Anyone been to Prague....

[bassfan]

The wife and I are off to Prague for a few days at the beginning of December, mainly for the extensive Christmas markets. Whilst we can look on Trip advisor all day long, it’s always nice to have some recommendations from people that have been for must see or do, resteraunts, bars etc. 

Lets hear your views. 

[funky8884]

My Brother in law lives there and we visited in December a few years back,  Charles Bridge was rammed, it was snowing, the night markets were great and we visited a craft brewery ( http://www.klasterni-pivovar.cz ).

There were lots of buskers around the castle complex and street food too.

 

Its an easy place to have fun and just walk about

 

Enjoy

[bassfan]

Thanks funky... that’s certainly the plan for one night, walk, street food take it all in.. 😃

[toneknob]

Day trip to Kutna Hora for the Sedlec Ossuary if you're a fan of chapels built from the bones of thousands of Black Death victims.

Otherwise there's a museum of medieval torture devices, and a museum of sex machines. Take turns guessing which one you're in as you wander around.

Be sure to visit U Flecku, a bar where they brew their own delicious beer. When they start offering the walnut liqueur, refuse as it's expensive and will get you trousered in a less pleasant way than the beer.

The castle is pretty good, set aside a day for a visit there and the park on that side of the river.

[Barking Spiders]

I know it well having lived there for 6 months. In the summer it's rammed with Japanese, German, American and Italian tourists. Not so many Brits as it happens. Normally the honey pots like the Charles Bridge, the clock tower and Nove Mesto  in general  are chocka but in December they're much less so. The tram system  is excellent.  If you wanna do the less obvious I well recommend Vysehrad (closest spelling i can get here, the s is pronounced 'sh')  and the cementary there which is just for cultural greats like Dvorak.  No soldiers or politicians can be buried there. There's a lovely park /arboretum called Stromovka where tourists don't seem to go, just the locals. Also particularly interesting is the National Monument in Vitkov Park, which has a museum giving an interesting history about the communist times. Back in the city centre along side the Vltava is the Dancing House where there's a nice little bar at the top. On the subject of bars check out any of the three Beer Museums pubs. The sheer range of beers on draught will blow your mind. I hope neither you or your wife are veggies as Czech cuisine doesn't cater well for  them. You'd  better like pork knees and dumplings 🙂. I know it's wintertime but you've gotta try a trdelnik, which is a cross between a doughnut and an ice cream. The best ones are to be had in some of the parlours on the hill in Mala Strana leading up to the castle

Edited November 15, 2018 by Barking Spiders

[knirirr]

4 hours ago, bassfan said:

The wife and I are off to Prague for a few days at the beginning of December, mainly for the extensive Christmas markets. Whilst we can look on Trip advisor all day long, it’s always nice to have some recommendations from people that have been for must see or do, resteraunts, bars etc. 

Lets hear your views. 

I'll be there around the same time, then. Unfortunately, it will be for work.

[Daz39]

I went to Prague a few years ago. It's nice, plenty of pottering about to do - echo above: If you don't/can't have red meat, then it'll be cake and chips for you!

Airport has nice bus straight into town, Metro system very good.

Oh - across the Charles Bridge from old town  - then err left and in that area of little streets is an alley so narrow it has a traffic light installed for pedestrians!

[SICbass]

4 hours ago, toneknob said:

...if you're a fan of chapels built from the bones of thousands of Black Death victims.

Sounds like something of a niche-market to me 🤫

[uk_lefty]

Was there last month. Get up early to enjoy the beauty of the place without the crowds. It really is special. Walking over Charles bridge to the Castle side look left at the end of the bridge, there's a guitar shop down there! I didn't manage to go but it has a giant painted mural including a bass so I was sorely tempted.

Be careful buying Trdno's, weird ice cream things in a pastry cone. The first one I had was amazing, every one thereafter was more rubbish than the last. Choose your Trdno vendor wisely!

[SH73]

Watch out for pickpocketers.

[NikNik]

U Fleku beer cellar.

[TrevorR]

This was my fave restaurant... the Blue Duck (in English) https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g274707-d694895-Reviews-Restaurant_U_Modre_kachnicky-Prague_Bohemia.html  http://www.umodrekachnicky.cz/en/ 

Delicious take on Czech cuisine and they seem to have hoovered up all the best Czech domestic wines too. 

Also find a nice cheap restaurant somewhere and try some knedliky (traditional Czech dumplings)

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/foodandwineholidays/4838849/Where-to-eat-Czech-dumplings-in-Prague.html

https://www.google.co.uk/search?rlz=1C1GGRV_enGB793GB794&ei=IKTtW8WrGcmGgQbAw6igDA&q=where+to+eat+knedliky+in+prague&oq=where+to+eat+knedliky+in+prague&gs_l=psy-ab.3...31854.40410.0.41184.27.21.0.0.0.0.170.1537.10j6.16.0....0...1c.1.64.psy-ab..13.5.445...0i13i30k1j35i304i39k1j33i10k1.0.KNEHngWnC3M

 

The Christmas market... yes,  that's always fun to mooch around. 

