Amade Château

Welcome to the luxury romantic Spa and Hamam hotel Château Amade, the isle of peace and quiet. We believe the unique style and historic atmosphere of our castle with 30 rooms, the culinary creations of our gourmet restaurant and the rejuvenating massage treatments of our Wellness & Hamam will meet your greatest expectations. In addition, our professional and helpful team is ready to fulfill all your wishes, so please feel free to rely on us. We wish you a pleasant stay in our hotel.

The eco-chic boutique hotel Château Amade is located approximately 122 km from Vienna, 50 km away from Bratislava and 153 km from Budapest in the pleasant surroundings of the village Vrakúň, a municipality which may be traced back as far as the Avar period.

The hotel is situated in the middle of the Rye Island populated mostly by Hungarian minority. Even the old name of Csallóköz, KUKKÓNIA refers to a frog. The fire-bellied toad makes sounds like kuk-kuk. The locals imitated this in warning of the approach of the Tartars. (The Turks later avoided the region; they were unfamiliar with the area, got lost and often ended up sinking into the marsh.)

Standing in the middle of the Danube’s arm, Rye Island represents the greatest river island in Europe with a great variety of hot springs and summers and abundance of fertile black earth. In days of old, Rye Island was a marshy region, even Turks avoided the swamps full of bogs and stagnant water.

Today tourists can get to know the romantic region in the framework of safe tours. Our guests can take boats and kayaks in the branches of the Danube and can even wash gold in the sand of the Old Danube.

The castle was built in the Louis-Seize Romantic style, i.e. it is reminiscent of French romanticism, of the world of Rococo where everything was exaggerated and over-decorated, when even bushes in the park had to grow differently from their natural shape. Aristocratic circles throughout Europe were imitating the French court and the same was occurring on Rye Island.

Manor houses were built in true Château de Versailles style, including lots of silk and damask fabric and perfectly measured and cut lawns and paths filled with fine gravel where ladies and gentlemen in powdered wigs could stroll, just as depicted on the sofa in our reception hall. Just like the Rococo style, life in this period was a lavish, colourful affair, full of flourish, as if everything was coated in pink sugar icing.

This lightand and slightly frivolous world returns to us in the furnishings of our halls and rooms, the mood mirrored in the motifs of Bourbon lilies on the hall walls (which incidentally were stamped with a simple woodblock) or in the garlands and wreaths in the reception halls, so popular in Classicism.

Why does our hotel bear the name Amade? Vrakúň was once the seat of the noble Amade family, whose age-old family nest stood right here on this very spot. In the playful, candy coloured period lived a dreamy poet, baron László Amade.

László was a man of the world, a great womanizer who enjoyed the pleasures of life. (one of his works is a long poem listing the names of the beauties he seduced – a pinnacle of artistic indiscretion).

Despite this, in the 18th century he was the most European of Hungarian poets and a favourite among aristocratic salons of Rye Island. For this reason one wing of the mansion was named after him – “Le Baron”.

In the restaurant as well, it was my aim to recreate the romantic atmosphere of the style in which the mansion was built. The design of the wainscoting is taken from French patterns, but on the curtains appear small flowers found in the meadows of Rye Island.

In contrast, the Chinese room can take us away to a remote, exotic world. Chinese vases in niches are the work of a local ceramist and include a frog from the coat-of-arms of Vrakúň on their lids. (When furnishing I tried to cooperate with local craftsmen as much as possible and it was only due to their skill and creativity that the beauty we now know as the Amade Château Hotel was born. They deserve our thamks!)

The Czech artist, Oto Bláha, painted the walls of the confectionery with typical views of the landscape óne may see strolling around Rye Island, done in the style of grisaille wallpapers. (He also added a frog to the hotel logo.)

Every corner of the mansion evokes the sweetness of bygone times, the delights of which we may still taste even now. Amade Château was created for the people of today, and by taking us back to the past, it will enrich and sweeten our present life.

THE HISTORY
The castel was built in 1904 by Mátyás Pfeifer, land and factory owner. It stands on the ruins of the onetime nest of the peerage Amade family, and is operated today as a five star hotel. Some interesting information for those who are fond of facts. The Amade Château hotel is situated in the middle-sized municipality of Vrakúň, in the heart of the Rye Island with population of 2,470 inhabitants.

The municipality was provided with the current image in 1940 by joining the ancient Hungarian settlements of Nyék (Nekyje na Ostrove) and Várkony (Vrakúň), thus the municipality history develops along two lines.

