The Bohemian gem of Eastern Europe, the centuries-old buildings, the quirky art, the tasty beer…these are solely a few of the explanations Prague makes such a good vacation spot for travelers. With a lot to see and do, you could spend your entire journey exploring Prague, however many individuals select to spend a few days there together with visiting different cities in Eastern or Central Europe. This Prague itinerary will present you what to do in Prague in three days, and even four or 5 days.
Table of Contents
- Day 1 – Explore Prague Old Town
- Day 2 – Food tour
- Day three – Castle Hill
- When to Go
- Where to stay
- Getting Around
- Getting There and Away
- Do you have four and even 5 days for Prague?
- Planning and Inspiration
Day 1 – Explore Prague Old Town
The center of Prague is Old Town Square (Staromestska namesti). Start your Prague journey here. This the place you discover the iconic image of the metropolis of the spiky topped Church of Our Lady of St Tyn throughout from the Astronomical Tower.
In late November and December, the sq. is filled with a festive Christmas Market, making it a good choice for a winter metropolis break in Europe, or you’ll discover an Easter Market inside the spring.
The remainder of the year it’s simply filled with people and a handful of meals stalls, however it’s nonetheless gorgeous and enjoyable.
Try to disregard the throngs of vacationers and the hawkers trying promote everything under the solar or that there’s a Starbucks on the square.
Look on the metropolis as a middle of tradition and science with a well preserved skyline of spiky towers, medieval cathedrals, and Victorian age buildings. You can take an elevator to the highest of Town Hall tower, however save that for tomorrow.
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From the square, you can get to all of the big sights in Old Town. Wenceslas Square is a gigantic lengthy sq. lined with retailers that you can discover nearly anywhere in Europe, capped with the National Museum.
This is the middle level of a lot of the revolutionary historical past of the city. The Velvet Revolution started here.
Josevov is the Jewish district inside the old metropolis of Prague. There is a cemetery and the Old New Synagogue as well as to a museum.
You can stroll it by yourself or book a guided tour.
Walking and wandering throughout the old metropolis space is a lot of fun. There are a lot of little winding streets and tiny hidden squares to find.
As talked about inside the “where to stay” part below, Prague’s center has embraced commerce and tourism completely, so be conscious of that. Hopefully the brand new law banning Segways will help.
Take a Prague Beer tour
Czech beer is a wonderful factor and is very steeped inside the historical past of the place. We took a Prague craft beer tour, and it actually was the spotlight of the trip.
And the higher half is that it begins at 5pm, so it gives you almost the entire day to go sightseeing and know that there’s beer in your future. There is sufficient meals on the tour to not be too drunk and never have to fret about dinner.
One of our favourite meals tour companies, Eating Europe, additionally started a craft beer tour in Prague recently. We haven’t taken it, however we’ve loved each tour we’ve taken with them, together with their Prague meals tour, so I would recommend giving it a try if the one linked above doesn’t work for you. Check out Eating Europe’s beer tour here.
Day 2 – Experience Czech food
In almost each metropolis we visit, we book a meals tour. Food excursions give you a glance on the meals and a list of locations to try proper off the bat.
It additionally gives you a little bit of the historical past as well. Check out our review of the Eating Prague meals tour here.
The Prague meals tour included sweets like native gingerbread and apple strudel. We additionally tasted a conventional Bohemian sauerkraut soup, which I’m surprised to say I fairly enjoyed.
Other scrumptious meals we ate on the tour included native ham and salami, open-faced sandwiches, pork belly, and braised beef with Czech dumplings. It was an interesting introduction to a delicacies we knew little about.
The meals tour we did started at 12:30, so gives you a whereas to see issues inside the morning. The meals tour runs till late afternoon, so that you have time after it to do a few extra things.
You will probably need a light dinner anyway and strolling off the meals can be good.
After the meals tour
The Old Town Hall Tower is open from 11am till 10pm, so makes a good cease after the tour. And it has an elevator, so no worries about strolling steps on a full belly.
See extra particulars on our post about towers in Prague to climb.
Day three – Castle Hill
Crossing the River on Charles Bridge
The typical approach to Castle Hill is a lengthy upward sloping road lined with vacationer shops to the cathedral-crowned, fortified hill of Prague Castle. To get there from old town, cross Charles Bridge and make your way upwards.
