Alex S.
Yelp
Czech-czech-czech it out: I'm a fan of The Emblem Hotel!
It has only been around since the fall of 2013 and I explained away some of its quirks by assuming that it's still in its "settling in" phase. With a spa (including roof deck jacuzzi), bar and restaurant (care of George Steakhouse) and central location, it is definitely well-primed to be a top destination in the style of hip boutique hotels elsewhere.
5 stars: the staff. The number "on the floor" at any given time is impressive, and from check-in to check-out I had all queries answered and all requests dealt with extremely swiftly. It's nice to have a friendly, helpful harbour in Prague, and the staff certainly helped ensure that The Emblem was this for me. It may be the Yelper in me, but another small touch I liked was a print-out of things happening in Prague while I was there.
The rooms are quiet, and the beds are divine: the sheets guaranteed that one night I slept 10 hours (almost unheard of in my adult life). The colour scheme is subdued and mature: white sheets and clean lines and grey marble bathroom. The floors aren't carpeted, which I appreciated (both for aesthetics and for feel underfoot). Lovely fluffy robe and slippers and Nescafe machine with several free pods for use. The bath products are the same used in the spa and, as I had it explained to me, are a line originating in France and exclusively carried by The Emblem in the Czech Republic. Soaps, moisturizer, shampoo/conditioner: all were lovely.
If I'm to provide a truly rounded review I have to share that there was a little bit of "try hard"; a lot of social media pushing (tag us on Instagram! Like us on Facebook!). The online room description promised a tablet in every room, but mine didn't have one (I didn't miss it, as I brought my own, but still...not as advertised). The inserts in the "welcome folder" in the room were visibly re-used (which I support!) as they were dirty with grease spots (harder to support!). Even though each room had its own wifi code to help with speed of connection, I still had a sometimes-spotty connection. My drapes were broken, wouldn't close, and weren't fixed over the course of my 3 days there. Just little attentions to detail that were missed. These were not a big deal in the big scheme of things, but I think for the type of hotel that The Emblem is trying to become, and the price that they're charging / night...details that are important to catch.
Yelp: I'll review the spa separately but - spoiler - I think it's heading for a 5-star rating