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30-547: The Grand Hotel International Prague is a four-star hotel located in the Dejvice quarter of Prague , in the Czech Republic. It was completed in 1956 in the socialist realism style, and is a Czech cultural monument . The hotel has retained much of its original interior artwork, contains 278 guest rooms, and was originally designed as a military hotel before public use as a luxury hotel. It has previously operated under

60-523: A capacity of 1200 people, and other renovations in 2016 increased the number of guest rooms to 278. Dining facilities in the hotel include, The Harvest restaurant, the Racianska Vinarna restaurant, a lobby cafe and bar, and a club lounge on the 14th and 15th floors, with a skyline view of downtown Prague. In the 1950s and 1960s, the hotel hosted regular friendship social events for local residents, which later grew in popularity when promoted by

90-446: A large central tower, and the former officers' gym was converted into a convention hall with a bar. The entrance hall and the main staircase include a stucco and painted ceiling, marble columns, and artworks on its walls to create a palatial atmosphere. The original lobby, reception area and main staircase have all been preserved. The hotel still has some of its original furniture mixed with some modern features. The five-pointed star atop

120-405: A rectangular floor plan to house out-of-town officers. This draft was never sent to the public archives and kept secret. The final construction site for the new hotel was chosen in 1951, and architect František Jeřábek worked with the military on a new set of plans, which were more complicated and included a luxury hotel. Plans were revised in the late construction stage to add an extra two steps on

150-477: A view of Prague with the former Stalin monument in Letná Park in the middle. On the top floor of the tower, is a spiral staircase with a colorful bouquet mosaic covering the whole wall. The Grand Hotel International has a four-star hotel rating , with services provided in five languages, including Czech , English, French, German and Russian. The hotel features a conference centre that includes 14 halls with

180-688: Is a home to multiple universities with many students. It is home to the main campus of Czech Technical University , University of Chemistry and Technology , newly built Czech National Library of Technology , as well as Catholic Theological Faculty of Charles University . First Czech President Václav Havel lived in Dejvice during his presidency. The Hanspaulka League, which was the most popular amateur football league in Czechoslovakia, originated in Dejvice. It began in 1972 with eight teams. The league has now grown to over 790 teams. The league

210-651: Is broken into eight divisions based on skill and quality of play. Each game features six players per side and are played on small pitches. The league began four years after the Soviet suppression of the Prague Spring as a means of self-determination for the Czechs. It was staffed by many of the intellectuals and students who participated in the 1968 events. Dejvice is linked with the center of Prague by tram lines (8, 18, 20, 26). The metro line A stop's in Dejvice at

240-674: The Czechoslovakian Minister of Defence , who envisioned a monument to the newly formed Fourth Czechoslovak Republic that would reinforce ties with the Soviet Union . The original plans were commissioned from the college of architects at the Military Project Institute in 1951, and called the site Hotel Družba, the Russian word for friendship. The original function was military accommodations in

270-703: The Dejvická metro station, and gets to the heart of the city in minutes. Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague Founded in 1885, the Prague Museum of Decorative Arts ( Czech : Uměleckoprůmyslové muzeum v Praze or UPM ) is housed in a Neo-Renaissance edifice built from 1897 to 1899 after the designs of architect Josef Schulz . It opened in 1900 with exhibitions on the first floor. The museum's rich collections include decorative and applied arts and design work ranging from Late Antiquity to

300-530: The 1920s. During this time the city was an affluent neighborhood of Prague. Orchards were planted on the surrounding hills. Václav Havel lived in Dejvice during this time. The tram line was established incorporate with a trolleybus by wartime. The build up of the quarter also continued. From the Victory Square it sequentially shifted to the North to Podbaba  [ cs ] neighborhood. During

330-899: The Arkadia Association in 1861 at the Old Town Hall in Prague. Another source of inspiration was the founding of a similar institution—the South Kensington Museum (now Victoria and Albert Museum ), which opened in London in 1852 and originally contained a collection of objects of applied and decorative arts. More important for the Czech public, however, was the Österreichisches Museum für Kunst und Industrie, which opened in Vienna in 1864. In 1868, in cooperation with

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360-641: The Crown Lands of Bohemia, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire . The unfavorable impact of the Industrial Revolution on the aesthetic appearance and, consequently, the quality of products had for a long time been the subject of justified criticisms from artists, theorists and the public. The idea of establishing a permanent exhibition of decorative and applied arts in Prague was realised through an exhibition arranged by

390-566: The Czech Republic . Later in 1957, a public competition was held to rename the building, and Hotel International was chosen. Other suggested names included Podbaba, Juliska, Máj, Mír, Slovan, Experiment, Eldorádo, Stůlka prostři se, and Den a noc. After the communist regime fell during the Velvet Revolution in 1989, the hotel became part of the Holiday Inn chain. The original illuminated communist-inspired red star that adorned

420-672: The Mozart Hotel Group since 2015. In March 2023, the hotel became part of the Czech Inn Hotels chain and change its name to Grand Hotel International Prague. The hotel was constructed in the socialist realism style. It is the largest Stalinist architecture building in Prague at 88 meters (289 ft) tall, and was inspired by the Seven Sisters in Moscow . The hotel is divided into two symmetrical wings, with

450-563: The Vienna museum, the Prague Chamber of Trade and Commerce held an exhibition on Žofín Island of objects obtained from the Exposition Universelle d'Art et d'Industrie de 1867— International Exposition (1867) —supplemented by historical arts and crafts mostly from the collection of Vojtěch Lanna, who became the museum's most important donor and sponsor. In a period when funds and suitable buildings were hard to find,