I enjoyed wandering around the castle/palace on the top of the hill too.

 

[BassTractor]

8 hours ago, Barking Spiders said:

I hope neither you or your wife are veggies as Czech cuisine doesn't cater well for  them. 

Aye, but just 50m down from the sex machine museum, there are two veggie restaurants. One is visible from the street, "Country Life" on the right, and for the other, I think one needs to enter one of these porches that lead to several shops and the like. Just besides the one marked "Country Life" probably. Not sure though.

 

If one likes jazz, Prague spawns several jazz clubs with a lot of activity. At least one of them spawns a jazz CD shop that is open while gigs last. I'll try and dig it up later this evening.

 

If you want to buy typical Czech/tourist stuff, it's the old adage of: the closer to the town centre, the higher the prices and the more likely you'll be offered bad quality if the price isn't very high. Walking away from the famous clock, we saw prices lowering gradually, whilst also the number of shops went down. The market at Havelská wasn't the worst, BTW, and I bought some stuff there as shops were harder to find further away. It was a compromise: we only had a few days, so didn't get to know the city well enough. 

[BassBunny]

My Son has lived there for over 20 years. If you PM an email address I've an email I can send you with lots of recommendations and places to avoid. 

We prefer the Xmas Market at Andel. Appeals to the locals and not as touristy. The Blue Light is a must for a late drink. If you have a look on YouTube for a band called Monkey Business and a song called "Blue Light Baggy Bingo" and it will give you an idea of what it's like. 

The farmers markets down by the river are great. Held on Saturdays, but pretty sporadic.

[bassfan]

Thanks All. I go out for one day and so many recommendations... I’ll go through them and report back in December! 

[4000]

10 hours ago, Barking Spiders said:

 I hope neither you or your wife are veggies as Czech cuisine doesn't cater well for  them. You'd  better like pork knees and dumplings 🙂. 

I’ll vouch for this. I was on starvation rations. 

[WHUFC BASS]

The beer is great. They really know how to brew good beer and sell it cheaply too. I've done some gigs in Prague and in some derrière ends of Czech Replublic too. It's a  fascinating country. I found the people were great too.

[ednaplate]

There is a great live music bar called the Ungelt near a Church called Our Lady Of Tyn (or something like that). It’s in an old medieval cellar. Loved the place when I went. All of Prague is stunning.

[BassTractor]

1 hour ago, ednaplate said:

There is a great live music bar called the Ungelt near a Church called Our Lady Of Tyn (or something like that). It’s in an old medieval cellar. Loved the place when I went. All of Prague is stunning.

Yes indeed! Jazz & Blues Club Ungelt just behind the church that you see the two fabulous towers of when you stand near the famous clock or on the town square.

In the mean time I found the jazz club I mentioned above. It's Agharta (AghaRTA) situated at Železná 16 just a few minutes South of the town square.

[miles'tone]

I read that as Has Anyone Seen The Pogues?

I really should stop drinking and get some sleep..

[toneknob]

I lost a favourite T-shirt from Prague when I played Secret Garden Party in a downpour and had to change behind the stage. It was this "beware of tanks" shirt, bought in the alleys along the riverside near Karlov Most. Look out for one for me!

(ps this wasn't taken in Prague)

[bassfan]

5 minutes ago, toneknob said:

I lost a favourite T-shirt from Prague when I played Secret Garden Party in a downpour and had to change behind the stage. It was this "beware of tanks" shirt, bought in the alleys along the riverside near Karlov Most. Look out for one for me!

(ps this wasn't taken in Prague)

Size? 😂

[HengistPod]

Wonky building downstream a few blocks from Charles Bridge is quite famous.

Good enough campsite and hostel at Branik, beside the river, with a tram stop nearby. Tends to get flooded, though, and has mad swans.

If you like aeroplanes, the museum at Kbely is worth a visit - if only to see the rubbish post-war "Avia" Messerschmitt copies that used Me109 airframes with a Heinkel bomber engine shoehorned in, allowing the pilot to shoot off his own propeller very effectively.

Edited November 16, 2018 by HengistPod

[ped]

Loved it when I went, but we only had two days as it was part of a tour from there to Vienna then Budapest. 

Here are my pictures if you’re interested 

https://www.flickr.com/photos/chiscocks/albums/72157674444771521

I really enjoyed it as I’m interested in the history. We did a great (but very long!) waking tour. Learned a lot. 

[toneknob]

30 minutes ago, bassfan said:

Size? 😂

Then? L

Now, XL