Prague travel guide

Why go

A hundred spires, one castle the size of a small town, and a river crossed by the most beautiful bridge in Europe — Prague barely needs an introduction. Walk Charles Bridge before the city wakes, lose an afternoon in Malá Strana's lanes, and finish under the chestnuts of a beer garden with a Pilsner poured the slow, proper way.

Ideal stay: 3–4 nights
The vibe: Gothic, golden, cheerfully beery

From our guides

Prague is a fairytale that happens to be a functioning city: a castle on the hill, an astronomical clock that performs on the hour and Charles Bridge's parade of statues, buskers and caricaturists. The mirror maze on Petřín hill — reached by funicular — is a guaranteed hit, and pedalos on the Vltava give everyone a rest that doesn't feel like one. Prices stay kind by capital standards. Walk the bridge before nine, when it still belongs to you.

Featured in Ten of Europe's most romantic city breaks and Ten cosy winter city breaks for two and Ten budget party cities where your money goes further and Ten easy city breaks that work with kids in tow

Things to do

Charles Bridge at dawn

Beat the crowds onto the 14th-century stone bridge as mist lifts off the Vltava and its thirty baroque saints emerge in silhouette against the castle.
Prague Castle & Golden Lane

Wander the world's largest ancient castle complex, from the soaring Gothic nave of St Vitus Cathedral to the doll-sized painted cottages of Golden Lane.
The Astronomical Clock

Join the hourly gathering in Old Town Square as the 15th-century Orloj sends its apostles parading and a gilded skeleton tolls the passing of time.
Climb Petřín hill

Ascend through orchards and rose gardens to the miniature Eiffel Tower for the definitive panorama of Prague's hundred spires.
The Jewish Quarter

Trace a thousand years of history through Josefov's synagogues and the haunting, layered tumble of headstones in the Old Jewish Cemetery.
Beer gardens & pivnice

Sink a perfectly poured Pilsner under the trees of Letná as the sun drops over the river's bridges, or squeeze onto a bench in a centuries-old beer hall.

Getting there

Fly to
Prague (PRG)

Nearest airport to Prague, about 12km away as the crow flies.
Then
To Prague

About thirty to forty-five minutes from Václav Havel airport (PRG) into the centre by airport bus and metro, or a similar time by taxi.
On the ground
Getting around

The Old Town, Malá Strana and the castle are all walkable, with trams filling the gaps; tram 22 up to the castle is the classic shortcut.

Public transport: Excellent and cheap. Three metro lines, a dense tram network including night trams, and one ticket for the lot.

From the airport

There's no metro to the airport yet — take trolleybus 59 to Nádraží Veleslavín and change to Metro A (a standard 50 CZK ticket covers both), or the Airport Express straight to the main station:

Trolleybus 59 + Metro A~15 min to Veleslavín, then metro · 50 CZK through-ticket
Airport Express (AE)Direct to the main station · ~40 min · special fare

Metro, trams & tickets

Three metro lines and one of Europe's densest tram networks — the 22 tram past the castle is a sightseeing trip in itself. Tickets are timed (39/50 CZK) with 24 and 72-hour passes:

DPP metro, trams & buses30-min ticket 39 CZK · 90-min 50 CZK
24h / 72h passes150 CZK / 350 CZK across the whole network
PID Lítačka appOfficial mobile tickets & journey planner

Taxis & ride-hailing

Skip street hails — the apps give honest upfront prices. Liftago is the homegrown favourite that puts licensed local taxis in an Uber-style app:

BoltEconomy to Premium, plus e-scooters
Uber24/7 · UberX, XL and Uber Taxi
LiftagoCzech app for licensed taxis · card or cash

Car hire — for Bohemia

The city is walkable and trammed to the hilt, but Karlovy Vary, Český Krumlov and the Bohemian countryside are glorious road trips. Compare every operator:

Compare car hire prices

River cruises & heritage trams

See the bridges from water level on a Vltava cruise, or ride the polished-wood 1930s trams of heritage line 42 past the castle and the National Theatre:

Prague BoatsOne-hour & evening cruises from Dvořák Embankment
Historic tram line 42Vintage cars · day ticket 450 CZK

Flights

Los Angeles Prague, Czechia

Flying from

Fly from anywhere — search 4,000+ airports worldwide.

Roughly 12h in the air from Los Angeles (LAX), estimated from the distance — check for a direct route. Pick a month to see every available flight with live prices — Václav Havel Airport (PRG) is about 17km west of the centre, with nonstop London flights on British Airways, easyJet and Ryanair taking around two hours.