480-451: The already finished central staircase, to accommodate one step for each of the forty-four Czechoslovak generals at that time. When it was completed in 1957, the hotel had the largest capacity in Czechoslovakia. The Hotel Družba was opened up to public use and its name was switched to the Hotel Čedok  [ cs ] in 1957, sharing the name of the national travel agency for tourism in

510-411: The arts and related fields is an integral part of the museum. It holds 172,000 volumes, including authoritative art encyclopedias, dictionaries of artists, comprehensive works on iconography, topography and heraldry. Apart from art books and other scholarly publications, the library contains numerous reference manuals and periodicals. It provides on-premises use of resources, database access and research in

540-538: The construction phase of the hotel, and perspective drawings of the surrounding area. Trmač had also designed much of the original furniture. The interior decorations of the hotel were overseen by local artists Max Švabinský , and Cyril Bouda . The hotel features wrought iron fixtures, including a staircase railing done by Jan Nušl , a Czech blacksmith . Glass panels are featured in the hotel, which include Czech national motifs from artists Jaroslav Brychta and Vilém Dostrasil . The chandeliers and wall lamps were made in

570-479: The exact time in which Dejvice came into existence, archeologists have uncovered a pit that dates back to the late Roman Era. This find is the first preserved archeological site in Prague history. Other than this not much is known until the 10th century when Dejvice, and other towns in the current Prague 6 municipality, came under the auspices of the Břevnov Monastery . The history of modern Dejvice begins in

600-479: The glassworks from the towns of Kamenický Šenov and Valašské Meziříčí . Some walls of the hotel are painted with plant motifs from artists Josef Novák and Stanislav Ullman . The hotel also features several Gobelin tapestries from the Moravská gobelínová manufaktura , which includes Czech national and folklore themes. The largest tapestry called Praga Regina Musicae is located in the entrance hall, and features

630-511: The harmony between function, quality and beauty; its claimed ambition is to inspire, educate and entertain in a unique way. In 1885, the foundation of the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague reflected the dramatic development of Czech society at the time. Following the establishment of a similar institution in Brno in 1873, the Prague museum soon became an important cultural and educational center in

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660-542: The hotel has the ability to be lowered on the spire for regular cleaning and maintenance done at night. In 2006, the Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague acquired the estate of František Trmač, who was an assistant to the architect Jeřábek. It included samples and designs of original tapestry and carpet designs, wall paintings, stucco designs for walls and ceilings, window layouts, parquet and wall paneling, seating furniture and lights. It also included historical photographs from

690-455: The names Hotel Družba , Hotel Čedok , Hotel Holiday Inn and Hotel Crowne Plaza . The hotel is located in the Dejvice quarter of the Prague 6 municipal district, and was recognized on the list of Czech cultural monuments on 4 July 2000. Construction of the hotel took place from 1952 to 1956, with interior decorations finished in 1957. The hotel built with the support of Alexej Čepička ,

720-750: The present day with focus on European objects, particularly arts and crafts created in the Bohemian lands. The impressive interior of the permanent exhibition, "Stories of Materials," offers visitors an excursion into the history and development of decorative arts in the disciplines of glass, ceramics, graphic art , design, metal, wood and other materials, as well as objects such as jewellery, clocks and watches , textiles, fashion, toys and furniture. The museum in Prague collects and preserves for future generations examples of historical and contemporary crafts as well as applied arts and design—in both national and international contexts. The staff and directors believe in

750-681: The promise of the exhibition area in the Rudolfinum (the House of the Artists) also contributed greatly to the birth of the museum. The Museum of Decorative Arts in Prague presented many notable exhibitions. They presented works of greatest Czech artists, such as Alphonse Mucha , Josef Sudek , Ladislav Sutnar , Libuše Niklová , Václav Špála or Martin Janecký . In Prague In Chateaux and Elsewhere The largest Czech library specializing in

780-703: The top of the building's spire was changed to green, the color of the Holiday Inn logo. The star was later changed to a gold color in 2007, and the hotel subsequently became part of the Crowne Plaza chain. The hotel returned to using the Hotel International name on 1 July 2014, when it was sold by the InterContinental Hotels Group , and purchased by Gerstner Imperial Hotels and Residences of Austria. It has been part of

810-523: The war, the Hotel International Prague was completed in 1950 and was intended to mimic the architecture of Moscow. After the fall of communism it was renamed the "Hotel Crowne Plaza". The town surrounds a square entitled, Vítězné náměstí (The Victorious square). In 1978 the metro line was extended to Dejvice (station was named Leninova, now it is Dejvická). Today's motorway, called Evropska also appeared at that time. That time it

840-589: The Čedok travel agency, and hosted the annual two-day Staropražský bál for Prague 6 residents. The hotel regularly hosted the Circus Humberto series, and circus acts by the Berousek family . The hotel was featured prominently in the musical comedy film Big Beat set in 1959, directed by Jan Hřebejk . During the 1968 Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia , the American film The Bridge at Remagen

870-413: Was also called Leninova. The airport, united with the center of Prague, and that newly built neighborhood, by a sequence of primary streets. The architecture of Dejvice was greatly influenced by Czech architect Antonín Engel during the 1920s, when he developed new housing settlements that still stand today. Dejvice is a relatively luxurious residential quarter, catering to the educated elite. Dejvice

900-472: Was being filmed, and the cast and crew were relocated into the hotel before being permitted travel to Austria. During the 1972 World Ice Hockey Championships in Prague, the hotel hosted negotiations between Joe Kryczka of Canada, and Andrey Starovoytov of the Soviet Union, for the international ice hockey event that became the 1972 Summit Series . Dejvice While it is difficult to pinpoint

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