Várkony is a very old Hungarian tribe whose origin traces back to the AVAR period. In historical records the municipality was first mentioned in 1015. Vrakúň served as a family seat of a Hungarian noble family Amade, who allegedly owned also a castle there. In 16th century the municipality was granted the town privileges.

The municipality lost its importance when the Amades moved their headquarters to neighbouring Bős (Gabcíkovo). The Amade’s residence, according to tradition, was a fortified castlet or castle in Várkony (according to the locals it was built on foundations that dated from the Renaissance).

Mátyás Bél, the great historiographer, was still able to see it, but later every trace of it was gone. The last Amade, Tádé Amade had a famous pheasant preserve and dairy farm in Várkony. After him, Várkony and Csallóköznyék became the possession of the Schmerzing family.

They sold Várkony and the surrounding estates at the turn of the century to Mátyás Pfeifer of Ikva. Pfeifer had a distillery and a steam mill in the village, and to flaunt his wealth, to show it off to the world, he built our château in 1904.

He couldn’t enjoy the luxury for long, however, for violent times came, and the castle went through several hands. It was turned into a military hospital in the world war; later it became an asylum for the mentally handicapped.

ROOMS & SUITES
The hotel has 30 elegantly decorated luxurious rooms – 20 rooms and 10 suites. Every room and suit is designed in an original manner, decorated with hand-painted wallpaper, hand-woven blankets and with various décor accessories. All used materials are characterized by excellent quality, good taste and they are mutually complementary in order to create harmonious and cosy environment.

LE BARON
Le Baron is a wing side of the main building of the hotel. There are 7 rooms, 4 Comfort Double rooms, 2 DeLuxe Double rooms and 1 Prestige Suite. All of these rooms are individually designed in the style of French provincial mansions with motifs characteristic for the time, when László Amade lived. This infinitely lighten and a bit frivolous world is returning to us in furnishing of our halls and rooms.

In the second half of the 18th century the large flowery rococo designs, often of Chinese origin, were replaced by smaller European flower ornaments and geometric patterns (stripes and checks). At this time the majority of the beds were lits à la polonaise with cupolas and canopies.

They were named after Louis XV’s Polish wife, Maria Karolina Leszczynska. They first appeared in bedrooms of the rococo, but they were popular later too. Our guests can try beds with cupolas and canopies in all of our rooms.

MON CHATEAU
Mon Château is the main building of the hotel. There are 11 rooms, 6 Comfort Double rooms, 2 DeLuxe Double rooms and 3 DeLuxe Suites. All of these rooms are in the style of French provincial mansions.

Red-checked fabrics were fashionable in the 18th century. Often curtains, canopies, drapery were made of this material. “Toiles” with pastoral scenes were popular. Smaller pieces of furniture appeared in ladies’ boudoirs.

In opulent places dark colours were frequent, deep apple-green, blackberry blue and a dark red inspired by Japanese imari porcelain. In smaller boudoirs, however, lighter colours of the palette were popular.

RENDEZ VOUZ
Rendez Vouz is a separate building, situated only a few minutes from the main building. The building includes four suites, two Junior and two Superior. The suites are comfortable for couples. An extra bed or child’s cot/crib is upon request.

The main advantage is the privacy provided by these suites designed in a romantic style. At the ground floor the sitting rooms and bathrooms, upstairs the bedrooms are located. Some of the suites even have their own terrace, fencing with a lavender garden and garden-trees.

MA CHAMPAGNE
Ma Campagne is a separate building, situated only a few minutes from the main building. The building includes 7 Comfort Doubles and 1 Prestige suite. Some of the rooms even have an own terrace, fencing with own lavender garden and garden-trees. The main advantage is the privacy provided by these rooms designed in rural style.

Far away from Africa, we are awaiting our guest with 2 Comfort Double rooms (with common hall) furnished in African style with colonial furniture. We created a piece of Africa for the old time`s sake, when the descendants of Mátyás Pfeifer (originator of the mansion in 1904) attended Safari hunts on the land of the Sahara.

After these long journeys they always returned with a number of trophies. The small zebra motifs on the wall and every corner reminds us this exotic world far away from the Rye Island.

The 104 year old Uncle Rudi Kósa from Vrakúň, is the oldest man in our country. He shares his memories about the Pfeifer family, their Safari adventures, and many other interesting facts in his book “Séták a múltba” available in our hotel.

