Prague

Why go

Prague looks like a city that history forgot to knock down. Its centre carried most of its Gothic, Baroque and Art Nouveau layers through the twentieth century, so a short walk takes you from the twin spires of Týn Church across a fourteenth-century bridge flanked by statues of saints and up to a cathedral that took nearly six centuries to finish.

At 6 a.m. a tram bell carries down an empty Malá Strana street. In a pub where nobody hurries you, a half-litre of tank Pilsner costs around 70 CZK, and a plate of svíčková, beef in a creamy, slightly sweet root-vegetable sauce, comes with bread dumplings to mop it up.

Prague is busier than ever, and the Old Town has its traps. Czechia still uses its own currency. Learn a few rules early: pay in crowns, buy your tram ticket in the app, and never change money at a "0% commission" booth.

The lay of the land

The Vltava runs through the middle of Prague. On the east bank sits Staré Město, the Old Town, with Old Town Square at its heart and Josefov, the old Jewish quarter, to its north. Wrapped around it is Nové Město, the New Town, laid out by Charles IV in 1348 around long squares such as Wenceslas Square, which climbs to the National Museum.

Across Charles Bridge, the west bank rises from Malá Strana, the Lesser Town of palaces and walled gardens, to Hradčany and the castle on its ridge. Petřín hill, with its funicular and lookout tower, rolls south from the castle, and the Strahov monastery sits at the top.

Further out are the districts where most Praguers live: Vinohrady and Žižkov to the east, Karlín along the river to the northeast, Holešovice and the Letná plain to the north, and the fortress rock of Vyšehrad to the south. Three metro lines, A, B and C, cross at Můstek, Muzeum and Florenc, and trams fill in everything else.

When to go

May and September are the best months for most visitors. Average highs are 20.9 °C in May and 20.4 °C in September at the Klementinum weather station, according to the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute's 1991–2020 normals. Evenings are long and the coach-tour peak has eased. The Prague Spring music festival opens every year on 12 May.

July and August are warm, with average highs around 26 °C, wetter than you might expect thanks to thunderstorms, and crowded. Charles Bridge at noon can feel like an airport queue. Prague Pride takes over the centre in early August (3 to 9 August in 2026).

Winter is cold and grey, and temperature inversions trap fog over the river. Between 28 November 2026 and 6 January 2027 the Christmas markets run on Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square, bringing mulled wine, crowds and higher hotel prices. January and February are the cheapest months, and the castle and museums are at their quietest.

What it costs

Czechia uses the Czech koruna (CZK), and on 12 October 2026 one US dollar bought about 21.8 crowns, based on European Central Bank reference rates. Some tourist businesses accept euros, usually at a poor rate, so pay in crowns or by card.

Prague is no longer cheap by Central European standards, but beer, transit and lunch remain good value. Crowd-sourced Numbeo data puts a half-litre of draught beer at about 69 CZK ($3), a cappuccino at about 80 CZK ($4) and a three-course dinner for two at a mid-range restaurant, without drinks, at about 1,100 CZK ($50). Weekday lunch menus (polední menu) in pubs and canteens are the locals' favourite saving, typically soup and a main for 200 to 250 CZK.

Transit is cheap if you buy it right: a 24-hour ticket costs 140 CZK in the PID Lítačka app or 150 CZK on paper. Sights add up faster. The Prague Castle main circuit costs 450 CZK, the Old Town Hall 450 CZK and the Jewish Town ticket 600 CZK. Beds are the big variable. Hostel dorms run about 400 to 700 CZK, and a solid three-star double about 2,000 to 2,500 CZK ($92 to $115), more in December and on summer weekends.

Getting there and around

Václav Havel Airport (PRG) lies on the western edge of the city. The cheapest route in is trolleybus 59 from outside the terminals to Nádraží Veleslavín, about 15 minutes, then metro line A into the centre; one 90-minute ticket covers the whole trip (46 CZK in the app, 50 CZK on paper). Bus 100 runs to Zličín on metro line B. The Airport Express (AE) goes direct to the main railway station in about 40 minutes, but it has its own fare, 200 CZK since January 2026, and regular tickets are not valid on it. The airport's official taxi service is Uber Airport, booked in the app or at counters in the arrivals halls, with the price fixed in advance; expect roughly 650 to 800 CZK to the centre.

