Vítáme Vás v České republice! = Welcome in Czech Republic!
I am glad to tell you some words about Czech Republic, located in the heart of Europe. The country to which I have personal relation because my father is Czech. In my childhood, I spent part of every summer holiday at my Czech grandparents. On top to that last year I had a great adventure to live and study for 6 months in Prague through Erasmus student exchange program. I’m proud to be half Czech and the city became second home to me easily.
People often have a misconception of Czech Republic of being Eastern European country despite it is placed in Central European Time zone and in many ways very western like. From my experience, it’s more like a crossing point of Slavic and among strongest – German cultures. Actually, Czech Republic itself is composed of western part – Bohemia with capital Prague and eastern part of the Republic called Moravia with the biggest city of Brno situated some 130 km north Vienna, Austrian capital. Very old history is reflected in astonishing sights including hundreds of castles and rich cultural heritage. Czech people have specific sense of humor. One could say is well represented by figure of “The good soldier Švejk“, or pictured in an absurd atmosphere by Franz Kafka novels. In the world of classic music, there are well-known names like Antonín Dvořák, Bedřich Smetana, Leoš Janáček and many others. Let me mention some contemporary famous Czechs, for instance, ice hockey player Jaromír Jágr, or movie director Milos Forman, both well known in across the globe.
Prague is one of the cities, where AirBnB apartments are cheaper than hotels. Especially if you are traveling in a group, staying at AirBnB is better. I recently checked prices and they can be as low as 9 euros/person per night if 4 people are renting one apartment. If you compare price with hostel prices, it comes out cheaper or almost same as hostel stay. Since food is commonly cheap in Czech Republic, receiving buffet breakfast at hotel or hostel doesn’t really bring much value. Rent your apartment preferably in Prague 2, Prague 3, Prague 7 districts. These districts have all that you need: many bars and venues, good price/value restaurants, galleries ect.
Picture was taken from my beloved 11-floor Jarov 3F Student dormitory
Other great choice is Jarov 3F student dormitory where all the exchange students of University of Economics Prague live. I lived there for half year too. From Jarov 3F it takes only 15 minutes by tram to main square “Wenceslas Square”. With a student card you can get discount for a short-term stay, price for one night/person is 8.5-11e/person. The room has kitchen and toilet with shower. As an additional bonus, if you stay there during school semester you can potentially join party of Erasmus students: just go through the floors and join any room with loud music. Man, I miss those..!
WHAT SHOULD I SEE IN PRAGUE AND HOW TO AVOID TOURIST TRAPS?
Be nice, Mr. Kafka is watching you.
Traveling to Czech Republic is popular also because of affordable price level and easy to reach from surrounding countries. Prague is safe, but just like in other big capitals, central area is full of tourist traps. There are currency exchange places with ridiculously bad rates, overpriced (measured on Czech price level) restaurants, controversial Segway tours (nowadays getting prohibited), fraudulent taxi drivers, claimed “traditional” Czech dessert ”trdlo”, which also means dumb person in Czech language ect. The first mistake that you may do is to take a taxi from airport to the city center, probability of being ripped off is close to 100%. Instead of that, you can buy public transport ticket at the airport and bus + metro combination will take you to the city in roughly 40 minutes.
Most of the tourist traps are in Old Town of Prague, which begins at Wenceslas square. There are many money exchange points with bad rates or some will even try to hustle you by giving wrong currency. Here Link to Google Maps is one trusted currency exchange point, where I previously exchanged my money – they tend to have best rates in town. Before handing out money, always remember to ask how many CZK (Czech Koruna) you will receive; today 1.2.2018 (1 EUR =25.2640CZK).
As I mentioned before, there are overpriced Segway tours. Forget about those, you’re young and full of energy, plus Prague center isn’t really that big. Another tourist trap is Trdelnik, overpriced piece of dough topped with sugar and walnuts. Instead of Trdelnik I highly recommend you to try “Větrník” pastry sold in “Libereské Lahůdky” or have a piece of delicious cake at “Ovocny Svetozor”. Both places are cheap and they are located close to Wenceslas square.
