Prague
Czech Republic
Gothic spires, cheap beer, and a river running through it
Photo by Ouael Ben Salah on Unsplash
Photos by Radek Kozák, Hieu Vu Minh, Alexandra Tran and Florian Olivo on Unsplash
Best time to visit all of Czech Republic
May to June, September to October
Climate month by month
The next sixteen daysOpen-Meteo
Average high and low · °C
Rainfall · mm per month
Best months to visit This month · wettest 77mm in May
Where it is
50.08°N, 14.44°E Open in Google Maps
Things to do
A week easily- Cross Charles Bridge at sunrise before the crowds
- Tour Prague Castle and St Vitus Cathedral
- Drink in a proper Czech hospoda
- Walk up Petřín Hill for the view
- Visit the Jewish Quarter synagogues
- See the John Lennon Wall in Malá Strana
Prague travel tipsthe general rules
Currency budget Czech Republic
Good valueCzechia uses the koruna, not the euro — paying in euros anywhere gives you a terrible rate. Never use the exchange booths in the Old Town: many advertise a rate that only applies above absurd amounts. eXchange on Kaprova is the well-known honest one.
ATMs & cards
Use ČSOB, Komerční banka or Česká spořitelna machines. Absolutely avoid Euronet ATMs — they are everywhere in the centre and take 10%+ through conversion. Always decline the ATM’s conversion offer.
Avoid these
- Euronet
- any machine offering a "0% commission" exchange
Use these instead
- ČSOB
- Komerční banka
- Česká spořitelna
- Raiffeisenbank
Euronet is everywhere in the old town and is the single most expensive way to get korunas.
Wherever you are: if the machine offers to charge you in your home currency, decline. That is dynamic currency conversion and the rate is set by the ATM's operator, not your bank.
Safety all of Czech Republic
Very safeVery safe for violent crime. The main threats are financial: rigged exchange booths, taxi overcharging (use Bolt or Uber), and inflated bar bills in the Old Town. Pickpockets work Charles Bridge and tram 22.
Where to walk, and where to pay attention (7 areas)
Comfortable, including after dark
Worth more attention
- Wenceslas Square — at night, for strip-club touts and taxi overcharging
- Trams 22 and 9, worked by pickpockets between the castle and the centre
- Any exchange booth in the Old Town — the rates are a scam, and the good ones are on Kaprova
Our own assessment, not a sourced index.
Entry & visa Czech Republic visa rules
No visa needed
Freedom of movement — no time limit, and no visa. Bring a passport or national ID card.
Other passports
No visa neededup to 90 days
90 days within any 180-day period, counted across the whole Schengen area, not per country. ETIAS, a paid online authorisation, is being introduced for these passports — check the official link for whether it applies to your travel dates.
Visa required in advance€90 (Schengen short-stay visa)
A Schengen short-stay visa is applied for before travel, at the consulate of your main destination.
How to get it: Apply at the consulate or visa centre of the country you will spend most time in, typically 15 working days ahead and no more than six months before travel.
Entry rules change often and depend on your passport, not where you live — the official page above is the authority, and the airline checks before you board.
Health & emergencies all of Czech Republic
Excellent and cheapRequired to enter
No vaccinations are required for entry from Europe or North America.
Jabs worth having, and what happens if you need a doctor
Worth having
- Routine vaccinations up to date
- Tick-borne encephalitis if you plan to walk in forests between spring and autumn
Getting treated
EU/EEA and Swiss visitors are treated on the same terms as residents with an EHIC or GHIC card; UK visitors use a GHIC. Everyone else pays, and travel insurance is worth having for the repatriation cover rather than the treatment.
Orientation, not medical advice — entry rules change and what you need depends on your own history. Check with a travel clinic four to six weeks before you go.
Food tip
Very goodAvoid restaurants on Old Town Square entirely. A half litre of excellent Czech beer should cost 45-60 CZK in a normal pub, not 120. Try svíčková and goulash in a local hospoda.
