"I stayed at Grand Hotel International Prague with my wife and our 7-year-old child from Sunday, 30 May, to Saturday, 6 June 2026.
There are some very good things about this hotel. The building has a historic, communist-era architectural style, so it may not be to everyone’s taste, especially for guests who prefer a modern hotel. However, it has a rather luxurious appearance. The hotel is extremely clean. In fact, the housekeeping staff deserve special praise. The ladies responsible for cleaning were exceptionally attentive, and the room was spotless. There was not even a trace of dust. The cleanliness was impeccable.
The breakfast was also varied, very good, and of high quality. Most of the staff were pleasant and friendly.
Unfortunately, all these positive aspects were overshadowed by a deeply unpleasant and humiliating experience at reception.
When I arrived, although my stay had already been fully prepaid by voucher, I paid the city tax at reception by credit card. I was then told that €50 had to be blocked on my card as a minibar deposit.
Two days later, a friend of ours arrived at the same hotel, also with a prepaid voucher and under the same conditions. She is Romanian too, but she has a Swedish passport. She paid the city tax, but no €50 was blocked on her card. In her room, she also found two welcome chocolates and a bottle of water from the hotel, although her minibar was the same as ours.
At check-out, my friend was simply asked whether she had consumed anything from the minibar. She said no, was wished a pleasant journey, and was even given a bottle of water and a small Prague souvenir magnet.
My experience was completely different.
At check-out, the receptionist only said goodbye. Nothing was mentioned about the €50 blocked on my card. I had to ask him myself to check the deposit. He then told me that the money would be released only after the room was checked to see whether anything had been consumed from the minibar. I told him clearly that we had not consumed anything.
What followed was extremely humiliating. I had to stand there and wait at reception while my room was being checked, as if my word was not enough. During this time, at least five other guests checked out. They were simply asked whether they had consumed anything from the minibar, answered no, received their small gifts, and left. I was the only one made to wait in this manner.
When I asked why the €50 had been blocked in my case, the explanations kept changing.
First, I was told that this was the hotel procedure. When I explained that my friend had stayed under the same conditions and had not had any money blocked, the explanation changed. I was then told that the reason was that I had not paid with a card, because the stay was prepaid by voucher. This was not true. I had paid the city tax by credit card at reception, and the same card was used for the €50 block. My friend had also arrived with a prepaid voucher and paid the city tax in exactly the same way.
Then I was given a third explanation: that the €50 had been blocked by mistake. This was even more disturbing. If it was simply a mistake, why did I have to wait for the room to be checked? Why was I not treated in the same way as the other guests, who were only asked whether they had used the minibar?
I want to be very clear: I have proof for everything I am writing here.
Eventually, after this humiliating waiting time, it was confirmed that we had not consumed anything from the minibar, and the money was released. However, no apology was offered. I was not offered a bottle of water like the other guests. I was not offered any souvenir either.
There was also another unpleasant detail. Although the hotel knew I had arrived by car because I had provided the car registration number, I was not given clear instructions on how to leave the parking area. I had to ask again, and only then was I told to leave the parking card with the security guard. Even the parking card had to be requested insistently, although I had already explained that my car was in the hotel parking area.
I have visited the Czech Republic many times and have excellent professional relationships with Czech colleagues. I have stayed in many 4- and 5-star hotels, but I have never been treated so humiliatingly.
The hotel itself has real qualities: exceptional cleanliness, excellent housekeeping, a good breakfast, and a distinctive historic building. But the reception experience made me feel singled out, distrusted, and humiliated in front of other guests.
I still do not understand why I was treated differently. Was it because of my Romanian nationality? Was it because I was traveling with my wife and my 7-year-old child? I do not know. What I do know is that the way I was treated was unacceptable for a hotel of this level.
For this reason, despite the hotel's good aspects, I cannot describe my stay as positive."
