TIME CAPSULE
LOCATION
Hotels this steeped in events and history of a destination are few. Hotel Thermal would not exist without the Karlovy Vary Film Festival and vice versa. When the festival gained world acclaim in 1956, only a few hotels offered accommodation in the city. In 1963, architects Věra Machoninová and Vladimír Machonin won an architectural tender to design a new hotel. The rest is history, they say. Without the iconic brutalist building, it is hard to imagine the dreamlike veduta of the city centre, otherwise adorned with art nouveau architecture. Visitors either love or hate such brutalist architecture. Decades after its opening, the building still serves as the central conference centre in Karlovy Vary. Officially inaugurated in 1977, the hotel has been dividing local and international opinions ever since. Following the collapse of the socialist regime in Czecho-Slovakia, the hotel went through a dismal era, as the debates about its ownership were like an endless ping-pong match. The saga continued until 2017 when the Ministry of Finance of the Czech Republic took over management. In 2019, they began a comprehensive renovation that is still ongoing. The revamp will keep the 45-year-old hotel in step with time and competition. Apart from the tumultuous history, the hotel has an ideal location, close to all key landmarks in the city.
ACCESSIBILITY
Karlovy Vary is located in the West of the Czech Republic. The city is brilliantly connected to Prague by road and rail. Thus, the 130-kilometre ride goes by in the blink of an eye. Prague’s Vaclav Havel Airport offers excellent connections to the rest of the world. From first-hand experience, I can confirm guests from Asia, the Americas and the Middle East have no problems getting here. Even the local airport in Karlovy Vary offers solid connections, although charter flights are predominant. The airport is only ten minutes away from the hotel. Train and bus connections are frequent. In addition, just fifty kilometres away, the legendary German Autobahn will take you in any direction you want. Guests arriving by car can look forward to a spacious underground garage that will not break the bank. It can capacitate 300 vehicles. The hotel and its immediate vicinity to the Tepla River, meandering through the city, represents a competitive advantage. Next to the river, a picturesque promenade takes guests around the spa town. While strolling the fairy-tale spa town, drink some healing thermal water at one of the springs. The healing water has proven health benefits.
COLD STARTER - Architecture and aesthetics
The architecture divides opinions: you can love it or hate it. The coarse concrete can either seem timeless or dull. Be that as it may, the governmental intervention has helped keep this part of the city unchanged, which did not appease future-thinking investors. The hotel appears brutal but elegant at the same time. It all depends on your perspective. Despite the patina acquired over the years, the conference centre is designed functionally and continues to be synonymous with the superb architecture of conference centres. Retro signs are outlandish, reminiscent of a movie set, but serve their function brilliantly. They are the brainchild of the acclaimed designer Jiří Rathouský. The bar amid the conference centre screams filmmaking from the 70s. Yet, the rooms in the hotel deserve a revamp. Even though the new superior rooms are solid, all the rest need a touch of redesigning. The Machonin duo designed a splendid hotel that will never be recreated again. We recommend visiting this living museum of brutalist architecture before they irrevocably change it with architectural interventions. A casino is already changing the original design. Luckily, the retro bars and signs remain, and the coarse concrete connects the interior with the exterior. Sleeping in a museum of authentic brutalism is priceless.
WARM ENTRÉE - The staff and the culinary experience
Before we delve into the personnel, guests must know the hotel is not privately owned but managed by the Ministry of Finance. All employees are civil servants, meaning they should serve the public. In practice, the experience with the staff ranges from sour experiences to impressive professionalism. Generally, the employees strictly adhere to working hours and prefer to say they cannot help outside of working hours. In this hotel, the employees are always right, not vice versa. If you can accept that, staying in the hotel is intriguing. Otherwise, there is a sea of other hotels in the city, where the guest is king. Should you host an event in this hotel, we recommend you reach an agreement about opening times, lest you should stay in front of closed doors. The cuisine is, likewise, a continuation of the former omnipresent workers’ canteens. The retro cuisine is simply a part of the hotel experience. Not to worry, though, the city features an impressive list of great restaurants. The catering around town is excellent, too. If the Ministry of Finance aims to manage the hotel seriously, it must start changing the cuisine and staff promptly.