Charles Bridge is a pedestrian-only bridge that crosses the Vltava River. The spiked towers on both side were used as fashions to rebuild a quantity of of the opposite towers on the metropolis throughout the Victorian era.
This is definitely a worthwhile place to see in Prague, so go for a stroll. Just be conscious that inside the excessive season it will be fairly crowded.
Even at dawn (5am in June), we weren’t alone on the bridge, although there have been far fewer people that early, and it was a a lot nicer experience. There are usually peddlers of artwork and musicians throughout the day.
Castle Hill and Beyond
Prague Castle is a fortified hill with a quantity of various issues to take in. This is a should for your Prague itinerary.
You do have to pay to get onto the premises, however the ticket lasts for 2 days. Buy castle tickets and excursions here.
Highlights of the hill include St Vitus Cathedral, whose towers dominate the skyline of the hill. You can additionally climb one of many towers.
There are additionally a quantity of exhibits about the historical past of the castle, and the palace buildings. A row of old low homes called the Golden Row as soon as housed the city’s well-known author son, Franz Kafka.
Other issues on this side of the river
There are different interesting issues on this side of the river as well. Just north of the finish of the Charles Bridge inside the courtyard of the Kafka Center are a pair of bronze statues peeing proper into a pool inside the form of the Czech Republic.
The statues were made by David Cerny, one of Prague’s most well-known artists. If you see one factor odd round town, he probably made it. Check out extra weird sculptures by David Cerny to incorporate in your Prague itinerary.
Just south of the finish of the bridge is an space worth a wander. The Lenin wall is there as well as to a few of the higher views of the bridge itself.
Petrin hill is the hill you see throughout from the tower with what looks like a mini Eiffel Tower. You can get to the highest of the hill with a funicular, however you’ll have to stroll up the steps if you need the view from the tower.
- Full-Day Prague Tour with Vltava River Cruise, Prague Castle and Lunch
- Alternative Prague Walking Tour
- Communism and Bunker Walking Tour in Prague
Have four or 5 days in Prague?
If you have greater than three days in Prague, right here are a few extra issues you are able to do to discover the city.
The ticket to the Castle Hill lasts for 2 consecutive days, so that you can discover it for a second day. It’s additionally worth exploring one of many different neighborhoods, like Prague 2, south of center, or Prague 3, east of center, if you have extra time inside the city.
Museums
Though primarily a metropolis known for big architectural sights, there are museums on the metropolis to undergo as well. Check the web sites if you are interested. Most of the museums are closed one day a week, usually Monday. A few are closed inside the winter.
- The City of Prague Museum shut to the Florenc Metro station has exhibits about the historical past of the city, with maps and fashions in some exhibits.
- The National Technical Museum has exhibits of science and technology and is north of old metropolis on the opposite side of the river.
- The Jewish Museum in Prague shows the lifetime of Czech Jews through the years.
- A Public Transport Museum is run by the general public transit firm in a single of their depots.
- The Mucha Museum is worth it if you simply like the artwork of Alphonse Mucha, however might be a bit costly for its size if you aren’t an artwork fan.
- The Anton Dvorak museum might be extra your speed if you are into classic music. This is a half of the National Museum complex of buildings. The main constructing is on Wenceslas Square.
Day Trips from Prague
There are so many good day journeys from Prague if you have a quantity of days inside the city. Here are a few of our favorites to consider including to your Prague itinerary.
Karlštejn Castle
The same Charles that constructed the Charles Bridge additionally constructed Karlštejn Castle out inside the countryside, and it’s inside day journey distance.
There are common trains from Prague to the station at Karlštejn and take forty five minutes. Then Google says a 30 minute walk, although it’s steep, from there to the fantastic looking castle.
Kutna Hora
The metropolis of Kutna Hora is UNESCO listed for 2 churches. The extra well marketed of the 2 is an Ossuary, with rooms constructed from human bone.
Hourly trains run the 50 minutes to the town, which has greater than solely a bone church. The medieval old metropolis has the Gothic St Barbara’s cathedral and the previous Royal Mint named the “Italian Court.”
Kutna Hora is doable by yourself if you want, however there are some guided tours if you need the logistics taken care of and a information for some information.
Cesky Krumlov
This charming medieval metropolis of Cesky Krumlov is a UNESCO World Heritage site with an spectacular castle dating again to 1240. You’ll enjoy wandering through the streets and alleys of the old town.
