LANGUAGE

Czech

CURRENCY

Czech Crown

BEST TIME TO VISIT

June to August

NEAREST RAILWAY STATION

Praha hlavní nádraží

NEAREST AIRPORT

Vaclav Havel Airport(PRG)

EMERGENCY HELPLINE NUMBER

112

INTERNET ACCESS

Prague is well wired. Wi-fi (pronounced vee-fee in Czech) is ubiquitous. Most hotels, including pensions and youth hostels, offer it free of charge to guests, though occasionally more expensive properties charge (or only offer free wi-fi in the lobby).

Many bars, cafes and restaurants offer free wi-fi (usually marked on the door with the international wi-fi sign).

Many hotels are dropping the practice of making a computer terminal available for guests, though some still do, including many hostels. Larger hotels will sometimes have a business centre for guests to use (often for a fee).

For those without a laptop, Prague has a few internet cafes scattered around town. Globe Bookstore & Café has a bank of computers for customer use. Relax Café-Bar is a conveniently located internet cafe.

VISA

Generally not needed for stays of up to 90 days.

Citizens of EU countries can freely enter the Czech Republic and are entitled to apply for visas to stay indefinitely.

Citizens of the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Israel, Japan and many other countries can stay in the Czech Republic for up to 90 days without a visa. Other nationalities should check current visa requirements with the Czech embassy in their home country. There’s more information on the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs (www.mzv.cz) website. The Czech Republic is a member of the EU’s common border and customs area, the Schengen Zone, which imposes its own 90-day visa-free travel limit on visitors from outside the EU. In practice, this means your time in the Czech Republic counts against your stay within the entire Schengen Zone – plan your travel accordingly.

HOTEL

Prague’s top tourist attractions and hotels reside within the city’s four central historic neighborhoods, commonly grouped and referred to as “Prague 1.” The Stare Mesto, or Old Town, sits inside a gentle curve of the Vltava River, surrounding the much smaller historic Jewish community called Josefov, an attraction itself. The Old Town is also home to major historic sites, including the Old Town Square, the Astronomical Clock at the Old Town Hall, the National Gallery, and several museums and landmarks. Surrounding this neighborhood to the east is Nove Mesto, or the New Town, which is within a reasonable walking distance from the Old Town sites and has several attractions of its own, including the statue of Franz Kafka, Wenceslas Square, and a small theater district.

On the west side of the river, Mala Strana (the Little Quarter) is popular for its convenient central location between the river and Prague Castle. The neighborhood has shopping, scenic green spaces like the Vrtba Garden, and several historic sites, including Charles Bridge and what is popularly known as the Castle District. The castle itself resides in the Hradcany & Letna neighborhood, which is quite hilly, providing some excellent views of the city’s iconic spires.

LUXURY

Four Seasons Hotel Prague

Aria Hotel Prague

Golden Well Hotel

MID-RANGE

Design Hotel Jewel Prague

Unitas Hotel

Appia Hotel Residences

BUDGET

Questenberk

Miss Sophie’s Hotel

B&B Hotel Prague City

COST OF LIVING

For a long time Prague had a reputation for being an amazing city that was also dirt cheap, but those days are over. It’s still an amazing city, as long as you don’t mind thick crowds almost everywhere, it’s just not really cheap anymore. Thanks partly to the rise in the value of the Czech currency in recent years, it’s now only slightly cheaper than Berlin, except for the excellent beer which continues to be a bargain. It used to be that hotels were the only things that were expensive, but at least prices for those haven’t gone up too dramatically. Hotels in Prague are usually jam-packed and at their most expensive from June through August, and generally high season lasts from April through October. The price of hotel rooms in the city varies drastically depending on neighborhood, so it’s important to see where a place is located before declaring it a bargain. During off season Prague hotels of 3 stars and above can become quite cheap. Hostels in Prague are always reasonably priced, and they stay about the same all year round at most places. Prague hotels can be found at decent prices outside of the main summer tourist season, and if you don’t mind staying a tram ride outside the city center then you can get good quality at a good price. Hostels in Prague are still a pretty good bargain, though the best ones fill up well in advance. Many of the better attractions in the city are free or very cheap, except for tours of the Prague Castle itself, so set aside some money for that must-do.

Food can still be found at bargain prices if you go for fast food or street carts, but if you go for a sit-down meal with an English menu then it’s not all that cheap. Beer, however, continues to be a relative bargain in spite of the high quality.