Where to stay in Prague
The Augustine
Part of the Augustine is a converted monastery, while another building used to be the monastery's brewery – where the monks brewed beer from 1352 until 1950. This former brewery now houses the hotel's bar.
How they rate it
This feels like "the kind of monastery you'd like to stay in if you'd swapped your vow of poverty for one of – well, luxury", says Christina Patterson in The Independent. Judging by the red-and-black sofas in the reception and the sculptures and paintings scattered around the hotel, the theme is "Czech cubism". The hotel has revived the monks' St Thomas beer in the Brewery Bar – this "rich, malty, dark lager" is "delicious".
The rooms
If you can, book yourself into the monastery tower. All the hotel's rooms are different, but this one is the most impressive. The lower two floors are home tothe sitting room and bathroom, with the bedroom situated up a winding staircase. The bedroom offers impressive views of Prague.
The cost
Rooms at The Augustine cost from €270 room-only. Visit www.roccofortecollection.com, or call 00 800 7666 6667 for more information.
The Romantik Hotel Uraka
The building that houses Romantik Hotel Uraka started life as a stable block. It then became a private home before the current owners bought the two derelict cottages in 1992 and transformed them into this magical hotel.
How they rate it
Staying in this family-run hotel "makes you feel like a character from an eastern European fairy tale", says Lucinda Baring in The Daily Telegraph. It's the little details that give the hotel its magic, from the logs piled up next to the traditional wood-burning stoves to the antique furniture.
The hotel is "simple, warm and welcoming, with exposed brick walls, wooden furniture and lots of lamps". It also has a garden where breakfast is laid out in warm weather and a "charming fire-lit kitchen" where tea and snacks are served. Bear in mind that it isn't in central Prague. Yet that means you can enjoy some peace "away from the action", even if there's a 20-minute walk to get to sights such as the Charles Bridge.
The rooms
The hotel only has six rooms and the pick of the bunch is the room with a working fireplace, which you can light yourself. Failing that, the owner will do it for you.
The cost
Rooms cost from €145, including breakfast. Find out more at Romantikhotel-uraka.cz, or call 00 420 220 511100.
What the travel writers are saying
If anyone should know where the best restaurants are, it's a chef. So The Times asked some of the UK's best chefs where they like to eat. For "sophisticated simplicity", head to Le Lisita in Nimes, France, says Michel Roux Jr, the Michelin-starred head chef of Le Gavroche.
The restaurant has a "huge, magical terrace with great views of the town's Roman arena". The food is "divine", in particular "the salt cod and a wonderfully full-flavoured bull, that make me go back again and again". And if that isn't enough to tempt you, "the locally sourced wine list is phenomenal".
Oliver Peyton, owner of Peyton and Byrne, recommends Cibreo in Florence as "one of the city's best dining experiences". Or try Osteria Francescana in Modena, "probably the only truly modern restaurant in Italy". The chef, Massimo Bottura, "breaks the rules, pushing the boundaries of Italian cuisine".
For an unusual diner, seek out Please Don't Tell in New York, says Jason Atherton, the Michelin-starred executive chef at Maze. "You enter it through a small hot-dog shop, go into the phone booth, press zero on the phone and they let you in." They serve hot dogs designed by top chefs. "But I am not supposed to tell you where it is, so I will just give you a number and let you discover it for yourself." That number is 00 1 212 614 0386.
Dame Vera Lynn: My dream holiday
Having made plenty of trips to Holland, Dame Vera Lynn recommends a stay at the Hilton in Amsterdam, in The Daily Telegraph. It's a short walk from many attractions, including the old city centre and the Van Gogh Museum. The staff provide "an excellent first-class service". And the view of the city is "wonderful". Rooms cost from €169. Call 0870-590 9090.