of the hotel were that it was comfortable and I would stay here again, and the location was ideal, however it didn’t feel that “special” given its five star rating.

However the way the hotel dealt with our request for an iron clouded my view of them totally. We were surprised that we did not have an iron in a room (I cannot remember staying in many places without an iron..it seems like a fundamental traveler request after a bathroom!) and we rang down to reception to request one. We were told on the phone that they didn’t have irons, which we found a little bizarre. We went down to check with reception who advised they did not loan them out to guests for “security reasons”. This seemed a little bizarre – most people who can pay five star hotel prices do not need to steal five dollar irons! We were advised they had an ironing service, which needed to be paid for. I asked to speak to the Duty Manager who did not acknowledge my issue at all – I didn’t need a professional laundry service _ I just wanted to iron my trousers so I could go out! Eventually she relented and said housekeeping would iron for me for free and she would send them to me to collect the item. I told her I was going out in ten minutes, and yet when the housekeeper arrived she said I couldn’t have the item back until that evening….she eventually said 20 minutes and she took 20 minutes – but by this time it is nearly two hours since our initial request. I did fill in the “60 seconds to give your opinion” card, and asked for some feedback before I checked out, but heard nothing. As a customer with a bill of almost €1K in a five star property, I feel this was extremely poor from both a service and a policy point of view.

During our stay the hotel staff would assist with tourist information, making bookings etc and I would have rated them higher had it not been the slip up with service over the iron – particularly the fact that once it was pointed out, it was not rectified to a satisfactory standard. As it is I would give them six/seven out of ten.

Overall, I do recommend the hotel. It is very comfortable to stay in and has adequate facilities for most guests and the location cannot be faulted. If you are reading this as you have booked here, or are thinking of booking here, I am sure you will have a very comfortable stay, and if you can get the €99 rate then this is exceptional value for money. Just don’t expect to go out looking well pressed – especially if you have flown in from afar!


Eurostars Thalia Hotel
Narodni Trida 13
Prague

www.eurostarshotels.com

Summary: If you can get a bargain, you will have a comfortable stay - walking distance of major attractions