I'm fairly convinced this hotel derives its business almost exclusively from tour groups and…read morepackage holidays. We booked it as part of an easyJet package holiday to Prague.
Design Hotel Elephant calls itself a four-star hotel, but with the obvious attitude of 'If we throw some marble tiles on the walls, put in a crappy restaurant with a picture of a dedicated chef, and come up with a strange name, that should get us what we need to add a star.' Essentially, it's a picture of nice without actually being that nice. The most telling evidence for my case is the toiletries in the room, or lack thereof. They've mounted large bottles of hand wash next to the sink, and combined body/hair wash in the shower. Of every option to save money, they chose to not provide guests with appropriate in-rom amenities. In different terms, they chose to directly impact every guest rather than employing a cost-saving option which might impact fewer guests, meaning this option serves as an overall indicator of the hotel's approach.
The oft-praised breakfast is good, but a bit oversold by reviewers across the Internet. There's an omelette station, sure, and good luck getting to it. In three mornings I didn't have the patience to stand in line and settled for the scrambled eggs on the bar, which were far from great and often hardly even warm. The bacon, however, is delicious. Additionally, there's a selection of cheeses, and the pastry selection changed daily. To cap it off, there's quite the eclectic piano player who plays everything from Chopin to P!nk. Highlights: A great rendition of Smoke on the Water, and an absolutely enchanting arrangement of Adele's Skyfall. Unfortunately, the cavernous echo of the room drowns it out a bit, especially when a Brazilian tour group is allowed to blow rape whistles in the lobby over a period of about 15 minutes to round up the herd for the day's touring. Yup.
Ultimately, the hotel was clean, provided a comfortable bed, functional in-room air conditioning, and the staff was all friendly and very well trained, so I can't knock it too much. But be warned, it isn't want the discerning guest might expect. It was fine, and that's it. I wouldn't stay here again. Given this hotel shares a lobby with it's "five-star" sister the Grandior hotel run by the same hotel conglomerate, I wouldn't recommend that one, either.