About Prague
Prague is by right called the golden and hundred-spired queen among other European towns. It became a cradle of science, education, culture and art and it was rendered tribute by many personalities of global importance – W. A. Mozart, L. van Beethoven, G. Apollinaire, P. I. Tchaikovsky or F. M. Dostoyevsky.
Its beauty, wealth and cultural variety still appears in art but especially in intimate contact – when walking through the fabulous historical centre listed in the UNESCO World Heritage, when sightseeing the historical buildings built in many architectonic orders or in the romantic view to the Vltava valley crossed by magnificent arched bridges
Cultural activities
Prague is a peerless cultural city of the 3rd millennium that can satisfy even the most demanding visitors. Every day there are concerts of classical, popular and alternative music, traditional and experimental speech, opera and ballet shows, unique exhibitions and original festivals of both major and minor genres.
Photogalery
- Town area
496 square kilometres - Population
1,249,026
- Time zone
GMT + 1, summer central
European time: GMT + 2 - Altitude
235 m
- Mean annual temperature
9°C, in summer + 19°C, in winter – 1°C - Climate
mild with typical alternation of four seasons - Official language
Czech
Helpful hints
Health care & Safety
There are top and highly specialised sanitary facilities – public, private and church ones providing professional services to both Czech patients and foreign visitors.
IMPORTANT TELEPHONE NUMBERS
| 150 Fire-brigade |
158 Police of the Czech Republic |
| 155 Ambulance |
112 United European emergency number |
| 156 Metropolitan Police |
Accessibility
Prague keeps on trying to extend barrier-free accesses not only to restaurants, shops or cultural facilities but especially to transport network.
Barrier-free access to Metro
line A – the Dejvická, Muzeum, Strašnická, Skalka and Depo Hostivař stations line B – the Zličín, Stodůlky, Luka, Lužiny, Hůrka, Nové Butovice, Smíchovské nádraží, Vysočanská, Kolbenova, Hloubětín, Rajská zahrada and Černý Most stations line C – the Letňany, Prosek, Střížkov, Ládví, Kobylisy, Nádraží Holešovice, Vltavská, Florenc, Hlavní nádraží, Muzeum, Vyšehrad, Pankrác, Budějovická, Roztyly, Chodov, Opatov and Háje stationsBarrier-free buses
Transport around Prague is ensured by barrier-free lines 1 and 3 on weekdays, there are also lines no. 291 and 292 operating in the proximity of the hospitals on Karlovo náměstí and under Petřín.Accommodation
You can choose luxury class five-star hotel in the centre, romantic studio with charming view on Prague Castle or a quality hostel in pictorial Prague alleys. Prague offers variety of possible accommodations for both demanding tourists and large families with children
Restaurants
During the last twenty years Prague filtered among praised global culinary destinations that can offer not only its traditional cuisine but also dishes from prestige international scene.
Shopping
Prague provides attractive shopping possibilities from traditional Czech products – glass, jewellery, crystal or shoes – to prestige and well-known foreign brands. Many shops offer favourable tax free shopping.
Holidays
| 1st JAN | New Year's Day | 28th SEP | Czech Nationhood Day |
| 5th APR | Easter Monday |
28th OCT |
Day of Free Czechoslovakia Establishing |
| 1st MAY | May Day | 17th NOV | Day of Students' Fight for Freedom and Democracy |
| 8th MAY | Victory-in-Europe Day | 24th DEC | Christmas Eve |
| 5th JUL | Day of Slavonian Missionaries Constantine and Methodius | 25th DEC | Christmas Day |
| 6th JUL | Jan Hus Day | 26th DEC | Boxing Day |
Transportation
How to get to Prague
When travelling to Prague, you can choose the type of transport that suits you the best:
Airplane
Prague Ruzyně Airport (PRG) is located approx. twenty kilometres from the town centre. It provides services of three terminals – Terminal 1 serves for intercontinental flights, Terminal 2 stands for air services within the Schengen zone, Terminal 3 is used for special and private flights. The airport is connected to the town centre by regular bus lines (119, 100, 179, 510) and metro lines A and B. There are also taxicabs riding to the centre for the price of CZK 500 – 600 or microbuses.