Within the city, PID tickets cover the metro, trams, buses, ferries and city trains. App prices are lowest: 36 CZK for 30 minutes, 46 CZK for 90 minutes, 140 CZK for 24 hours and 340 CZK for 72 hours. Paper tickets from the yellow machines cost slightly more and must be stamped when you first board or enter the metro. Inspectors check often, and fines are steep.

Walk the centre, but expect cobbles and hills. The castle is easiest from the top: take tram 22 up to the Pražský hrad stop, then walk downhill through the castle and Malá Strana. Trams have right of way over pedestrians, even at crossings, and police fine jaywalkers in the centre.

Where to stay

First-timers should stay in Staré Město or Malá Strana to walk everywhere, but choose carefully. Streets around Old Town Square and Dlouhá fill with bar crowds and stag groups at weekends, so ask for a courtyard room. Malá Strana is calmer after dark and closest to the castle.

Vinohrady is the best all-rounder for a second visit, with Art Nouveau apartment blocks, wine bars, cafés and the Riegrovy sady beer garden, 10 to 15 minutes from the centre by tram or metro. Karlín, on metro line B, is a rebuilt riverside district with a strong restaurant scene. Žižkov is cheaper and rowdier, and Holešovice is good value and close to Letná park.

Nové Město is practical for transport and full of mid-range hotels, though the lower end of Wenceslas Square gets seedy late at night. Before booking an "Old Town" apartment, check what is on the ground floor; a bar or club below means a long night.

What to do

Begin at the castle early. The grounds open at 6:00 and are free. The ticketed buildings, St Vitus Cathedral, the Old Royal Palace, St George's Basilica and Golden Lane, open at 9:00 on a main-circuit ticket that costs 450 CZK and is valid for two days, with one entry per building. On Sundays the cathedral opens to visitors only at 12:00. Afterwards, walk down Nerudova into Malá Strana.

Cross Charles Bridge before 8 a.m. or after dark, when the statues and the Old Town Bridge Tower are yours. On Old Town Square, the Astronomical Clock's apostles appear on the hour from 8:00 to 23:00. The Old Town Hall's tower and interiors cost 450 CZK, and Prague City Tourism warns that tickets bought outside its own offices and the Colosseum ticket network may not be valid.

Nearby, in Josefov, the Jewish Museum's synagogues and the Old Jewish Cemetery are Prague's most affecting sight. The Pinkas Synagogue's walls carry the names of the Czech and Moravian Jews murdered in the Holocaust. The combined Jewish Town ticket costs 600 CZK, and everything closes on Saturdays and Jewish holidays.

For views, ride the funicular up Petřín or climb to Strahov, whose Baroque Theological Hall and Classicist Philosophical Hall hold about 200,000 volumes (open daily 9:00 to 17:00). Vyšehrad, the fortress rock to the south, has the cemetery where Dvořák and Smetana are buried and a fraction of the castle's visitors. On summer evenings, the Letná beer garden looks down the river over a run of bridges.

For a day trip, Kutná Hora is about an hour away by train: a UNESCO-listed silver town with St Barbara's Cathedral and the Sedlec Ossuary, a chapel decorated with human bones. Buy timed ossuary tickets (220 CZK) online in advance. Photography is banned. Karlštejn Castle, built for Charles IV, is 40 minutes by train plus an uphill walk, and closed on Mondays outside July and August. The Terezín memorial, at the former Theresienstadt ghetto, deserves a half-day of its own. Český Krumlov is too far for a comfortable day trip, so stay a night if you go.

Eat and drink

Svíčková, beef sirloin in a creamy root-vegetable sauce with bread dumplings, cranberries and whipped cream, is the Sunday classic. Lokál Dlouhááá in the Old Town serves it alongside carefully kept tank Pilsner. Vepřo knedlo zelo (roast pork, dumplings and sauerkraut), goulash and smažený sýr, fried cheese with tartare sauce, appear on almost every pub menu.

