Prague was a city I always wanted to visit and this year I had an oppertunity to do so.

I checked out various holiday sites including trip advisor and read the reviews of various hotels. I decided from the reviews that I would go for the Expo hotel because I liked the comment I read from visitors to the hotel and I thought it was just within my price range.

Having decided on the Expo Hotel, I then set about finding the cheapest price I could. I visited many many hotel sites some cheaper then others, but it was still a little to high for me to afford. Then I eventually stumbled onto the hotel's actual website ( http://www.expoprag.cz/index.php?action=main&lang=en ) on that site they have an accommodation- last minute price list ( http://www.expoprag.cz/getdoc.php?id=435&sessid=50e25ed3a4c35acb36d544d0e7045d8f ) where on some days you can get a double room including a free breakfast for around 65 - 70 euros which believe me for a 4 star hotel is a rock bottom price.

Before going I wanting to find the best guidebook to help me so I went to my local bookstores and looked at all the guidebooks on offer I read through ALL of them and the best by a mile was the AA Spiral Guide for Prague IBSN 978-0-7495-3212-3 It really put the 'brand guides' to shame and it was cheaper to buy.

Arriving at Prague airport I did two things after collecting my bags. I bought a weekly travel ticket at the DP ( http://www.dp-praha.cz/index.php?q=en/fares ) window in the main lounge of the airport for around 280 czk (very cheap under 10 euros). This ticket is a god send as it allows you to use all buses trams and the underground around Prague. It's a great ticket to have because it opens up all of Prague to you. The services tend to run until midnight. The next thing I did was to find the AAA taxi office and book a taxi with them from the airport to the hotel the fare they charged me was 520czk. I had been warned to beware of the silver taxi's outside the airport. The is also a very cheap shuttle service from the airport to Nadrazi Holesovice the underground station closest to the hotel but I was not confident enough to use it as everything was new to me. Next time I may use it.

Arrived at the hotel and the staff were nice and helpful. The porter called Joseph was probably one of the hotels greatest assets. Always happy to chat with a smile. On arrival he gave me a very good map of the city which I found useful. Nothing was too much trouble for him and he even tells you the best and cheapest places to eat if you ask him. He is a very pleasent person if you engage him in conversation.

What I would mention is that the area around the hotel does not look the best, there is some graffiti here and there. So I was a little wary on my first day or two. But I found the area around the hotel to be safe and fine. The hotel is next to the Sparta Prague t-mobile Ice hockey stadium area.

What I would warn is this coming from England the traffic come from the side you don't expect it to, so be very careful crossing the roads esp after a few drinks. Always wait for the green light before crossing even if the road appears empty otherwise it can catch you out.

To catch the underground station Nadrazi Holesovice into the city you leave the hotel walk to the top of the road turn left and then take the second right. You can also get the tram to the underground station if you are a little lazy. To get the tram you leave the hotel walk to the top of the road and turn right and it's about 100 or so meters away.

I should also mention there is the magnificent Stromovka park near the tram stop. I liked to have a stroll around the park after our evening meal. You can also get to the Zoo via one of the walkways in the park. There is also a Seaworld exibition and a Planetarium around the park. So in essence the park is large and varried and great for taking the children out with things to do within close reach of the hotel.

Another side note is this that people from the Czech Rep enjoy and drink more beer more then anywhere in the world. I found it amazing to find draft beer on sale almost everywhere I went. In little green grocer shops also in the parks as you enter. In these locations people were not getting drunk but just relaxing and enjoying a cold beer. Nice to see.

If you want a nice cheap bottle of wine (65czk) I would recommend the mini market very close to the McDonalds and Nadrazi Holesovice. I drank a lot of different bottles red wine (smiles to himself) while I was in Prague but the one we liked the best and to look out for would be a Hungarian wine called Graf Karolyi Cabernet Sauvignov Merlot I think it was from 2004. It had the smell of vanilla and tasted delightful. There is also a lot of very fresh fruit available around this area of the metro station, pretty much any type you want. It's good to eat some fruit when you take a break while walking around the city.

Ok, Back to the hotel :)

The breakfast are excellent, you can eat as much as you want and it's varied. If you are from England and like tea bring your own tea bags as they don't have typical english tea. But I drank lemon tea which I liked, a small criticism would be the breakfast plates are very small so I had to use four plates as I'm a very hungry guy :) It's wise to eat a large breakfast esp if your going to be walking around Prague most of the morning. The other hotel meals (lunch and dinner) if you choose to eat in the hotel, are very reasonable in price with a wide choice and delicious.

The hotel is immaculately clean the rooms are a nice size and very comfortable ( http://www.hotelexpo.cz/cache/c_368-room009_1.jpg ) . I liked the power shower it was very refreshing after walking around Prague in the 90 degree heat.

I'm not really sure what else to add except to say you can also sit outside and use the hotel bar and relax with a drink. The also have a lot of beautiful brass type sculptures ( http://www.expoprag.cz/getdoc.php?id=358&sessid=a8b816df157fc819224f04bd05980213 ) around the perimeter of the hotel.

On my last night I managed to finally try the traditional meal of beef goulash and dumplings ( http://www.koziar.sk/picture/jedlo_gulas.jpg ). I loved it, very delicious.

If you asked me what I would have done differently, it would have been to have maybe understood the travel system a little better before I left to visit. I was lucky as I spent the week with a Czech friend but if you have a good grasp of the transport system in relation to the station names and tram/ bus numbers and the places you wish to visit like Charles bridge it's a great asset. I always forgot the names of the stations so I used my mobile phone to take pictures of them to help me if I got lost :) If you don't understand the transport system, you might end up doing a lot more walking then you wished to. For example to get to Charles bridge quickly from the hotel you catch a underground metro from Nadrazi Holesovice to Muzeum (Wenceslaus square) on the red line and then change onto the green line metro route from Muzeum to Staromestska. ( http://www.dp-praha.cz/files/imgs/pid/schema-metro-tramvaje.pdf ).

So I would enthustically recommend the hotel and the beautiful city of Prague as a place to visit. It's a nice place and has something for every type of person. For parents with children, For couples on a romantic break, for stag parties in the city and for retired couples enjoying touring and travel. You can go to the places that suit you and stay away from the places that don't catch your interest. The city of Prague is just as beautiful and friendly at night as it is in the day.

I hope this review gives you an insight into my week in Prague. This is my fav live webcam Charles bridge is on the third page. ( http://webcam.pis.cz/petrin/indexc.php )

Kind regards,

Sean.