Prague is one of those cities that I’d been wanting to visit for quite some time, so when we were booking our trip to Germany and Austria last summer, the Czech Republic was a natural fit with our itinerary! We spent 3 days in Munich, 3 days in Salzburg, and then 3 days in Prague. The architecture in Prague is somewhat different than other parts of Europe I’ve been to, with a more gothic, dark feel..really beautiful. Along with its mystical history, the vibe is pretty unique. I will say that it was a little more “Americanized” than I was expecting…too many Burger Kings and McDonalds in a small area, and we came across a lot of groups of younger tourists there partying (hard). We did do some fun things in this itinerary though, and I’d recommend a visit to the Czech Republic when in this part of Europe.
Here is a sample 3-day itinerary for Prague, based on our family trip with adult kids in June:
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DAY 1: TRAVEL VIA CESKY KRUMLOV AND STAROMESTSKE NAMESTI SQUARE
Since we were coming from Salzburg, Austria and there were no easy train or plane routes to get us to Prague efficiently, I did some research and found the best way to get between the two cities was a private driver…it was awesome! We booked the trip through the Day Trip website, and were able to customize the trip, including site seeing stops along the way. I had heard great things about the village of Cesky Krumlov (a UNESCO World Heritage Site), so we planned a 1.5 hour stop there along our route. It was a 2.5 hour ride from Salzburg to Cesky Krumlov, and then another 2 hours to Prague from there. We had enough time in Cesky Krumlov to do a little shopping, explore the village, and have lunch at the Authentic Cafe (restaurant and bakery with a mid-Century American vibe…great food too!). If you have more time there, be sure to tour the Cesky Krumlov Castle. If you go a different route to get to Prague, I would highly recommend making a day trip to Cesky Krumlov from Prague like this one through Get Your Guide. It’s such a picturesque, well-preserved, gothic village and definitely worth a visit.
We arrived at our hotel in Prague in the afternoon on Day 1, and were anxious to start exploring the area. We stayed in the heart of Old Town Prague at the Pytloun Boutique Hotel…great location, nice clean rooms, and a really good breakfast. They’ve recently added a rooftop bar as well. We were able to walk everywhere from here (just had to take the underground once, but it’s easy to use) and I would recommend staying in this area. It’s a short walk to Staromestske Namesti Square (the oldest square in Prague) where you can see the Astronomical Clock and The Church of Our Lady Before Tyn, amongst other historical landmarks. Of course there are tons of restaurants and shops to check out along the way as well. We had a hankering for some American food by this point in our trip, so we stumbled upon the Hard Rock Cafe and had dinner there on our first night. My nachos hit the spot!
DAY 2: EXPLORING PRAGUE, UNDERGROUND TOUR, AND COOKING CLASS
After breakfast at the hotel, I’d recommend spending the better part of a day just exploring the sites in Prague. We walked across the Charles Bridge (beautiful sculptures along the way, and amazing photo opportunities here) over to the Lennon Wall on the West side of the river toward the Prague Castle. The Lennon Wall started in the 1960’s as a wall that people decorated with poems and love messages (basically legal graffiti). Then in 1980 when John Lennon was assassinated, someone painted a huge mural of him on the wall, and it has since been known as the Lennon Wall.
After working up an appetite exploring Old Town, check out Alforno Focacceria for lunch. The food was so delicious (fresh rosemary focaccia…yum!) and the atmosphere was beautiful; the best meal we had in Prague. They have great outdoor seating as well. From there we wandered over to the Jewish Quarter, which was just around the corner. We walked through the streets there checking out the vendor shops along the way (also a nice public restroom…not easy to find in Europe!). There’s a Jewish Museum and cemetery that looked really interesting to visit, but we had a reservation for an underground tour and didn’t have enough time to stop.
Underground tours in Prague are a pretty popular option for things to do; they are fairly inexpensive and generally short (ours was just 1.5 hours), so we decided to give it a try. The history behind these underground tunnels and dwellings from as far back as the 12th century is pretty remarkable! They jumped the shark a little with the skeletons and other gimmicks in some areas, but I guess that made it more interesting (or scary?) for the younger visitors. All in all, it was worth doing in order to be able to access the underground for just about $25 USD per person.
Finally, to close out our busy Day 2, we had booked a private cooking class with Bret through Eat With. This was unanimously the highlight of our time in Prague. Bret and Aida host these cooking classes from an underground space in a 400 year-old building. We did have to take a short underground train ride to this part of town for the class, but it was very easy to navigate.
A huge spread of locally-sourced cheeses, meats, jams, etc. was set up for us to enjoy while Bret shared some history of the area, and we discussed the menu for our session. He also had wine tastings available throughout the evening from a winery in Moldova where he is from. We made potato pancakes, bread dumplings, and cream-filled pastries for dessert. Bret had made roast rabbit and vegetables in advance that we were able to enjoy after the class. He spent over 3 hours with us…a wonderful, relaxed time, and a delicious meal. We have done cooking classes like this before, and they are always a hit. A nice break from museums and churches, especially if you’re nearing the end of your trip!
DAY 3: PRAGUE CASTLE AND PILSNER URQUELL TOUR
A trip to Prague isn’t complete without visit Prague Castle. We walked there from the hotel (it’s about a 30 minute walk from where we stayed) and just bought tickets on-site. There are a lot of options depending on what you want to see, but tickets are generally inexpensive (even with audio guide), so we bought the all-inclusive tickets just to be safe. You could probably spend the better part of a day at the Castle, as there is quite a bit to explore. We are not super in-depth tour people, so we spent about 2-3 hours there in total. Be sure to take the time to see St. Vitus Cathedral…it’s stunning inside and out.
Our last day was pretty dreary and rainy, so we were on the hunt for something we could do indoors. The Pilsner Urquell Experience was just down the street from our hotel, so we decided to do their experience and beer tasting tour. Pilsner Urquell is the original golden beer from the Czech Republic, first created in 1842. The tour is about an hour, includes interactive games and displays, and includes beer tasting along the way. At the end, you also receive a couple of tokens that you can use to get full glasses of the beer you tasted throughout the tour. We spent about 1.5 hours there and it was a great way to spend a rainy afternoon. You can even bring younger kids…it would be pretty entertaining for them, and they have non-alcoholic drinks for those that are under 18 or not interested in beer!
That wrapped up our three days in Prague and Cesky Krumlov. Three full days is plenty of time to explore and see everything in this area. After an amazing 11 days in Europe (combined with Munich and Salzburg), it’s always nice to head home!