Public transport works very well in Prague and it’s cheap too: 90-minute ticket (32 CZK), 72-hour ticket for (310 CZK), check rest of fares here. DPP Journey planner is a very useful page for getting around. Beware of pickpockets while commuting on public transport. Avoid taking taxis, since they tend to rip-off foreigners often. If you really have a need for a taxi, use Uber.
Old Town of Prague is packed with tourists no matter the season since it’s simply beautiful. Prague survived with fewer wounds at WW2 and majority of architecture around survived as the original. When walking through Old Town you feel like going back to medieval times. Main tourist attractions there are Prague Castle with St. Vitus Cathedral and The Little Quarter with Charles Bridge, Old Town Square, National Theatre, Municipal House Hall, etc. You will find plenty of information about these places on this official website funded by the city of Prague.
However, If you’re staying in Prague for longer I would also recommend to check out National Technical Museum, Letna Park, DOX Centre of Contemporary art, MeetFactory, National Gallery (Veletrzni Palac). National Technical Museum has a great collection of old automobiles, airplanes, and other technical stuff; check it out if you’re into that. Letná Park is located next to Vltava river and it has amazing view to the whole city, especially Metronome is the perfect place to chill, have a drink or smoke and check out the local skaters. Come there in evening to see the sunset, it’s marvelous.
DOX Gallery is an art hub with temporary exhibitions, a library, design store & a cafe with an outdoor terrace. First time I was there at very powerful “Soul of Money” exhibition. MeetFactory is a non-profit international center for contemporary art founded by famous Czech artist David Černý. There are plenty of his ridiculous sculptures and installations around Prague including Franz Kafka’s rotating head Whether you’re into Beatles or not, go scribble your name on Lennon Wall located Malá Strana district. Did you guys didn’t know, that Prague too has an Eiffel Tower? Climb up to Petřín Lookout Tower to see most breathtaking view and after have a beer at Petřínské terasy.
Hot summer night concert at Letna Park
WHERE TO EAT CZECH FOOD?
In order to find a place with decent price level for food, you should go few blocks away from Old Town, although even there can be few good places too; for example “Kolkovna Savarin”. A good indicator for overpriced restaurant aimed for tourist is when prices are in euros.
Here is a few traditional Czech dishes that you should try, they’re heavy and delicious!
Dishes
– Roasted duck with red cabbage and dumplings = Pečená kachna, červené zelí a knedlíky
– Roasted Pork with Dumplings and Sauerkraut = Vepřo, knedlo, zelo
– Beef sirloin in cream sauce = Svíčková na smetaně
– Roasted pork knee = Pečené vepřové koleno
– Beef goulash/pork goulash = Hovězí guláš/Vepřový guláš
– Fried cheese with tartar sauce = Smažený sýr a tatarská omáčka
Desserts/Quick snacks
– Profiterole aka Větrníky
– Kremrole
– Pancakes with ice-cream = Zmrzlinové palačinky
– Open-faced sandwiches = Obložené chlebíčky
Beef Goulash with Traditional Czech Dumplings
Větrník from Libeřské Lahůdky aka. 160 grams of happiness for 1 €
Preferably eat lunch around 12 o’clock, so you’ll arrive at the restaurant when they offer a daily menu = Denní menu. There you can choose from 2 or 3 type of meals and you’ll be served quickly. The price of daily menu varies between 3.5-6 euros/meal. Usually, some kind of soup = polévka is included. Few examples of good price/quality restaurants which serve Czech Cusine: Kozlovna Lidicka, V Cipu, Krčma, Restaurace Pod Vyšehradem, Restaurace U Parlamentu, Pivnice U Rotundy, Restaurace U Houdků. Impolite service in restaurants of Prague is a common issue, so don’t be surprised if the waiter is rude. They have low salaries and roughly half of their income comes from tips. In some places there may the language barrier may be higher, so it is wise to learn a few words in Czech or have a Google translator on your hands. Remember to leave a tip for the waiter, of course based on service you received. Read more about tipping etiquette in the Czech Republic here.