The metropolis is a bit farther – about three hours from Prague by train – and might be higher as an in a single day trip. But if you don’t have sufficient time for that, it’s nonetheless completely worth it as a day journey from Prague if you get an early begin to your day.
If you don’t need to deal with logistics in your own, consider taking this guided day tour.
When to Go
Summer is the excessive season. This is when you’ll see the most vacationers (and stag parties) and expertise the best (if hot) weather.
Spring and autumn can be good times to visit. The climate will be milder, and there’ll be fewer vacationers than inside the summertime.
Winter can be very chilly and blustery. Snow is apparently rare, however not unheard of. The wind although can be brutal.
On the up side, there are Christmas markets in a variety of squares and a lot fewer people around. Prague is a big metropolis and doesn’t ever shut its doors.
Where to Stay in Prague
Prague numbers its districts, with Prague 1 being the old town. Prague 5, 6, and seven are throughout the river from the old town. Even nonetheless there are many issues out from the middle to see.
There is good transport inside the metropolis with three subway lines and a set of trams. That said, there are no transport lines going through the main square.
The bulk of vacationer actions are inside the center, however this additionally means most of the eating locations and such are oriented at vacationers as well. Again, that is why it’s such a good idea to take a meals tour early in your journey to learn how to define higher food.
Prague has taken to being a vacationer vacation spot and the middle shows this. The center can be loud with many bars.
The main avenues of foot traffic run from the Powder Tower through old metropolis sq. to the Charles Bridge (Korluv must) and from old metropolis sq. to Wenceslas Square.
There are loads of little winding streets inside the district as well. Look for side streets if you wish to remain on this district, however even nonetheless don’t assume it will be quiet inside the summer.
The space round Namesti Republiky/Powder could be a greater choice with a Metro cease if you plan to do a lot of issues past simply the old center.
Look for hotels past Prague center
Prague three extends north east of the main station. This space is called Vinorhady and is much less of a vacationer destination, whereas nonetheless having loads of restaurants.
The main artery is Vinorhadska road, which additionally mirrors the metro line. Definitely search for a spot not removed from the metro or one of many tram lines so that you can get round easily.
Prague 2 extends south from the old town. Again a much less tourist-ed, however nonetheless lively, a half of town. There is a metro line and a quantity of tram lines into the center.
If you’re looking for a hostel outside the center, Andy stayed on the Czech Inn a few years in the past and liked it. It is a mixture of hostel and hotel.
There aren’t a lot of eating locations around, however it’s proper at a tram stop. The place was clear and felt extra upscale than a regular “dirty cheap hostel.”
Getting Around Prague
Transport in Prague is actually good. There are subways and trams, each served by the identical set of tickets and sold by time.
You can purchase a 30 minute ticket, roughly similar to a “single ride” ticket, as a lot as a 24 hour ticket and a quantity of ranges in between.
There are machines inside the Metro stations to purchase tickets, however they take solely coins. Hit up a tobacco store to purchase issues with bills.
Just remember to stamp the ticket in a single of many yellow machines earlier than you use it for the primary time.
A 24 hour ticket prices 110 Kc (at time of writing) and is a good deal if you are moving throughout the city. It means you can hop on and off transport with out worrying about tickets for that day.
It is additionally actually 24 hours from the second you stamp it, not simply that calendar day. So a ticket purchased at midday one day will nonetheless be good inside the morning the subsequent day.
Find extra info on the Public transport website.
Getting to Prague
Prague’s airport is well connected to different parts of Europe and the remainder of the world. Chances are you can discover a flight out of your home airport, even when you have to make a connection somewhere.
Long distance train connections are fairly good to the remainder of Europe. Berlin to Prague is about 4.5 hours, and Vienna to Prague is four hours.
There are additionally bus choices that may be fairly cheap. It’s always best to compare choices to discover the one which most closely fits your budget, time frame, and luxury level.
Prague journey planning and inspiration
Hopefully our Prague itinerary and ideas for planning three days in Prague have been helpful. The following posts present extra in-depth particulars about Prague journey and excursions in Prague. And if you’re looking for a little inspiration, be certain to take a glance on the books and movies recommended below.
Read extra about touring in Prague:
- 5 Places to See Prague From Above
- City Break Spotlight: Prague
Prague tour reviews:
- Prague Craft Beer Tour
- Eating Prague Food Tour
- Search for extra Prague excursions here
Prague studying and guidebooks
- Lonely Planet Prague & the Czech Republic
- Franz Kafka: The Complete Stories
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