DINING
Our cuisine has a seasonal and regional character. The restaurants of our historic mansion offer delicacies in accordance with the rules of the Slow Food movement, which emphasizes the importance of the local gastronomic traditions.

The meals are prepared only from fresh and local ingredients, grown and delivered by local farmers. Hunters from Vrakúň supply us by wild boar and venison, fishermen by fish. Fruit and vegetables are grown in our orchard in Vrakún and we also have our own farm for breeding mangalitsa and poultry. The bakery products, as well pastas are freshly made by us.

OUTDOOR BAR
On hot summer days relax poolside, and enjoy the sun with fresh drinks and tasty meals offered in our Pool bar with live kitchen. Try our refreshing home-made lemonades, made from fresh fruit – right from our garden!

During the summer you can enjoy the sweet-scented ritual of shisha and soft lounge music, in the exotic surroundings of our outdoor bar. It was inspired by the exclusive bar and restaurant in Paris, created by Raymond Visan.

It became known internationally for issuing the Buddha Bar compilation albums, which are popular compilations (some of them by David Visan, son of Raymond Visan) of lounge, chill-out music and world music, also under the Buddha Bar brand, released by George V Records.

Lounge, chill-out, Hungarian folk and world music (Deep Forest by Márta Sebestyén) is played in our outdoor bar, which creates a perfect atmosphere to

Blue and pink Indian tents add a pop of color to the Spa garden. They give shelter from the hot sun rays on summer days. We are also offering barbecue for private functions served by waiters in white gloves. This event is suitable for teambuilding as well.

POMPADOUR RESTAURANT
Restaurant Pompadour offers the best in regional cuisine – guests who dine here will enjoy a true gastronomic experience. Our Executive Chef, Imre Bindics and his professional team of cooks are awaiting our guests with various gourmet meals – all prepared only from fresh and local ingredients. Here you can taste the culinary speciality of the Rye Island – Mangalitsa pork!

PATISSERIE
In our patisserie, where the beautiful countryside of the Rye Island is enliven on the walls, we serve a traditional five o’clock tea. Ingenious delicacies, traditional sweet cakes with a cup of fine-smelling Semiramis coffee or aromatic relaxing Kusmi tea.

While enjoying the perfect peace, our English park ensures a wonderful view. Our recommendation is a home-made dessert – Amade cake prepared from the French Valhrona chocolate (one of the best chocolates of the world). It will enchant you for sure.

KUKKÓNIA RESTAURANT
The restaurant offers mainly local meals, all containing carefully sourced local, seasonal ingredients. The restaurant, with direct access to the park, can be a perfect choice for family celebrations or company events as it ensures an undisturbed private atmosphere. In our regional menu you can find the three iconic meats of the Rye Island, which is mangalitsa, beef cheek and fledermaus. In our regional menu you can find the three iconic meats of the Rye Island, which is mangalitsa, beef cheeks and fledermaus.

MANGALITSA
Is a unique local race in Hungary, the king of pigs. Once you see the pig, it is unforgettable because of its hairy and cute form reminds of sheep. They are bred in vast land breathing fresh air and eating natural food such as pumpkin, beet and acorn and are bred freely without stressing.

One feature of mangalitsa pork is its high quality fat. Who has ever tasted mangalitsa says it is noble, very tasty and not too heavy. Its marbling meat melts in mouth and its aftertaste is refreshing. We offer mangalitsa pork coming from our own farm.

FLEDERMAUS
It comes from the inside part of the pig`s back leg. This muscle does not work, therefore its fibres remain soft. It is a gravy, fatty, a slight piece of pork meat. It looks like a palmate dewlap – local butchers simply throw this part away when they work up the pig, in turn perfect schnitzel can be prepared from it.

BEEF CHEEKS 
Cheeks, just as shank, are in a great use during the entire life of the animal, therefore they are very tough and lean cut of meat and are most often used for braising or slow cooking to produce a tender result. But in contrast to beef shank, cheeks are more collagenous, soggy and crispy. Only a few butchers have them, however beef cheeks are one of the most profitable part of beef.

WINERY
A glass of delicious wine is definitely an inseparable part of good meal and pleasant environment. We offer you a rich selection of the best wines and favourite brands, produced in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria and other countries.

If you are fond of tasting different varieties of this irresistible drink, do not miss visiting our wine cellar, and let yourself be enchanted by “small miracles” from the world of wine art. Our wine list includes a wide range of quality regional and foreign wines, selected by our sommelier Attila Kovács with great care.