Nightlife
The cheapest good beer in Europe and a stag-party reputation the locals have retreated from. Both are true; they happen in different streets.
- Žižkov — said to have the most pubs per head anywhere
- Vinohrady — a civilised night, and where locals moved to
- Holešovice — the clubs, including Cross Club
- Wenceslas Square — the strip clubs and the tourist traps
Closing: Pubs 23:00–01:00, clubs 05:00.
A beer in a bar: 40–70 CZK
Take the price list before you order in the Old Town, and refuse anything a tout hands you.
Getting around
Easy and cheap- UberWorks here
- BoltWorks here
- LiftagoWorks here
Liftago the local one, and drivers prefer it
- From the airport
- Prague airport to the centre 500–700 Kč
- Against a taxi
- Much cheaper, and the reason to use an app in Prague is as much about the meter as the price.
Time zone and your working day
Europe/Prague — 6 hours ahead of you
2 hours of overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are — 09:00–11:00 your time, 15:00–17:00 theirs.
No overlap with a 09:00–17:00 day where you are. Working from here means one of you keeps odd hours — their day starts at 03:00 on your clock.
office hours both at once night
Their 09:00–17:00 is 03:00–11:00 on yours.
The difference from the UK, Europe, the US and ten more
Worked out against America/New York, which is where this request looks like it came from.
Internet speedall of Czech Republic
What these numbers mean
Home broadband — Fair. Video calls and streaming for one or two people — fine for a holiday, thin for a household working. Broadband here runs at 73% of the global median of 130 Mbps.
Mobile data — Good. Maps, calls and streaming, and enough to tether a laptop for an afternoon. Mobile runs at 1.3× the global median of 109 Mbps.
A median is the middle of every connection tested there, old copper and new fibre together — so in a country part-way through laying fibre it sits well below what a fibre line actually delivers, and a rental on one can run several times this number. Half of the connections are slower; a fibre flat is rarely one of them. It says what a place can do, not what your rental does, so every listing on Holistay carries its own measured speed and the date it was tested.
Getting online: Airalo or Holafly — a data eSIM for Czech Republic, installed before you fly and working the moment you land.
Source: Ookla Speedtest Global Index · measured June 2026
Must-see
Nearby day trips
Say a few words
Czech
- HelloDobrý denDOH-bree den
- PleaseProsímPRO-seem
- Thank youDěkujiDYEH-koo-yi
- Yes / NoAno / NeAH-no / neh
4 more phrases
- Excuse mePromiňtePRO-min-teh
- How much is it?Kolik to stojí?KO-lik to STO-yee
- The bill, pleaseÚčet, prosímOO-chet
- Cheers!Na zdraví!na ZDRA-vee
Religion
No majority faith
Among the least religious countries in Europe. Churches are visited as architecture, and nobody will assume otherwise.
Do's and don'ts
Do
- Say dobrý den on entering a shop and na shledanou on leaving
- Let the beer settle — a proper Czech pour has a thick head and is not short measure
- Wait to be seated, and expect to share a table when it is busy
- Carry small notes; some pubs still dislike large ones
Don't
- Do not clink glasses across other people’s arms, and make eye contact when you toast
- Do not start drinking before everyone has toasted
- Do not be loud on public transport; the register is quiet
- Do not confuse Czech with Russian, or bring up the Soviet period casually
Where to stay in Prague
No Holistay rentals in Prague yet — the platform is just opening up. Every listing here will have a video tour and the option to negotiate the nightly price directly with the host.
In the meantime, here is Prague on the sites that do have the inventory — each search is already filled in:
- Booking.com hotels, guesthouses and apartments — the widest coverage almost everywhere
- Airbnb whole homes and apartments, and the better option for a week or more
How to get there
Fly into Václav Havel PRG
35 minfrom the airport· 13 km as the crow flies
Bus 119 to Nádraží Veleslavín, then metro A, 35 min.
Google Flights · Rome2Rio for the trains, buses and ferries as well as the flights
