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All domestic and international airlines use Prague’s Ruzyne international airport – (code-PRG). Fairly inexpensive minibus connections available to central Prague (17km away, over 30 minutes). Alternatively, there are public buses that call at the Nove Butovice underground station

Prague, the capital of Czech Republic, is situated in the heart of Europe.

Prague International Airport is served by dozens of international carriers from most major cities. A convenient Airport Shuttle Bus service operates between the airport and the center of Prague. Other means of transport are avaliable as well.

Trains run daily between Prague and most major European cities; Paris, Amsterdam, Munich and Vienna are some major hubs.

Getting Around In Prague

Central Prague is very compact and walkable. If your hotel is in the Old Town, or almost anywhere in Prague 1, you can probably walk wherever you want to go. If you need transportation, Prague offers a multitude of options.

Metro: Prague’s metro is fast and reliable. There are several metro lines and all come thru the center of the city, with the main stops at Staremeska (Old Town) and Mustek (Wenceslas Square). It costs only 12 crowns per trip (about 40 Eurocents). There are discount cards for 3 or more days, but you are unlikely to need public transport that much to realize any savings.

Trams: The trams are very convenient and travel surface routes that the metro misses. Especially useful to visitors are the lines that run along the river. The trams use the same tickets as the buses and metro, and transfers are allowed between them. Trams allow you to see much more of the city than the metro, but they can get very crowded during the rush hour.

Buses: Like the trams the buses run outward from the city towards the suburbs. These can be useful if your hotel is outside the city center or you have a reason to venture further.

Taxis: Public transportation peters out around 1:30 am so many people need to take a taxi back to their hotel late at night. Prague’s taxi system is notorious for ripping off unsuspecting tourists.

Their methods are many, but often involve no meter or a meter that runs too fast. The best idea is to negotiate a price before going anywhere. It shouldn’t cost more than 300 crowns (about 10 Euros) to go anywhere within the center of the city, up to around 500 crowns for outlying regions.

Where To Stay

Prague has a long tradition of hospitality having hosted generations of travellers, thinkers and invading armies. However, to the modern guest this may not be immediately apparent as the tradition of customer service is somewhat shorter. Generally, centrally-located hotels are more expensive because of their proximity to Prague’s sights, but the further you travel into residential Prague, the cheaper the rooms become.

Élite Hotel. Praha 1, Ostrovni 32.

With a history that dates back to the 14th century, the hotel Élite, a member of the Small Charming group, is another of those gems that keep popping up.

Where To Eat

One of the great pleasures of life is to dine well. In Prague this pleasure is considered to be part of life, not something reserved for special occasions. In fact few European capitals can claim a greater variety or more sophisticated cuisine than can be enjoyed in Prague’s hundreds of restaurants.

And when you consider the low cost of dining out in Prague, you can understand why it’s so hip to visit this culinary mecca.

U Fleku Brewery and Restaurant. Authentic Czech food in the heart of the city.

Govinda Vegetarian Club. One of the best vegetarian restaurant in the worlds is in the middle of Prague city.

What To See

Visit Hradcany. (Prague Castle) The largest ancient castle in the world – 570m (1870ft) long, an average of 128m (420ft) wide and occupying 7.28 hectares (18 acres).

Visit the Strahovsky Klaster. (An old monastery). Don’t miss Prague Castle’s less famous attractions, such as the network of tunnels the communist government built in 1950 for easy access to the bomb shelters.

Entertainment

Prague is not only a major historical and cultural site but a fun city to visit. It offers many restaurants, traditional Czech pubs, jazz clubs, concert halls, discos, etc. One can attend the ballet, opera, philharmonic, or theater for just a few dollars.

The Prague Spring International Music Festival, the Agharta Jazz Festival, and the Prague Dance Festival (Tanec Praha) attract some of the world’s top talents as well as audiences from around the world. Prague is also the home to many museums and galleries such as the National Museum, the National Gallery, the Prague Castle Picture Gallery, the Mucha Museum, etc.

The Oktoberfest in Germany is a well known name amongst the people who have a love for great beer and unrestricted parties all day. It is organized every year in Munich, Germany and is an indispensable part of the Bavarian culture.

It began all the way back in 1810 at the royal wedding of Crown Prince Ludwig. A horse race was organized in the month of October to mark their marriage and the feast thrown on their marriage.  Since then, barring any war outbreak or epidemic, a fest is organized every year in October at Munich, Germany known as the Oktoberfest.

Beer being the primary culinary delight has become a central part of this fest. Thus, this fest is popularly known as the Munich beer fest for the astonishing amounts of beer served during the sixteen days of the fest. It starts at noon on the first day with the mayor arriving in a specially decorated festive coach with a decorated beer can pulled by horse cart just behind him. After the ceremonial parade finishes, the mayor comes up and taps the first barrel of beer and shouts “o’zapft is!” which signals that Oktoberfest in Germany has begun. The first mug of beer is passed to the prime minister and then the various tents can start selling beer to people.

Due to its sheer magnitude and extravaganza, it attracts a large number of people from all around the globe to come and take part in this historic yet enjoyable event. Although it is called the Oktoberfest but a major part of it is over by September end as considering that the winters might arrive early.

This year (2009) it was held from 19th September to 4th of October. In spite of a recession hit world economy, the Oktoberfest in Germany saw an increase in the number of visitors as compared to last year signifying that this one of a kind event was a success yet again.