THE FACTS ABOUT HOTEL JOSEF

Czech Republic Prague

Prague's latest designer hotel is the nine-storey, 110-room, purpose-built Josef, minutes from Old Town Square in Josefov. It was designed by the Prague-born, London-based architect Eva Jiricna, famous for her use of glass, which she has made the hotel's defining medium. The front foyer wall is entirely glazed and so is the stunning spiral staircase that descends from the popular lobby bar to the basement conference centre. As is almost every fitting - except for the bed, armchairs and mini-bar - in the bright orange and Schiaparelli-pink, compact guest rooms. So ensure you unpack only your smartest clothes: the bathroom walls, wardrobe, desk drawers and even hangers are transparent, too. Aesthetics aside, the bedrooms are comfortable, well soundproofed and technologically up to speed, with dataports and DVD players. (There's free Internet access in the business lounge.) Service is friendly and attentive. There's no restaurant, but limited room-service is available round the clock. Breakfast, cooked to order as well as from a comprehensive buffet, caters for body-conscious types who want egg-white-only omelettes as well as those happy to scoff the superlative chocolate brownies. If you opt for the latter, you can make use of the jogging route maps at every bedside. WHEN TO GO May, for the city's Spring Festival, or October, after the summer crowds have dispersed but before the bitter frosts WHICH ROOM TO BOOK Those on the top two floors with floor-to-ceiling windows, balconies and views towards Prague castle CONTACT Hotel Josef, Rybná 20, Prague 1, Czech Republic (00 420 2 2170 0111; fax: 2170 0999; www.hoteljosef.com; Design Hotels 0800 169 8819). Doubles €200-€247