Beer culture has its rules. U Zlatého tygra on Husova, the writer Bohumil Hrabal's old local, opens at 15:00 and pours Pilsner to a crowd of regulars. At U Medvídků, whose history goes back to 1466, try the beer goulash or the beer onion soup. The waiter marks each round on a slip at your table, and a fresh glass arrives as yours empties unless you put a beer mat on top.

For coffee and cake, Café Louvre on Národní třída has been open since 1902. On Saturdays from 8:00 to 14:00, February to December, the Náplavka farmers' market lines the Rašínovo embankment with bakers, cheesemakers and street-food stalls. Chlebíčky, open sandwiches piled with ham, egg and potato salad, are the snack of choice at delis across the city.

Skip trdelník, the sugar-coated chimney cake sold all over the centre; it is a tourist-trade snack few Czechs eat. Tip around 10% in sit-down restaurants by telling the server the total you want to pay when the bill arrives, and round up in pubs. Check first whether a service charge has already been added. Lunch menus run on weekdays, from late morning to early afternoon.

Practicalities

Entry. Czechia is in the Schengen area, so visitors from the United States, United Kingdom, Canada and Australia get 90 days in any 180 without a visa. The EU's Entry/Exit System has been fully operational since 10 April 2026, replacing passport stamps with fingerprints and a photo. ETIAS was not running on 12 October 2026, and the EU has set no start date after dropping its earlier "last quarter of 2026" target. Hotels and hostels register foreign guests with the police automatically. If you stay privately, non-EU visitors must register within three working days, and fines run up to 3,000 CZK. Carry your passport, because police can ask for ID at any time.

Money and cards. Visa, Mastercard and phone payments are widely accepted in Prague, though some smaller businesses take only cash, according to the US State Department. Use ATMs inside banks and decline currency conversion.

Data, water, power. EU SIMs roam at home rates. A Czech tourist SIM with 10 to 20 GB costs roughly 300 to 600 CZK. Tap water is safe. Plugs are types C and E, at 230 V and 50 Hz.

Safety. Violent crime is low and pickpocketing is common. Gangs work tram 22 to the castle, the Malostranská, Můstek, Muzeum and Staroměstská metro stations and the main railway station, according to Global Affairs Canada. Watch for fake plain-clothes police who ask to see your cash, bars that inflate bills and drinks left unattended. The emergency number is 112.

LGBTQ+ and access. Prague is relaxed, with a large Pride week every August. Since January 2025, Czech law has offered same-sex couples a partnership with most of the rights of marriage, though not marriage itself. Cobbles, kerbs and steep lanes make Malá Strana and the castle hard going for wheelchairs and pushchairs; check the PID journey planner for step-free routes.

Phrases. Dobrý den (hello), děkuji (thank you), prosím (please, and "here you are"), na zdraví (cheers), účet, prosím (the bill, please).

What nobody tells you

The Astronomical Clock show is short, well under a minute, and the crowd beneath it at the top of the hour is the city's prime pickpocket zone. Watch it once, from the edge of the square.

Old Town Square's restaurant terraces charge premium prices for ordinary food. Walk five minutes in any direction and the same money buys a much better meal.

The exchange booths are the city's oldest con. A sign promising "0% commission" says nothing about the rate, which can be dreadful, and some booths display an attractive rate in large print that is not the one you will get. The Czech National Bank's three-hour cancellation right exists, so use it if a deal turns out badly.

Taxis are a gamble again since the fare caps ended on 30 September 2026. Use an app, or the official Uber Airport desk when you land.

Weekend nights in the Old Town are loud. Prague banned organised pub crawls between 22:00 and 6:00 in 2024, but stag groups still roam Dlouhá and the streets off Wenceslas Square. If you are a light sleeper, stay in Malá Strana or Vinohrady.

Midday on Charles Bridge in summer is a slow shuffle through crowds, caricaturists and selfie sticks. And the castle is a whole hilltop complex: allow half a day and wear proper shoes. St Vitus Cathedral is closed to sightseers on Sunday mornings.