Thanks to his hard work, Harry has seen Villa Mansland emerge as not just a commercial success, with growing numbers of visitors year on year from all over the world, but also one of the best known features of Prague’s gay scene.
It is, moreover, the only Czech hotel – and one of very few in the whole of Europe – to have been repeatedly awarded the top three crowns rating by the respected Spartacus International Hotel & Restaurant Guide. It is with an obvious sense of great pride in his achievement that Harry says “We have become probably the best-known gay hotel in Eastern Europe, offering our guests and visitors a uniquely welcoming environment where, in a quieter, more relaxed and more discrete setting than a gay bar, they can socialise with the many Czech and Eastern European young men who come here and enjoy getting to know visitors of all backgrounds and from all parts of the world in a genuinely inter-generational mix.
Like-minded guests and visitors also have the opportunity to swap experiences and to make new friendships with each other and I am proud that, over the years, we have created a real community where both regularly returning guests and first timers feel immediately at home.”
But Harry Niessner is certainly not a man to rest on his laurels. At the end of 2009 he announced a major change of direction for Villa Mansland. “Building on more than a decade’s successful operation and a great deal of feedback over that time from guests and visitors, we plan to move on even further”, he says.
“While we continue to attract first-time visitors to Prague who understandably want to be out and about in the city exploring its many attractions, we also welcome many guests who have been to the city before and so prefer to spend more time at the Villa itself. For them Villa Mansland is not just a place to sleep, it’s a true resort, in the full sense of the word, where they can simply relax or can choose to fill their day with a wide range of activities – often in the charming company of one of the new friends they have made during their stay.
“Over the past few years we have launched a range of new initiatives – an in-house Wellness Centre with our own fitness experts and masseurs, cookery weekends, regular cabaret shows and escorted guided tours around Prague and other parts of the Czech Republic are just a few of them, and we have several more exciting plans in the pipeline that we will soon be launching.
“We want all our guests – no matter how often they visit us – to think of Villa Mansland as Prague’s unique gay resort where they’ll always find something new on offer to give them an even more pleasurable experience of their stay in the city.”
On the subject of the future of Prague itself and its famous gay scene, Harry remains typically optimistic and upbeat. “The city is still a major magnet for tourists from all over the world, he says, “drawn by its stunning architecture and the Czech people’s uniquely positive attitude to life.
“Prague remains, too, the gay heart of Europe”, he says.
“The Czechs are the most liberal of the peoples of Eastern Europe and there is no discrimination at all against gay people. Registered gay partnerships have been recognised and gay life is very similar to capital cities in the west like Berlin, Zürich, Paris or Madrid. Every year we see more and more gay businesses opening here – although”, he adds with a smile, “I still like to remember that mine was the very first.”
Prague’s unique gay resort Villa Mansland is the only Czech hotel – and one of very few in the whole of Europe – to have been awarded the maximum award of three crowns by the second, third and fourth editions of the respected Spartacus International Hotel & Restaurant Guide. For more information see www.villa-mansland.eu , www.villamansland.net and www.villalife.info
Villa Mansland… Prague’s best-kept secret… Where the boys are.
