24 Hours in Prague!

Prague is one of the most historical and culturally important cities in all of Europe. Although we only had a 24-hour adventure in Prague, we managed to hit many of the highlights! Check out our guide below for Prague must see attractions, traditional food, travel tips, and our 24-hour itinerary:

Places to See

Old Town – Exploring Prague’s Old Town you will see many attractions such as St. Nicholas Cathedral, Týn Church, the Powder Tower, Old Town Square, and Astronomical Clock. 

Powder Tower/Powder Gate – One of the original entrances to the Old Town in Prague which separates Old Town from New Town. The gate acquired its name as it used to store gunpowder. Today you can climb to the top of the tower for amazing city views, but be sure to bring cash with you to pay the entrance fee!

Municipal House – Located near the Powder Tower is the Municipal House. This art nouveau building has a large mosaic called “Homage to Prague” above its main entrance.

Old Town Square – While exploring Prague’s Old Town you will notice that the narrow cobblestone streets open up to the spacious Old Town Square. This is a great place to watch street performers or catch the sun setting behind the Town Hall Tower. 

Town Hall Tower – The views from the Town Hall Tower are amazing! I personally love seeing a city from above, so I highly recommend a trip up the Town Hall Tower. Here are a few Travel Tips for your visit! First – buy your tickets for the tower online. We did this once we saw the long queue of people waiting for their turn to enter the tower. There were signs all around that suggested purchasing tickets online that were not only cheaper, but also allowed you to skip the line. With free wifi in the building, I am not sure why everyone wasn’t taking advantage of this option. My second travel tip for the Town Hall Tower is make sure you are visiting around the time that the Astronomical Clock is about to hit the top of the hour. It is amazing to see the amount of people that gather in front of the clock!

Astronomical Clock – Located outside of the Town Hall Tower is the world’s oldest working astronomical clock. I will admit that I was looking forward to the clock’s “show” that happens at the top of every hour, but let me advise you right now to not get your hopes up. It is an extremely underwhelming experience, but a must see at least once (or twice) while in Prague!

Charles Bridge – A historic pedestrian bridge that crosses the Vltava River. Be sure to visit during sunset for amazing photos of the Prague Castle.

St. Nicholas Cathedral – Not to be confused with St. Nicolas Cathedral in Old Town Prague, this cathedral is located in Lesser Town (Mala Strana) located across the Charles Bridge from Old Town. One big difference from this church to the other St. Nicholas Cathedral (besides the architecture) is you have to pay 70kr to enter compared to the free St. Nicholas in Old Town.

Prague Castle –  Prague castle sits on top of a hill and overlooks the city. We chose to walk to the Prague Castle complex to be able to experience the excellent views of the city on the way. There is also the option to take a tram here, but we choose to walk whenever possible. There is nothing better than exploring a city on foot and rewarding yourself with goulash and beer at the end of the day! Since the Prague Castle is actually a complex be sure to check out some of the main attractions; St. Vitus Cathedral, Golden Lane, and Rosenberg Palace. Travel Tip: There is a ceremonial Changing of the Guard everyday at 12pm, we highly recommend checking out this extravagant ceremony if you time your day just right!

Kampa Island – A picturesque, romantic, false island located under the Charles Bridge. You can walk here from the Lesser Town side of the bridge or take the stairs from the bridge. One of the biggest attractions in this area is the Lennon Wall, where people from all over the world go to honor John Lennon from the Beatles.

What to eat/drink and where to find it!

Since we had minimal time in Prague we were in the mood for some authentic Czech food and beer. We were happy to find Bredovsky Dvur. We shared an amazing flavorful sausage appetizer, goulash with potato pancakes, and of course two pilsner beers.

Prague is known for having a great nightlife and many bars. We were visiting on a Tuesday night and we were able to find a few bars open where we could try some more of the Czech beer. One bar that we found was USudu not too far from historic Wenceslas Square. This was a unique places to have a drink as it had many rooms that were connected and decorated with different themes. We recommend checking out all of the spots before choosing one place to hang out. Also be sure to try a Czech Budweiser before leaving Prague, it is much better than the less popular American Budweiser.

Our Itinerary – 24 Hours in Prague

Day 1 – Arrived late around 5pm

• Tram to Old Town
• Explored a few main sights in Old Town such as Powder Tower and Old Town Square
• Watched the sunset on the Charles Bridge
• Went to dinner at Bredovsky Dvur
• Went out for a few Czech beers!

Day 2

• Hopped in an Uber to go back to Old Town
• Breakfast in Old Town
• Walked across Charles Bridge to see St. Nicholas Cathedral
• Started walking up past quaint shops to the Prague Castle
• On you way up you can get panoramic views of the city of Prague.
• Arrived at Prague Castle at noon for ceremonial Changing of the Guard
• Entered the Prague Castle Complex and explored the grounds
• Walked (downhill!) to the Kampa area
• Crossed the Charles Bridge back to Old Town
• Went up the Town Hall Tower and experienced the views from above
• Had one last meal in Prague and it was time to hit the road for our next European Destination!

Travel Tips:

The city is highly cash based compared to other European cities. So be sure to hit an ATM to enjoy Prague to its fullest!

Prague is a big city, so stay in a location with easy access to the tram. The tram schedule was very easy to follow and tickets cost 24kr or $1USD per person. The most challenging part we found was actually figuring out where to buy the tickets! We used the tram, but then also found it was even easier to use Uber to get across the city. Uber was not popular when we were there (2016) so we had to wait a little while for a car to be available.

Bonus Tip! If you are driving to Prague make sure you watch out of the changing speed limits, especially in construction zones. Chris fell victim to a speed trap!

Planning a European Road Trip? Check out our Destination Guides on Budapest, Bratislava, and Salzburg!