Escorted Prague Holidays and Guided Tours
Prague came through the twentieth century with its centre largely intact, which is why the walk from Old Town Square up to the Castle still passes Gothic, Baroque and Art Nouveau frontages standing shoulder to shoulder. It is a compact city, too. Most of what you have come to see sits within a mile of the Vltava.
Our Prague holiday flies from the UK, stays four nights in one hotel and travels with a private tour manager, so nobody is deciphering tram tickets or finding their way back from dinner. Days out take in Karlovy Vary and a Bohemian glassworks.
Frequently Asked Questions About Our Prague Tours
A fair amount, and much of it on cobbles. Prague's historic streets are paved with rounded setts that can be uneven underfoot, and the approach to the Castle involves a climb or a set of steps. Sturdy, flat, well-cushioned shoes make a real difference. Guided walks are paced to allow stops, and private coach travel handles the longer distances, but this is a city holiday that asks you to be steady on your feet. Do ask us about a specific departure if you have concerns.
Our Prague holiday travels by air. Return flights and airport transfers both in the UK and at the destination are included, which keeps a five-day trip mostly in Prague rather than on the road. Once you arrive, a private coach carries the group throughout, including the day out to Karlovy Vary. If you would prefer a coach holiday to central Europe, ask us what else is running — the routing depends on the season.
The Czech koruna, not the euro. Some hotels, restaurants and shops will accept euros, but usually at a rate that does not favour you, so it is worth having koruna for coffees, cups at the spa colonnades and market stalls. Cards are widely accepted in the centre. Avoid the street exchange booths near Old Town Square, which are known for poor rates and unhelpful small print, and use a bank or an ATM attached to one.
Yes. Our Open Group departures are made up of individual travellers who join a scheduled tour, and solo guests are a normal part of that. Having a tour manager for the whole holiday and a group at dinner each evening tends to suit people who would rather not eat alone in a foreign city. For current single room availability and what the supplement is on a particular departure, please ask us.
Walking the Old Town and the Castle
Prague divides neatly in two. On the right bank sits the Old Town, with its square, the Astronomical Clock of 1410 and the narrow lanes of the former Jewish quarter. On the left, across Charles Bridge, are Malá Strana and the long ridge of Prague Castle, which is less a single building than a walled town containing St Vitus Cathedral, a palace and a lane of small houses.
Guided walking is genuinely the right way to see it. The centre is largely pedestrianised, distances are short, and a good deal of the interest is in things you would walk straight past — a doorway carved with a house sign from the days before street numbers, or the spot on Old Town Square where the Protestant leaders were executed in 1621.
Charles Bridge is quietest early. By late morning it belongs to the portrait painters and the crowds photographing the statue of St John of Nepomuk.
Karlovy Vary and Bohemian Glass
Karlovy Vary lies about two hours west of Prague, strung along a wooded river valley in a line of cream and ochre spa buildings. Twelve hot mineral springs rise here, and taking the waters is still done properly: visitors buy a porcelain cup with a spout in the handle and sip their way along the colonnades. The taste is warm, salty and mildly medicinal. Not everyone finishes the cup.
The town was where Europe came to be seen — Goethe, Beethoven and Tsar Peter the Great all took a course of treatment here — and the grand hotels along the Teplá still reflect that.
The other Bohemian tradition on show is glass. Czech glassmaking goes back to the medieval forest furnaces of the borderlands, and the great Karlovy Vary house has been cutting lead-free crystal since 1857. Watching a gather of molten glass become a stemmed goblet takes a few minutes and is oddly difficult to look away from.
Czech Cooking, Beer and Wine Inns
Czech food is honest, seasoned and built for a cold climate. The dishes worth trying are svíčková, beef in a cream and root vegetable sauce with a spoonful of cranberry; roast duck with red cabbage; and goulash, thicker and less paprika-heavy than the Hungarian version. Almost everything arrives with dumplings — sliced bread dumplings rather than the suet variety.
Beer is the national drink and taken seriously. Bohemia gave the world the pale lager brewed at Plzeň in 1842, and a properly poured Czech beer comes with a deep, dense head that the barman will not rush.
Less expected is wine. The Czech vineyards are mostly in Moravia, and a traditional wine inn is a different proposition from a beer hall — cellar rooms, small glasses, dry whites such as Ryzlink and Veltlínské zelené. Our tour eats in several parts of the city rather than the same hotel dining room each night, including a visit to one of these old wine inns.
