Construction of the 520 key, 5 star Hard Rock Hotel in Prague, Czech Republic, began in Autumn 2019 after two and a half years of intensive design work by a multi-national team of consultants. The newbuild project extends over 10 levels (3 basement, ground and 6 upper floors) and will sit beside the Sparta Prague football stadium in the district of Letna, about 20 minutes walk north of the old town.
Although Hard Rock will operate the completed hotel, our client is Letna Properties, a division of EP Real Estate, the development company owned by Czech entrepreneur, Daniel Křetínský, who also owns the Sparta Prague football team.
Fuse is interior designer for the entire project, working closely with shell architects Pelčák and Partner of Brno in the Czech Republic and a large team of other Czech consultants including Gleeds Prague office who are acting as overall cost consultants and project managers. Other consultants are based in the UK and USA.
Fuse is also providing lighting design, fit-out cost consultancy and wayfinding design through a series of sub-consultancies with Emmaus Consulting, Technical Arts and Momentum Wayshowing.
We were also responsible for space-planning the entire hotel interior to create the most operationally efficient layout possible.
The basement levels below the lobby are home to the meeting, conference and event spaces. The main ballroom at the lowest level has the area and infrastructure to host a dinner for up to 1,000 guests or a conference or live music event for up to 2,000 people – supported by a substantial pre-function area with full bar and catering support which sits at the bottom of a 3-storey atrium. The ballroom can be sub-divided into two or three smaller spaces. The area is directly connected to the loading dock by a freight elevator large enough to bring vehicles down into the ballroom so the space is ideal for exhibitions and concerts in addition to the more usual conferences. The intermediate level contains breakout and meeting rooms and business centre. The entire area is flooded with daylight from the glass roof of the hotel lobby above.
The top floor of the hotel is the home of the extensive leisure facilities. A full service Rock Spa sits alongside a rooftop swimming pool. The pool is enclosed but sits below a glass roof and the south-facing, glaazed façade can be fully opened to transform into an open air area in the summer months – extending the area onto substantial south-facing terraces.
The pool area (above left) has a dual personality. During the day, it operates closely with the spa. The pool itself sits below a glass roof and so has the ‘feel’ of an external space. At night, it can be used for functions and in conjunction with the adjacent ‘Turquoise’ Sky Bar for cocktail parties and live music events. The lighting has been carefully designed to facilitate this change of ‘vibe’ and the cabanas used as relax areas during the day become group party booths at night. There is even a stage position at one end of the pool to allow for bands or a DJ to perform in the area.
The south-facing external wall overlooks the park and Prague Castle and opens up in summer adding a substantial external terrace to the space. Access to the spa treatment rooms also follows the façade with spectacular views to the South (above right).
The well-equipped Body Rock gym sits at the east end of top floor and has floor to ceiling glazing on two sides and so also shares the spectacular views towards to the city.
At the opposite end of the top floor is the signature steakhouse restaurant (above left). This provides fine dining for around 140 guests and is expected to attract a lot of business from non-residents. The views of Prague Castle from this corner of the building will be stunning and so external terraces take full advantage of this unique location, increasing the venue capacity for the busy summer months. Features include a 4m high wine display, an exclusive private dining room, a pre-dinner drinks cocktail bar, a bright blue grand piano and a meat aging display lined with backlit bricks of Himalayan salt.
Between the Signature Restaurant and the Pool is the Sky Bar. In common with the other top floor areas, it is designed to make the most of the remarkable views towards the city of Prague and Prague Castle in particular. The Sky Bar is expected to become the ‘Go-To’ venue in Prague and to be in high demand for private functions. The bar features include some spectacular video mapping, which together with the flexible lighting design, can be used to transform the venue from the perfect lunch venue, to sophisticated cocktail bar and ultimately to a full-on nightclub. The Sky Bar can be extended into the pool area for large events, including live music with bands playing alongside the pool itself.
Back at ground floor, a number of further areas connect with the huge lobby. A spectacular Sports Bar will house memorabilia from the neighbouring Sparta Prague football team. There is a Coffee Shop, group and VIP check-in areas and the three-meal restaurant, Sessions (above right).
The centrally located Lobby bar (below) sits on the edge of a three-storey atrium extending into the convention areas below. A substantial rooflight allows daylight to penetrate all the way to the lowest basement levels. As a backdrop, the enormous 17m high, 500sqm wall will feature a huge sound wave, made from Krion fins. These rise from the second basement to the lobby ceiling and twist to make the wave – music turnede into sculpture. Within the wave, hundreds of concealed LED strips create a colossal ‘graphic equalizer’ that, at night, will respond to the music in the lobby and bring the wall to life.
Construction of the hotel started on site in September 2019 and the hotel is due to open in the autumn of 2022. It promises to be quite a party!