We offer the greatest wines from the Garammente as from the wineries of Frigyes Both and Zsolt Sütő, whose sur lie wine got to the wine list of the world-famous Noma restaurant.

If you rather prefer beer, come and taste the special home-made beer ERB. ERB brewery, located in Banská Štiavnica, brews beer using exclusive natural ingredients and top technology without any additives, which allows the beer the indulgence it needs to mature, that is from three to five weeks.

MEDIEVAL FEAST
Have you ever wanted to experience a Medieval feast? Take part in a lively dining experience: our guests enjoy delicious dainty morsels, inspired by medieval culinary arts, served on wooden platters according to ancient traditions. Go ahead and use your fingers!

The dessert is a “wobbly” cake, following the Medieval tradition where guests brought along the pastries, which were piled on top of one another and thus served. Brave ones can dress up in costumes of the time! Upon request you can enjoy a special presentation of medieval music.

CIGAR ROOM
The cigar room combines the real atmosphere of English clubs and a piece of the colonial world. Cosiness, comfort and luxury are waiting for the lovers of quality cigars here. It’s the best place for a private conversation, while enjoying a glass of quality drink.

The cigars are the undisputed stars, each of them hand rolled, including Cohiba, Montecristo, Partagas, Domenico and Macanudo. The cigar room involves also a library as its integral part with the selection of various books.

If you are a real gourmand taste a unique drink, one of the best cognacs of the world, Louis XIII, the King of cognacs, which with its name pays homage to the King of France during whose reign the Rémy Martin family settled in the Cognac region.

AFTERNOON TEA
Return to the charming old custom of afternoon tea, while sitting on cosy sofas! Taste one of our coffee or tea specialities with lovely pastries and sandwiches. (We serve Agatha Christie’s favourite scones with delicious home-made jam on demand.) Try our Amade cake, made from the finest French chocolate Valhrona, crispy macarons or delicious sandwiches. Don’t forget to include a glass of champagne on the serving table!

Kusmi tea – luxury Russian tea (Kusmi was the supplier of the Tzars palace). Offers a tea mixture of the highest quality, in accordance with tradition, made exclusively from whole tea leaves from China, India and Sri Lanka.

Try the exclusive Semiramis coffee, which is prepared from the best Arabica coffees freshly on a daily base. Arabica is the most valuable species of coffee plant, with the most pleasant qualities, representing 59% of world coffee production.

TRADITIONAL SUNDAY BRUNCH
Join us for Sunday Brunch with family and friends at Chateau Amade. Our professional team of cooks is awaiting you with rich buffet tables, serving wonderful starters, delicious soups and various gourmet main meals – all prepared only from fresh and regional ingredients. If you are a fan of sweets, the Candy Bar has been created for you. It has only one disadvantage. Warning! They are addictive!

CAVIAR DEGUSTATION
Enjoy the luxurious taste of Siberian sturgeon caviar with our newest private tasting experience. The purity, flavor and texture of caviar make it an exclusive and unique element of luxury cuisine.

Real caviar lovers prefer Siberian sturgeon caviar. It has bluish black or dark grey colour. Sturgeon caviar has a strong flavor, therefore usually is not seasoned. We serve blini alongside the caviar, but eggs, cucumber and sour cream also foregrounds its special taste.

WELLNESS & SPA
We are waiting for you in our eco-chic Wellness & Spa with extraordinary hospitality and care, where the indoor and outdoor pools, as well as the hot tub and the saunas are waiting to rejuvenate your body and soul. You can find an outside pool bar, which will refresh you in the sizzling summer days.

AMADE POOLS
In our Wellness & Spa an outdoor and an indoor infinity pool is available, with its size perfect even for experienced swimmers. The jacuzzi is directly involved in the indoor swimming pool.

There is nothing better than refreshing oneself by the water on hot summer days. Take a swim in our outdoor pool or relax poolside and enjoy the sunshine. If you are rather fond of an active recreation, try our interesting programmes offered by the pool every weekend.

MASSAGES & BODY TREATMENTS
Massages with cooling and smoothing oils and hot stones represent the combination of cooling water and sun-warmed stones. The old herbal traditions combined with modern massage techniques guarantee flawless pleasure in the warmth of a simple touch.

Each treatment is like a soothing art that aims to make happiness and harmony rise from within, like a delightful awekening thanks to beneficial proprieties of essential oils and natural ingredients.

