Czech please!

There is something peculiarly romantic about a night at the State Opera in Prague. The audience is dressed up, not in black tie but jewel-coloured dresses. The seats are crimson velvet. Carmen is voluptuous, in body and voice. The light from the chandeliers catches the gilded scrollwork. It’s all much as it would have been when Mahler conducted Wagner here on the theatre’s opening night in 1888

If some cultural city breaks demand a kind of earnestness, Prague wears its historical richness lightly, enfolding you in its past. Unlike the other great Mittel European capitals, Prague was not bombed in the Second World War, and as such, the city centre is a picturesque history lesson in itself.

We wandered down the long piazza that is Wenceslas Square. This wide space, fringed by bars, has long been a place of political ferment. During the last century it witnessed the rise and fall of Communism, violent fighting between red Soviets and nationalist Czechs, and the student Jan Palach setting fire to himself in protest at the presence of Russian troops. More recently, in 1989, 500,000 citizens gathered for night after freezing night demanding free elections, eventually catalysing the end of Communism with the Velvet Revolution.

But the most notable thing we encountered there was a white van covered in photos of topless women mud-wrestling, advertising the nearby lap-dancing joint Goldfingers. That’s the other side to Prague: cheap flights and cheaper drinks have attracted a steady stream of stag weekenders. Happily, the lagered-up lads are easily avoided and the bargain prices are equally attractive to all visitors: even on the main Wenceslas drag, at a high-ceilinged Art Deco café, a locally brewed pilsner was £1, a glass of wine £1.50, and a plate of spicy Bavarian sausage was thrown in for free.

In winter, small, fire-lit restaurants proffering hot stew and dumplings offer seductive respite from the cold; in the heat of summer there are fresh seafood restaurants along the banks of the Vltava. We strolled in the sunshine through the fragrant gardens on top of Petrin Hill. A funicular carried us up, the city spreading out in a Baroque montage of fairy-tale spires, orange brick rooftops and green copper domes behind us.

Among the terraced roses we discovered a miniature vineyard selling dry — and inexpensive — Bohemia Sec sparkling wine, so we were well-oiled as we joined an evening tour of the 16th-century Lobkowicz Palace. Its restored rooms are crowded with Brueghels, Rubens, Canalettos; there’s sheet music by Mozart (a regular visitor) and Beethoven (who dedicated his third, fifth and sixth symphonies to the 7th Prince in thanks for his patronage) on display. We met the current Prince for a drink on the palace balcony. His parents lost the building first to the Nazis and then, having regained it, to the Communists. After the revolution, Lobkowicz, who had lived all his life in America, suddenly found himself in charge. ‘When I first came back, Prague had little for visitors. And awful food. Now, there’s magic round every corner,’ he told us.

To return south over the river we braved the Charles Bridge. Built in the 1400s, it is lined with life-size effigies of saints, as well as crowds of hawkers selling Mozart-themed hairslides and wooden toys. The main tourist drag moves on to the Old Town Square, celebrated for its astronomical clock, whose doors open on the hour to reveal figures of the 12 apostles whirring past, and a skeletal effigy of Death mechanically striking the time.

Finally, we headed back to the Four Seasons, for dinner at its new Italian restaurant CottoCrudo. We lingered over a magnificent cheese menu and a dizzying selection of prosciutto and hams. The sommelier paired my tagliata steak with a deep Barolo and, since the bartender also had a stylish way with a martini, it was fortunate that we didn’t need to wander the city any further to feel we were making the most of the views. The hotel is situated in the city’s heart, looking across the river to the imperious sweep of the castle walls, to the Charles Bridge, and on up the Vltava. The rest of our sightseeing would be done on site. ES

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Rooms at the Four Seasons Hotel Prague start from €425 per night, room only (00800 6488 6488; fourseasons.com/prague). For more information on Prague, visit czechtourism.com