Check dates and prices

Pick your departure date, then your return.

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One of Europe's best-served short-haul routes, from all main London airports. Prices open on Google Flights.

When to go

Daytime highs run from about 5°C in January to 25°C in July. Wettest in June, with rain on about 14 days.

The year at a glance — pick a month for detail

March11° · rain 8 daysCold with rain most weeks.

Monthly figures averaged from daily records for 2020–2024 at this location (ERA5 reanalysis).

Where to stay

Apartments and small hotels in converted historic buildings, plus international chains outside the core. Old Town rooms can be tiny and lift-free; suburban flats are far roomier.

Best base overall
Staré Město

The Old Town, minutes from Charles Bridge and the astronomical clock, which matters when you want the bridge at six in the morning. Prices are high and stag groups are a fixture.
Find stays in Staré Město
Best for couples
Malá Strana

Below the castle, all silent courtyards and baroque palaces, quieter than across the river. Fewer everyday restaurants and a steep walk up to the castle gates.
Find stays in Malá Strana
Best with children
Vinohrady

A leafy residential quarter with parks, apartments with kitchens and trams straight into the centre. Genuinely calm at night, and a fifteen-minute ride from the sights.
Find stays in Vinohrady
Best for nightlife
Žižkov

The pub district next door, with more bars per street than anywhere and rates below the centre. Scruffy, hilly and cheerfully loud, which is either the appeal or the problem.
Find stays in Žižkov

Worth knowing before you book: The Christmas markets and New Year fill the centre and rates roughly double. Check for a lift and street-facing windows, as Old Town noise runs until dawn at weekends.

Our picks in this destination

Budget

Sir Toby's Hostel

Holešovice · hostel

Holešovice's vintage-furnished stalwart, beloved for its brick-cellar pub, beer tastings and staff who dispense better tips than most guidebooks.

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Mid-range

Hotel Anna

Vinohrady · 3★

A cheerfully old-fashioned Vinohrady townhouse near Náměstí Míru, delivering leafy-avenue calm and metro convenience at prices that feel a decade out of date.

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Boutique

Golden Well Hotel

Malá Strana · boutique

A Renaissance palace pressed against the castle ramparts, its lauded Terasa U Zlaté studně restaurant gazing across a sea of terracotta rooftops.

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Boutique

Hotel Josef

Old Town · design boutique

Eva Jiřičná's glass-and-steel manifesto of 2002 — Prague's first Design Hotel — where a crystalline spiral staircase and a daily in-house bakery sharpen the Old Town's edges.

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Boutique

Mosaic House Design Hotel

New Town · 4★

A 1935 functionalist building reborn as a sustainability-minded design hotel, its penthouses opening onto roof terraces with a grand sweep of Prague Castle.

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Boutique

Hotel Pod Věží

By Charles Bridge · 4★

Two historic houses at the very foot of the Lesser Town bridge tower, so close to Charles Bridge that the morning swifts arrive before the crowds do.

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Luxury

Mandarin Oriental, Prague

Malá Strana · 5★

A former Dominican monastery on Malá Strana's quietest cobbles, where vaulted ceilings and a spa set in a Renaissance chapel lend contemplative glamour beneath the castle.

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Luxury

Hotel Paris Prague

Old Town · 5★

A family-owned Art Nouveau jewel of 1904 beside the Municipal House, its 86 rooms and 1930s-style café polished by three generations of the same proprietors.

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Luxury

Alchymist Grand Hotel & Spa

Malá Strana · 5★

Forty-six theatrically baroque rooms in a landmark palace below the castle, with a prosecco breakfast and a spa tucked into sixteenth-century Gothic vaults.

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Or search everything else in Prague by budget. These are indicative budget bands in GBP per night for two people, not live quotes or guarantees of hotel type. Check your dates, guests, taxes and final price on Booking.com.

Or see everything in Prague

Good to know

Getting there: The airport links to the centre by bus and metro; there is no rail link. Trains from Berlin, Vienna and Dresden are comfortable and scenic.
Cash or card: Czechia uses the koruna, not the euro. Avoid street exchange booths and decline the currency conversion offered by card terminals.
Etiquette: In traditional pubs you share tables, keep a tab on a slip of paper, and say na zdraví while making eye contact.
Crowds: The Old Town Square, Charles Bridge and the castle are busiest between ten and four. Reverse your day and the city changes.
With kids: Trams double as sightseeing, the funicular and mirror maze are reliable wins, and pedalos on the Vltava buy everyone an hour off their feet.