MAIN COURSE – The meetings offering at the hotel
Hotel rooms
If possible, select the renovated rooms above the eighth floor. The minimalist rooms are incredibly bright, courtesy of the extra large panoramic glass window and balcony. Bright beige colours adorning the walls and floor pair seamlessly with cherry wood furniture. The compact bed is utterly comfortable for sleeping, although the headboard could be more compact. We must praise the spacious writing desk with the befitting plug-ins. The lighting is satisfactory and can be managed easily. The bathroom has heated flooring, and its azure and white tiles paired with furniture with wooden elements ooze prestige. A separate bathroom is well-equipped for European and Arabian standards. Our only remark concerns the low water pressure in the shower. The room is good, yet should perhaps allude to the film story of the hotel with framed pictures and other elements. Also, a decent coffee machine has become standard in such hotel rooms.
Meetings centre
The masterpiece of the hotel is the conference centre – the largest in the West of the Czech Republic. Home to the iconic film festival, the conference centre is a favoured choice for scientific conferences. Indeed, it can host huge events where parallel halls host presentations simultaneously. The conference centre also provides space for accompanying exhibitions (750 square metres). Separate entrances to the conference centre offer plenty of opportunities for branding, and the red carpet seems a part of the DNA of the conference centre. The grand auditorium accommodates up to 1148 attendees. One of the hotel’s advantages is the number of rooms, appreciated most by organisers of corporate events.
DESSERT – The extras
The outdoor roof terraces, stretching over 2,800 square metres, overlook the spa town. They are ideal for pool parties. However, booking them is likely a lengthy bureaucratic process.
FLOP – NEGATIVE SURPRISES
The personnel can be highly professional or extremely unkind. The inconsistency may prove too stressful for event professionals. Most importantly, the staff should alter their guest approach. It seems the old socialist mentality matters more to them than the expectations of modern tourists. Let alone Gen Z or millennials.
TOP – POSITIVE SURPRISES
Drinking healing thermal water has become a hallmark of Karlovy Vary. Locals and tourists alike flock to the springs to enjoy the water that has a plethora of health benefits. Water flows throughout the city and connects the hotels with the city. In addition, the spa cups for drinking water are unique and adorned with colourful patterns and colours.
SUSTAINABLE ACTIVITIES
There is no sign of any sustainable story in this hotel. To begin with, they could start managing waste, as plastic straws are but memories in many hotels. This is the rock bottom of hotel sustainability.
FINAL IMPRESSION AND CREDIBILITY
Hotel Thermal Karlovy Vary has returned, albeit not in the glory of its illustrious predecessor from the seventies. Still, the hotel has been given a new lease of life. If you expect luxury in this hotel, you will be disappointed. In truth, the hotel is neither prestigious nor luxurious. However, if you appreciate history, you will grow fond of the retro style. Or perhaps see it as a time capsule.
That is one of the reasons we decided to adopt a different approach to this hotel and conference centre after our initial surprise. Unfortunately, budget saving is evident at every corner of this renovated hotel. It seems they preferred to keep the renovation as cheap and minimal as possible. The silver lining – the conference centre – luckily stayed intact. Yet, it turns out this hotel does have charm. We only hope they can educate their staff and improve the cuisine. Truth be told, we even enjoyed the hotel’s peculiarity, thinking about all the film stars who had walked the hotel’s red carpet. Back in time!
FINAL GRADE: 4.71 SILVER Spa Meeting Hotel
GOLD final score from 4.81 to 5.00
SILVER final score from 4.61 to 4.80
BRONZE final score from 4.41 to 4.60
