“One afternoon I found myself on a hill in front of Château Mcely. I had originally wanted to avoid the property because in photographs it looked hopeless, but something happened that afternoon, something I have never been able to explain. As I passed through the silent rooms filled with the acrid stench of old age, with plaster flaking off in long strips, I felt I had returned home.”
So Inez Cusumano describes how she fell in love with a crumbling country house in St George’s Forest in central Bohemia, an hour’s drive from Prague. She had managed a development company that specialised in renovating old buildings and had been looking for a grand property for a friend – but ended up buying the château and beginning the daunting task of converting it into a boutique hotel.
In the 19th century, the house had served as a hunting lodge and party venue for younger members of the Thurn-Taxis family, whose main residence, Loucen Castle, is near by and open to the public. The family were forced out by the Communists in 1948 and the castle fell into disrepair, a process accelerated when it became a storage depot for the Ministry of the Interior. It was facing demolition when Mrs Cusunamo first saw it in 2000.
One item she was lacking as she embarked on her adventure was a prince to carry her into her castle. She found him in California. Jim Cusumano, a lead singer in the Sixties in the Royal Teens pop group, former head of research for Exxon, joint founder of successful Silicon Valley companies and then working as a film producer, was looking for another new venture.
Inez and Château Mcely seemed perfect. She and Jim married and Inez started planning the restoration while Jim created a programme for the place and developed partnerships with organisations that could use it.
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It opened in May 2006 as a venue for corporate events and weddings but the atmospheric setting and stylish accommodation began to attract couples and families in growing numbers for both winter breaks in the clear air and relaxing summer holidays in the sun. Today leisure guests outnumber business ones and its fame is spreading across Europe – although this is the first article in a UK publication to feature it.
The oval tree-lined drive provides a classic approach to the château and the entrance and main staircase are part of the original building. The wide, curving stairs lead to the loveliest salon, the Gold Room, with hand-painted walls depicting trees full of birds, a perfect setting for a private dinner or wedding ceremony beneath the chandeliers.
The light and bright dining room below is lined with handmade ceramic plates and hardly a dumpling is in sight on the international menu. In a corner of the comfortable lounge, toys are scattered on the floor, not just for the Cusumano’s little girl but for visiting families.
The 24 bedrooms range from vast suites with parquet floors and rococo furniture to cosy single rooms. A small spa offers additional pampering and the outdoor Jacuzzi on a covered patio is a hot spot in a cold winter. The Alchymist Club in the cellar is the place to enjoy fine wines and cigars.
Despite the overwhelming warmth and comfort of the interior, it’s hard to resist a stroll in the grounds or neigh-bouring woods. Just down the road is a 1,200 acre game reserve, with oak, pine and birch spread across a rolling landscape and home to a few hundred fallow deer, wild duck and sea eagles. The composer Smetana lived near here for eight years and the scenery inspired passages of his most famous work, Ma vl?st.
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Cycling and horse riding are available from the château while excursions further afield will take you to castles, cathedrals, a recreated medieval village – and Prague.
Double rooms cost from £155 a night, with breakfast, until the end of March and the château also has a five-star package for two nights, including breakfast, three-course dinners, a 90-minute massage, use of the sauna and Jacuzzi and tour of the game reserve. It costs £658 for two people. The château can arrange transfers from Prague airport, which is served from several UK airports. www.chateaumcely.com, 00420325 600000