THE AMADE SAUNA ISLAND
Saunas have been used for thousands of years. A sauna can help you to unwind and relax, and it has health benefits to boot. With good reason. Physically, nothing is more reinvigorating than a deep, healthy sweat every day.

Tension fades, and muscles unwind. Mentally, we emerge relaxed, revived, and ready for whatever the day may bring. Sweating has long been used as a therapy. The main benefits proposed for saunas are for relaxation and cardiovascular health and its purifying benefits. In our Wellness & Spa three types of sauna are available:

FINNISH SAUNA
The temperatures range from 95° to 105°C. The recommended length of stay is 12 to 15 minutes. It relaxes muscles and the intense sweating cleanses the body, strengthens the immune system, and gets rid of stress.

STEAM BATH
Cleans your respiratory system and relaxes the pores of your skin. The sauna has a temperature of 45°-55°C [should be either Fahrenheit or Celsius but not both] and high humidity (100%). Its effects include muscle relaxation, primarily musculoskeletal, followed by total relaxation. The higher air temperature also helps to increase sweating, thereby ridding the body of toxic substances.

INFRARED SAUNA
Is a modern sauna where energy is obtained from special infrared diffusers. These create the ideal temperature for relaxation in the cabin.

SAUNA SEANCE
Sauna séance is a brand-new treatment in the sauna world that offers a different kind of sauna experience. During the séance a variety of essential oils are released into the cabin, and your skin is treated with fragrant, revitalizing creams.

Led by a sauna master who creates a friendly and fun atmosphere, the sauna séance is a real team-building activity. Whether you come alone or with company, you will leave with both body and soul feeling harmoniously refreshed.

Séances are always organised within the framework of programmes. Each programme has its own appeal. Whether you are alone or with company sauna séances are real team activities.

SAUNA WITH ESSENTIALS OILS
Properly and regularly performed sauna bathing rejuvenates and creates not only physical but mental, spiritual renewal. Especially when we combine it with aromatherapy. Essential oils easily penetrate to the deepest layers of the skin through the expanded pores of the warmed-up body and, through the vascular structure affects the entire body and through breathing, the bloodstream.

AMADE FITNESS
Is a new dimension of both body and mind care where you can combine health, beauty and luxury in a unique manner. It is your private island of peace, a center of harmony in the center of pulsating life.

HAMAM
Our spectacular Turkish Hamam bath was built and designed by Turkish professionals. The hamam represents a piece of the Orient, and is an experience which you will fall in love with at the very first touch. Immerse yourself in the hot steam bath and free yourself from all the tension, problems and thoughts of the day.

TEA TENT
Under the shades in our blue Indian tent you can taste the light summer courses from the Wellness & Spa menu or choose a fresh juice made from seasonal fruit and vegetables from our orchard. Let yourself to be enchanted by the lecherous view of the sparkling blue water girdled with oriental sunshades.

HAMAM & SHISHA
In our Hamam the Hamam master, the dellak, offers a shisha to the guests. Taste also Turkish tea and sweet baklava. During summer you can enjoy the sweet-scented ritual of shisha and soft lounge music in the exotic surroundings of our Buddha bar. Don’t miss this memorable experience! Enjoy our exotic performance with shisha (hookah) and traditional turkish coffee.

HAMAM TURKISH BATHS
The ritual of bathing has always played an important role in the Muslim religion. Prophet Mohamed strongly believed that cleanness could influence the human productivity in a positive way. Therefore he introduced the procedure of HAMAM to be held on Friday which is the Muslims´ holy day.

From the early beginning the traditional Turkish baths were designed separately for men and women and in accordance with old traditions the process of Hamam has never changed. The ritual of this particular bath takes approximately 2 hours and the result is a newly revived body and soul.

A Turkish bath ritual starts with the perfect cleaning of body and soul in the whirlpool, which prepares the body for another part of the spa ritual: a steam bath. Steam bath helps open the skin pores and release the muscles. Relaxation continues on a marble stage in the middle of the Hamam.

This steam bath and the marble stage being watered gives the 50 degree temperature and the humidity needed for an effective hamam treatment.

Avoiding a sudden shock, the organism gradually gets into contact with heat and the skin gradually gets softer and softer after spending 20 – 30 minutes in the steamy part of the Hamam. Then follows the peeling procedure by a specially invented peeling mitten called “kese”.

