Where to stay in Prague

With accommodation in Prague eating up the lion’s share of most travellers’ budgets, deciding where to stay may be your most important decision. So whatever kind of trip you’re planning, here’s the lowdown on the best areas to stay in the city from the new edition of Prague.

Where to stay in Hradčany

If you can bag a room up at Prague Castle, the world’s biggest and one of Prague’s top attractions, you’ll have the Czech capital’s best sightseeing right on your doorstep – and the city at your feet. Those expecting hordes of tourists on this promontory overlooking the city centre may be surprised how tranquil and almost rural this Prague neighbourhood can feel.

Best for Baroque touches with a view:Questenberk.

Housed in a former Baroque chapel, the Questenberk boasts twenty-first century bedrooms with smart decor. Some quarters have unrivalled views.

Best for a slice of rural life brought to the city:U Raka.

In the Nový svět area of Hradčany, this wonderfully bucolic hotel in a little half-timbered, eighteenth-century cottage would be more at home in the Czech mountains.

Hradčany illuminated at night © DaLiu/Shutterstock

Where to stay in Malá Strana

Prague’s original left bank settlement is a Baroque feast. Palaces and townhouses almost pile on top of each other as they scramble up to reach Prague Castle. Though the main tourist route passes through here, many of Malá Strana’s crooked lanes and steep streets have an authentic air of old-world tranquillity.

Best for retro style:Sax.

Wholly incongruous with the area’s Baroque pomp, these funky digs sport groovy 1960s retro styling with 1970s psychedelic wallpaper and vintage-style furniture.

Best for gardens and views:Golden Well Hotel.

Tucked into the hill below Prague Castle, next to the terraced gardens, the Golden Well offers incredible views across the rooftops of Malá Strana.

Colourful buildings in Malá Strana © Georgios Tsichlis/Shutterstock

Where to stay in Nové Město

The gritty, mostly nineteenth-century New Town is Prague’s busy commercial heart. It is centred around the famous Wenceslas Square. Fans of twentieth-century architecture are wowed by the Art Nouveau, Cubist and Functionalist architectural parade. With a wide selection of eateries, this is also the best district to find yourself at mealtimes.

Best for most-desired rooms in town:Dancing House Hotel.

Prague’s most controversial chunk of post-communist architecture has been turned into a show-stopping hotel by former Czech footballer Vladimír Šmicer. In fact, the Fred Royal and Ginger Royal suites in the building's towers are now two of the most desirable hotel rooms in the capital.

Best for style-meets-spa:BoHo.

One of Prague's most stylish hotels offers rooms in shades of grey that you never even knew existed. There’s also an in-house restaurant and crisp wellness facilities.

Dancing House Hotel and Nové Město © Aleksandr Kazakevich/Shutterstock

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Where to stay in Staré Město and Josefov

First-timers to Prague often want to bed down in the Old Town, the real heart of the city’s medieval core. And they are in luck: hotels created from Gothic and Baroque structures abound in the streets that radiate from the magnificent Old Town Square. However, it’s worth being aware that the former Jewish Quarter has very few beds.

Best for modern vintage: Astoria Hotel.

Housed in a stylish building of the 1920s right in the heart of Prague's Old Town.

Best for luxury at the heart of things: Ventana.

Located right in the thick of the Old Town action, this luxury boutique hotel has spacious rooms, excellent breakfasts and impeccably regimented staff. Think marble-and-tile bathrooms and a library illuminated with crystal chandeliers.

Twinkling lights at a Christmas market in Prague © Jiri Foltyn / Shutterstock

Where to stay in Vinohrady and Žižkov

The largely residential districts east of the city centre with their nineteenth-century tenements and long boulevards have become a nightlife hotspot over the last decade. Vinohrady is known for its neighbourhood restaurants and bistros, while more working class Žižkov is a bar-hopping mecca. What the districts lack in sights they make up for in atmosphere, which is especially exciting after dark.

Best for location and friendly vibe: Anna.

Smartly appointed rooms, friendly staff and a decent location make this a popular Vinohrady choice. It's also convenient, with trams and the metro close by.

Best for luxury and elegance: Le Palais.

Plush late nineteenth-century hotel overlooking the Nusle valley, with the Belle Epoque theme continued throughout the lobby and rooms.

Bartender in a Czech bar Absintherie © Roman Yanushevsky / Shutterstock

This feature contains affiliate links; you can find out more about why we’ve partnered with booking.com here. All recommendations are editorially independent and taken from The Pocket Rough Guide to Prague.

Top image: Old Town Square © Creative Travel Projects/Shutterstock.

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