In this post I will be offering my opinion on the best things to do in Prague including; where to go, what to see, where to eat and where to stay…
Take a look at my video on YouTube showing what I got up to with my family so you can see for yourself what I am recommending in this post! :)
https://youtu.be/aXw1QEuQ_9s
THINGS TO DO IN PRAGUE:
Old Town square:
Like many European cities, Prague has an Old Town with a main square in it which is where lots of things go on! The Old Town square has lots of colour architecture, including an old Baroque church, Gothic houses and the infamous astronomical clock. However, the astronomical clock was under repair when we visited so we weren't able to see it due to it being covered in scaffolding! However this usually is a must see in Prague.
The town square is central to the city and has plenty of things going on including food stalls, restaurants and bus tour meeting points, so is always bustling!
Bus tour:
We did the hop on hop off bus tour of Prague (the City Sightseeing tour) as this is something we often do on city breaks! It was ideal in Prague due to it being a bit chilly... so it was always nice to know we could hop back onto a warm bus when we had finished sight seeing to get to the next destination. It's also just a great form of transportation (and cheap) to get around the city, because although some things are in walking distance of one another, others were a bit further out, so this was handy! All of the things to do listed below were stop off points on the tour route :)
https://city-sightseeing.com/en/102/prague
Metronome and views:
Now this may sound odd, but something I recommend is seeing the big metronome in Prague. Not because the metronome is anything particularly special, but the views from there are of the whole city! It's up quite a hill but you can either take the stairs or the slopes to get up and down. Sadly when we went up it was rather cloudy so my photos don't quite do the view justice, but take a look...
Charles Bridge:
Charles Bridge is something Prague is pretty well known for. This pedestrian bridge is filled with musicians, painters and tourists admiring the various statues and wonderful views of orange roof tops of the city. It's beautifully lit up at night and is nice to walk across day or night.
One evening we watched the sun set over the river and Charles Bridge. It was so pretty! We sat in a pub looking out of the window having a drink. I would recommend doing this as it was such a pretty view!
John Lennon wall:
John Lennon became a hero for many young Czechs, whereby this wall began to be graffitied with Beatles lyrics and images of Lennon. Originally the graffiti was painted over with white paint every night by the police, however now the wall has become an iconic piece of art that people come for far and wide too see!
Yellow penguins:
Now this is going to sound really random, but a little way down from Charles Bridge is a row of yellow penguins... I don't quite know why they are there and what they mean, however they really stand out on the waterside and are quite a sight to see!
Apple museum:
Due to the cold we wanted to do something inside for a little while, so we came across the Apple museum. Don't mistake this for being a museum about fruit.. it's about the history of Steve Jobs's multi-million pound company 'Apple' and the history behind the technology released.
http://www.applemuseum.com/en/
Prague Castle:
The castle is a nice place to wander round to see different artifacts in the museums and admire the spectactular church in the grounds. With our bus tour tickets we were able to visit Prague Castle for free. We were meant to be able to have a free tour also but weren't told where to meet for this.. however after visiting the castle we decided we were better off without a tour guide as we weren't sure we would have found it all that interesting! However it was nice to wander round ourselves.
https://www.hrad.cz/en/prague-castle-for-visitors
Cat Cafe:
If you like cats you will without a doubt enjoy the Cat Cafe! The cats were quite shy but they were all sooo cute! However, don't be fooled by the word 'cafe', as they only provide a few free snacks and drinks.
Shopping - Wenceslas Square:
The place for shopping is Wenceslas Square; full of restaurants, shops and hotels! I may have popped into H&M and Zara once or twice!
WHERE TO EAT:
- Svateho Vaclava - If you're looking to try traditional Czech food, this restaurant is ideal. However be aware that it's far from the cheapest option, but the food was great! It is in Wenceslas Square.
- TGI Fridays - Not the most cultured I must admit, but we did go to TGI Fridays one night. There was a really great band playing which made the meal really enjoyable, so if you wander past and there's a band on, go and take a look!
- Avocado Garden - This is a mexican restaurant right next to the Cat Cafe. We popped in for some lunch as we were hungry after visiting the Cat Cafe. It is nice if you fancy mexican as well as Czech food.
- Olympia - On our bus tour we were told several times that this restaurant is the best restaurant in the city and is also great value for money, so we had to give it a try! And they were right - the food was lovely, the portions were huge and it was pretty cheap too!
- Italian in Old Town Square - We went to a nice Italian restuarant right next to the astronomical clock, however I'm unsure what it was called. However I recommend it because we all had lovely pizzas, pasta and garlic bread for a reasonable price!
- John Lennon Pub - We had lunch here after visiting the John Lennon Wall as it's really close by to it. The food was nice and had some English pub food classics. The pub was also decorated entirely in Beatles posters and memorabilia.
- Old Town Square - Old town Square is the place for sweet treats! A tourist craze is the amazing doughnuts filled with cream/ice cream and topped with sauces and fruit! The are a-mazing and are everywhere in the square. The square also has a row of food and drink stalls, with one selling crepes which we throughly enjoyed on Pancake Day!
WHERE TO STAY:
We went to Prague in February half term and got a great deal on lastminute.com!
We stayed at 'Hotel Grandium' which was 5 star and included breakfast, which may I add was a pretty good buffet! The hotel was in a great location too, in close walking distance to Wenceslas Square, Old Town Square and Charles Bridge! I'd highly recommend it.
http://www.hotel-grandium.cz/en/?r=4556000&gclid=Cj0KCQjwh7zWBRCiARIsAId9b4o85YPmub-PiMevBa5nrBsSM-OGMExk-7W9sh5-Mcm9LPOAbf80XK0aAuyNEALw_wcB
Overall, Prague is a great city to visit and even though it was a little chilly, I would still really recommed going in the Winter! However any time of year it would be lovely as there's lots to see and do! A perfect place to go for a mini city break! I hope this helps anyone thinking of going to Prague and maybe persuades anyone to go who hasn't been.
Thank you for reading, and don't forget to have a look at my video on YouTube of my Prague trip :)
https://youtu.be/aXw1QEuQ_9s