After the old layer of the skin is peeled, the masseur employs a soap massage on the whole body. A soap made of olive oil is foamed in a wooden tub and a linen bag is drenched into it.

The linen bag filled with this fragrant foam is the masseur’s instrument to massage the body from head till toes, resulting in a silky soft skin and relaxed muscles. The massage in this warm area influences the activity of internal organs and increases the effect of detoxification.

A couple of minutes later the soap massage continues with an oily massage to preserve the moisture of your skin. The special Turkish body and soul reviving treatment would not be traditional without Turkish tea and sweet baklava! Hamam will let you return to everyday’s life brimming with energy and a feeling of cleanness − of both body and soul.

SPRING IN THE APPLE ORCHARD
Vegetables and fruit are grown in our private garden located in Vrakúň, only a few hundred meters from the castle, which supply us with the finest fresh and local products. In spring, when our orchard is the most beautiful, you can admire apple tree blossoming. In autumn see how apple is harvested. We offer you our home-made apple juice, jam and we also can fruit and vegetables in our kitchen.

FARM
The meals are prepared only from local ingredients, meat – as beef, chicken and quail – and dairy products are delivered by local farmers. Mangalitsa, which is one of the emblematic products of the Rye Island, comes from our private farm, where they are raised on floral nutrition: apple, carrot and corn, and strictly kept only in fresh air.

Beef is processed in our own slaughter-house, which guarantees us to serve high-toned meat in our restaurant. Hunters from Vrakúň supply us by wild boar and venison, fishermen by fish. Grass carp is delivered directly from the fishpond in Veľké Blahovo. Home-made cheese comes from a small farm in Veľké Úľany. Vilmos Csánó, beekeeper prepares the sweetest local honey in Horná Potôň.

KITCHEN GARDEN
Herbs used in our kitchen and also for seasonal massages are grown in our small kitchen garden. At the back of the English park we have a tiny little farm, where Pitypang the cock happily scratches with its hens and our two lambs, Lujza and Stella, graze on the green lawn.

LOCAL TRADITION
The bakery products as well pasta are freshly made by us. The crispy oven-baked bread, which we serve with tender butter is our guest`s favorite. We offer you our home-made apple juice, jam and we also can fruit and vegetables in our kitchen.

The taste of them reminds us those heavenly meals from our grandmother`s kitchen. During the summer, in the outdoor bar, you can try the best grilled recipes prepared by our executive chef and his professional team. All ingredients are local and from natural origin! Upon request we organize a traditional pig slaughter for groups, where you can taste the traditional delicacies prepared by yourself.

WINE
We offer you a rich selection of the best wines and favourite brands produced in Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Austria and other countries. If you are fond of tasting different varieties of this irresistible drink, do not miss visiting our wine cellar and let yourself be enchanted by “small miracles” from the world of wine art.

Our wine list includes a wide range of quality regional and foreign wines, selected by our sommelier Attila Kovács with great care. We offer the greatest wines from the Garammente as from the wineries of Frigyes Bott and Zsolt Sütő, whose sur lie wine got to the wine list of the world-famous Noma restaurant.

HOMEMADE BEER ERB
If you rather prefer beer, come and taste the special home-made beer ERB. ERB brewery, located in Banská Štiavnica, brews beer using exclusive natural ingredients and top technology without any additives, which allows the beer the indulgence it needs to mature, that is from three to five weeks.

GUEST AREAS OF CHÂTEAU AMADE
Each and every corner of the castle brings back the sweet old times, which we can still enjoy in the present days. Please, be our guest! The Amade Reception, the Lobby, the Patisserie, the Chinese Lounge and the Cigar Room – all of these guest areas offer a unique impeccable luxury. Enjoy relaxing in a private and homely atmosphere of a boutique hotel.

RECEPTION
As you enter the hotel a perfectly elegant corridor welcomes you with a charming and sophisticated reception. The sense of the luxurious furniture and curtains, candy colours and motives of dragonflies, all present the real atmosphere of the hotel.

LOBBY BAR
The cosy environment of the Lobby is an ideal place for private meetings with business partners or family members with a cup of coffee, a glass of wine or a tasty dessert. Enjoy the peace and maximum comfort by the fireplace. Moreover, the Lobby has a direct access to the covered terrace and the beautiful English park.

