DESTINATIONS CITY BREAKS
✈
the lower budget accommodation
on off er. For a good
value option in the centre, try
the three-star Beranek.
Sample package: Cresta off ers three
nights’ bed and breakfast at the
three-star Comfort Hotel from £260
twin-share. This off er, which runs from
November 9 to December 23, includes
a free night and return fl ights from
Heathrow on Czech Airlines.
(0844 800 7020
8crestaholidays.co.uk
SPLURGE
Do: Splash your Koruny at the
boutiques in the triangle around
the Old Town Square – the Czech
Fashion Centre has joined forces with
them to promote eight indigenous
design labels.
See: Relive Prague’s grand history
with a visit to the castle. Your ticket
covers everything in the grounds, and
you can pay extra for an Englishlanguage
audio guide.
Eat: The Four Seasons restaurant
Allegro is Michelin starred, the
trendy Le Terroir is perfect for
gastronomes with a love of wine, and
La Degustation just serves a range of
seven-course tasting menus.
Nightlife: For a bohemian evening,
listen to traditional folk tunes and stare
at ceiling mosaics at the art nouveau
Municipal House. Each year the
national symphony orchestra launches
the Prague Spring Festival here.
Stay: The ultra-central Hotel Josef is a
symphony of glass and vivid splashes
of colour. Music lovers should check
into the Aria, where each fl oor is
named after a diff erent genre and
there’s a piano bar.
Sample package: Until December 28,
Carrier off ers four nights’ bed and
breakfast for the price of three at the
Four Seasons Prague, from £1,075 per
person twin-share. The price includes
44 | Travel Weekly | November 14 2008 www.travelweekly.co.uk
business-class fl ights with British
Airways, and transfers.
(0161 491 7650
8carrier.co.uk
Amsterdam
SAVE
Do: Buy an iamsterdamcard – from
€33 for a 24-hour pass. As well as
travel on public transport, this gives
you free entrance to many museums
and attractions. During the winter, be
a cheapskate and hit the ice rinks.
See: Visit the 17th-century Zuiderkerk
to see an exhibition on the city’s
progress over the centuries. In
summer head to the Vondelpark for
free concerts and performances.
Eat: Grab a delicious and healthy
snack at one of the Maoz falafel bars,
which are scattered around the city.
Nightlife: Check out one of Amsterdam’s
brown cafes – the Dutch equivalent of
a pub – and stick to local drinks to keep
the price down. Many bars and cafes
will showcase new bands. Get to the
Alto Jazz Cafe early to get a table and
settle in for a night of smooth tunes.
Stay: The rates at the Stay Okay Zeeburg
are low, from €22.20, but it’s a little
outside the centre. In the thick of
things, the Lloyd Hotel has rooms
from one to fi ve-star (starting from
€95) so you can get luxury level
service for less.
Sample package: Gold Medal off ers
two nights’ bed and breakfast at the
three-star Delta Hotel in Amsterdam
for £159, including BMI fl ights from
Heathrow.
(0844 493 4444
8goldmedal.co.uk
SPLURGE
Do: Fashion and design lovers will be
in heaven with the biannual Amsterdam
International Fashion Week in
January and July, and design month
in September. All year round the city
is stuff ed with boutiques selling
strikingly individual clothing and
furniture by Dutch designers.
See: View the city from the canal.
Upgrade from the regular tourist
boats and rent your own with a
captain or, if you’re brave, without.
Eat: Rack up your Michelin stars at Ciel
Blue, a haute cuisine restaurant 23
fl oors above the city. Trendy Restaurant
de Kas is a former greenhouse, which
sources all its food from local
producers – or a greenhouse.
Nightlife: The new Panama nightclub
in a converted dock building fuses
theatre, dance, live music and DJs.
The original Supperclub, one of the
earliest venues to off er dining on a
bed, now has a Supperclub Cruise so
you can recline and dine afl oat.
Stay: The Dylan Hotel has 41
individually designed rooms, with
rates starting from €275. The Grand
Hotel Amrath is situated in the old
shipping house and fi tted out in luxurious
art deco style. Rooms cost from
€270 per night up to €2,500.
Sample package: Kirker Holidays
off ers three nights’ bed and breakfast
for the price of two at the fi ve-star
deluxe Politzer, from £499 per person
twin-share. Valid from December 1–24,
this off er includes return fl ights from
Heathrow, private transfers, canal
cruise, and a one-day tram/bus pass.
(020 7593 2288
8kirkerholidays.com TW
● A longer version of this article,
including how to save or splurge in
Berlin, is available at
www.travelweekly.co.uk
Prague and Rome (left)
are both picturesque cities
The Astronomical Clock in Prague
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