Don’t worry, there are plenty of vegetarian restaurants too! I highly recommend Dhaba Beas vegetarian buffet chain, where you pay only 21,90 CZK/100g for the food of your picking. If you prefer to eat more, go to Indian by Nature restaurant where lunch buffet (11 AM – 15 PM) costs only 119 CZK.
WHERE TO HAVE A BEER IN PRAGUE?
As Czech Republic is famous for a beer, you should have few glasses before you leave. My personal favourites are Krušovice, Velkopopovický Kozel, Budejovický Budvar, Holba and Svijany. There are less bars that offer broad variety of beers. So if you want to try selection of tap beers you either need to visit Pivovarsky klub, Zlý časy or Prague Beer Museum. Other way is just go on pubcrawl and have one in each place, not a bad choice either. Prices for beer in Prague varies in regular bars varies between 1-2.5 euros/half liter glass. One of the touristiest pubs in Prague is U Fleků, it has been serving finest beer for 5 centuries. Beer is made locally in their brewery in small batches and it’s surely the best you have had in your life.
There are plenty of pubs and bars in Žižkov area – perfect for pubcrawl. Pick literally any place there and for nickels you’ll get a glass of premium beer. Personally, my favorite place to have a beer is Hospůdka na Hradbách located at Vyšehrad fortress with a nice view. After a night out have a bottle of Mattoni or Magnesia, they are worldwide known mineral waters coming from Czech Spa town Karlovy Vary = Carlsbad. These mineral waters have been used for two centuries for healing various health problems. Don’t forget to try Kofola, which is a czech alternative for Coca-Cola, some people love it – some people hate it.
LAST BUT NOT LEAST… WHERE TO GO OUT IN PRAGUE?
Strong pre-game with B52 flame shots
As a former Erasmus student, I’ve been to many venues in this city. Prague nightlife has a lot to offer if you know right places where to go. Most of pre-parties we had at student dorms, drinking beer or liquor, purchased from the supermarket. In supermarkets, beer is usually cheaper than water. Good bars for pre-gaming are PopoCafePetl (5 Popo’s in Prague, cheap place with mix of Czech and Foreign people), The Pub (Self-service beer taps at each table) and U Sudu, all of them located close to the clubs and have cheap prices. We went out often on Dlouhá street to Roxy (warehouse vibe specializing in some of the harder forms of dance music), Harley’s (Rock music and American biker-themed bar & club) and James Dean (1950s diner style place). We had great nights in Chapeau Rouge (bar, nightclub & live music venue spread over 3 floors with a lineup of international acts.) and Lucerna (Concert venue, which has the 80s and 90s video party every Saturday). The clubs where we went out mostly crowded with foreigners. You’ll see plenty of drunken bachelor or bachelorette parties; many loud groups Brits, Germans, Australians, Americans; Club promoters and drug dealers and in the streets of Old Town; 18 years old youngsters being drunk for the first time etc. Don’t mind these, since you’ll have tons of fun anyway!
“Cross club” – Steampunk style with unique vibe
If you are looking for place with local crowd go to Retro Music Hall (Mainstream house/dance music), Radost FX (Crowded on Thursday, Hip-Hop/House music, Rihanna’s “Please Don’t Stop The Music” was music video was filmed here), Palác Akropolis (Centre of independent culture offering unique music, theatre and art projects.) or Vagon Klub (Cheap, shabby looking place with rock music). If you’re looking for more underground type of club, go to Cross Club (Steampunk themed club with 3 floors, definitely worth checking out) or Terminal B.
DON’T JUST WAIT THERE, ACT!
If you haven’t yet been in Prague, definitely plan your next trip there and make sure that you’ll have enough time to do all the fun stuff. Trust me, after discovering this magical place it will be hard for you something more attractive.
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