Boutique hotels in Czechia

Czechia is a country of fairy-tale castles, brewing towns and spa colonnades, and its best small hotels are set inside the history: a baroque townhouse in Brno, a convent in Prague's Old Town, a Renaissance house on Mikulov's square or a 1923 villa near Karlovy Vary's springs. Prices are generous compared with Western Europe, and many hotels have a cellar restaurant, a wine list and a wellness area.

Prague and Bohemia

Prague has the widest choice, from the intimate Golden Well beside the castle to design hotels near Old Town Square. Český Krumlov, Kutná Hora, Třeboň, Tábor and Pilsen are within easy reach for a few nights each. The spa towns of Karlovy Vary and Mariánské Lázně recall the age of Goethe and the Habsburgs.

Moravia

Olomouc, Brno, Kroměříž and Litomyšl hold Unesco monuments and baroque squares, while Mikulov, Znojmo and the Lednice-Valtice estates are wine country with cellars and cycle trails. Telč and Slavonice have painted Renaissance facades.

Landscapes

Bohemian Switzerland, Bohemian Paradise and Liberec's Jizera Mountains offer rock towers, forests and hiking.

When to go

May to June and September to October are the most pleasant; Christmas markets are a draw in December. Book Prague and Český Krumlov early for summer.