A brand-new boat sailing under the Prague Boats flag appeared on the Vltava in early May. Bohemia Rhapsody is the bigger "sister" of the popular Grand Bohemia. You can meet these modern vessels not only on their regular cruises around Prague, but you can also book them for your company events or for events for your clients. We talked about the details with Prague Boats commercial director Richard Vojta Jr.
Bohemia Rhapsody has been in Prague for about a month. What experience do you have with her so far, or how satisfied are your clients?
Although a month is a relatively short time, demand for this boat from companies is very respectable and the reactions are overwhelmingly positive. Today (mid-May, ed.) we have the strongest event days, namely Wednesday to Saturday, practically fully booked until the start of the summer holidays. And that is true for both the Bohemia Rhapsody and the smaller Grand Bohemia.
What are the strengths of Bohemia Rhapsody when it comes to company events?
First and foremost, together with the Grand Bohemia, she is one of only two newly built boats you can find in Prague. Bohemia Rhapsody is also the largest transport vessel built in Germany for Czech territory.
Bohemia Rhapsody is a single-deck boat that offers one large compact space not interrupted by partitions, columns and the like, which is an undisputed advantage for company events. Thanks to the sliding roof, she is also a very airy vessel. And while the Grand Bohemia is ideal for events of 80–160 people, the larger Bohemia Rhapsody has a capacity of 150–220 people.
What kind of events can be held on the boats? Where are the limits?
The limits are of course spatial and technical-legal. In principle it is not possible to use open fire or gas bottles on board. Grills, for example, must be electric. As far as the content of the events is concerned, however, there are almost no limits — we are able to arrange virtually anything.
Our company has recently profiled itself not only as a boat operator but also as an event organiser. For our clients' events we can arrange hostesses, guides, music groups of any style, micro-magic shows, insect-speciality tastings, fireworks and many other programmes. Naturally also floral decorations, balloons and other elements.
And what is interesting is that compared to many event agencies, thanks to our contacts we can get to far more attractive prices. For example, we can arrange fireworks at a quarter of the cost. By the way — more and more congress organisers and DMCs are realising that a boat too can be a worthy venue for an event, which is why we have prepared a special cruise at the start of June for these partners so they can get to know the potential of our boats even better.
And what about catering and equipment, do you handle those too?
As far as technical facilities are concerned, from our own stock we can offer clients a projector with a screen, LCD televisions or a portable sound system with two line and two cable microphones. Each boat is also equipped with its own sound system with two wireless microphones. Situations where we would have to source equipment externally are minimal, but of course we are prepared for that.
And as for catering, for the third year we have been offering the culinary cruise Sweet Prague on the Lužnice, thanks to which we have founded our own catering "division" capable of providing high-quality hot and cold catering to the client's wishes. Bohemia Rhapsody also has its own kitchen led by head chef David Vejmělka, which also handles catering for Grand Bohemia.
Alongside this we cooperate with all leading Prague catering companies, so it is no problem for us to meet any requirement.
How financially demanding are events on your boats?
I think that price-wise we are at a very acceptable level, especially given the quality of the boats. Our boats are classed in the three- to five-star standard, with the seven-star Bohemia Rhapsody being a separate category. Of Prague boats, only the Prague Boats and Prague Steamboat Company boats are in the four- and five-star categories. We can only compare ourselves with the quality of those abroad — for example Paris or Dresden — yet on price we are still much lower.
How far in advance do company events on the boats need to be booked?
Ideally several months in advance. If the client cares about a specific date and a specific boat, even a year ahead. By the way — we are right now arranging an event for September of next year. However, since we have sufficient boat capacity, it is usually no problem to agree on a charter from one day to the next. Recently, for example, we sorted out a wedding from one day to the next…
Text: -pmu-
Foto: Prague Boats
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