Further information about the airport is available non-stop on telephone numbers +420 220 113 314 or +420 220 113 321.
Train and coach
You can get to Prague by comfortable international railway connection EC, IC and SC Pendolino or by regular international bus lines.
Transportation within the town
Metro
The Prague Metro comprises three lines – A, B and C.
The green A line heads from the “Depo Hostivař” station to the “Dejvická” station.
The yellow B line runs from the “Černý Most” station to the “Zličín” terminal depot. The red B line connects the “Háje” and “Letňany” stations.
The “Museum” station lies on lines A and C crossing, the “Můstek” station on lines A and B crossing and the “Florenc” station on lines B and C crossing.
Metro runs from 5 a.m. till midnight with day headways of 2 – 3 minutes, in off-peak hours with 4 – 10 minutes headways.
Trams
The trams connect the key skirts with the town centre.
Day trams are in operation from 4.30 a.m. till midnight, night traffic from midnight till half past four is provided by lines no. 51 – 59 with half-hour headways and “Lazarská” as the main interchange station. There is also a round tour of nostalgic tram no. 91 going through Prague.
Buses
Buses are another alternative to travel around Prague. Day lines are completed by lines no. 501 – 514 and 601 – 604 at night between 00.30 and 4.30 a.m.
Funicular
The funicular offers spectacular way to travel in the route Újezd – Nebozízek – Petřín. The funicular is in operation daily from 9 a.m. till half past eleven at night with 10 – 15 minutes headways.
Tickets
To travel in public transport vehicles you need a valid ticket properly marked in a marking device. Tickets can be bought in ticket vendors on number of bus and tram stops, in all metro stations, in newspaper kiosks, in Public Transit Company (Dopravní podnik) information centres or in hotels.
Basic tickets: valid for 75 – 90 minutes from the moment of their marking: CZK 26
Advantageous ticket for children age 6 – 15: CZK 13
With limited transfer: CZK 18. In buses and trams they are valid for 20 minutes from the moment of marking, in Metro for 5 stations or 30 minutes with possible transfer between lines A, B and C.
Advantageous tickets for children age 6 – 15: CZK 9
Time tickets are beneficial for active visitors to Prague:
24 hour ticket: CZK 100 / children CZK 50
3 days ticket (72 hours): CZK 330 + 1 child free of charge
5 days ticket (120 hours): CZK 550 + 1 child free of charge
Fine for travelling without a valid ticket is CZK 950; if the fine is paid immediately it amounts to CZK 700.
Taxi
Prague tries to provide fair services for fair prices. Quality transport guarantee is represented by professional services offered on Fair Place stands.
Top transport price within the town of Prague is CZK 28 per kilometre.
One-shot aboard price amounts to CZK 40.
Waiting time of a taxicab costs CZK 6 per minute.
To ensure high comfort of travelling it is recommended to follow these few rules:
1. Get on properly labelled vehicles only with roof lights and the “TAXI” lettering.
2. Get on vehicles labelled with evidence number, name of the company and basic price list.
3. Order taxicabs via non-stop dispatching.
4. Require properly filled payment document from the taximeter.
Rent-a-Car
You can hire all types of vehicles in Prague.
Car parking
Busy districts of Prague 1, 2, 3 and 7 work on the paid parking zones principle.
Orange zone: maximum time of parking is 2 hours, price CZK 40 / hour
Green zone: maximum time of parking is 6 hours, price CZK 30 / hour
Blue zone: long-term parking with a parking card for local inhabitants and companies with offices in these Prague districts
Good opportunity to park is provided by P + R car parks in connection to Metro. Parking garages, guarded car parks for passenger cars and buses and stop points where tourist buses can stop for up to 10 minutes are also available in Prague.