The castle was built in the Louis-Seize Romantic style, i.e. it is reminiscent of French romanticism, of the world of Rococo where everything was exaggerated and over-decorated, when even bushes in the park had to grow differently from their natural shape. Aristocratic circles throughout Europe were imitating the French court and the same was occurring on Rye Island.

Manor houses were built in true Château de Versailles style, including lots of silk and damask fabric and perfectly measured and cut lawns and paths filled with fine gravel where ladies and gentlemen in powdered wigs could stroll, just as depicted on the sofa in our reception hall. Just like the Rococo style, life in this period was a lavish, colourful affair, full of flourish, as if everything was coated in pink sugar icing.

This lightand and slightly frivolous world returns to us in the furnishings of our halls and rooms, the mood mirrored in the motifs of Bourbon lilies on the hall walls (which incidentally were stamped with a simple woodblock) or in the garlands and wreaths in the reception halls, so popular in Classicism.

PATISSERIE
Ingenious delicacies, traditional sweet dainties with a cup of fine-smelling coffee or aromatic relaxing tea. Enjoy sweet life in the hotel patisserie built in the de Gournay style where you will be impressed by hand-painted natural scenes from the Rye Island on the walls by the famous Czech artist, Ota Bláha.

CHINESE LOUNGE
The Chinese lounge furnished with fine elegance is ideal for business and family events with smaller number of participants. It is the perfect place for meetings with main emphasis on maximum privacy while preserving all attributes of comfort and an undisturbed environment.

It is situated in the main hotel part close to the reception desk. The lounge capacity is 12 persons. Every self-respecting château can boast of a Chinese lounge. Our skillful ceramicist made a Chinese ginger vase in the alcove, with a frog sitting on its lid. (The frog is our good-luck animal. It is featured on our logo, and also on the coat-of-arms of the village Vrakúň).

Chinoiserie, the Chinese style became popular in the Rococo. Its dissemination was due to Madame Pompadour, Louis XVI mistress. She dictated fashion and most of the commissions came from her.

The lively commerce carried on with the Chinese brought to the old continent many ornamental objects, lacquered furniture, china and silk. In 1709 the secret of making porcelain was uncovered, and henceforth the goal was to copy Chinese patterns.

Pagoda-like edifices appeared on beds and furniture. The most common motifs were genre paintings and landscapes, flowering branches, and lattice patterns. (A similar lattice decorates the ceiling of our salon.)

PROPOSAL WITH 101 CANDLES
A cozy dinner is awaiting couples with a romantic soul. Candlelight, nice soft music and heavenly courses on your plate – the perfect sorrounding for a special occasion!

In summer the dinner is served in our English park, in winter time you can enjoy the private atmosphere of our Chinese lounge. And for what kind of occasion do we recommend our dinner with 101 candles? Wedding anniversary, proposal or even a birthday could be more magical in candlelight.

PITYPANG AND HIS BAND
The flora and fauna of the Rye Island has moved onto our walls. Dragon-flies etched in copper run riot on the marble floor, and we glued a dragon-fly made of Czech crystal onto the glass door. The local gamekeeper lent us a stuffed stag head, which we gave to our ceramicist, who made a small masterpiece from it.

There are a lot of frogs here; they even climb up the door handles. According to local beliefs, Rye Island is a huge frog. Kukkónia was a marshy, swampy region, full of mysterious water spirits, who appeared on earth in the form of frogs with big bellies.

Even the old name of Rye Island, KUKKÓNIA refers to a frog. The fire-bellied toad makes sounds like kuk-kuk. The locals imitated this in warning of the approach of the Tartars. (The Turks later avoided the region; they were unfamiliar with the area, got lost and often ended up sinking into the marsh.)

The cormorant is an indigenous bird. At the beginning of the 20th century, there were a few nests only HERE, but today they have multiplied. It’s a veritable „fish wolf”; a single cormorant consumes 170 kilos of fish every year. The one on the photo is made of driftwood found on the banks of the Danube.

The lambs live at one end of the garden. Here they are enjoying the young and tender spring grass. The lamb, Lujza got a lovely new friend Stella and the rooster Pitypang [Dandelion] is scratching the ground with his hens.

PICNIC IN THE PARK
Summer pleasure: Picnic! A romantic afternoon picnic in our English Garden: a checkered tablecloth spread on the lawn, a woven picnic basket, home made delicacies, chilled champagne (served by waiters in white gloves). An event sure to sweep every lady off her feet.

Rooms: 30

Price: from 249 EUR per night

Source: www.hotelamade.sk