Because you will be visiting Prague, alright?
Listen, I don’t want to be dramatic, but I found myself in Prague. I did.
I went by myself, it was my first ever solo holiday, and it was legitimately the best trip I’ve ever taken.
The city is stunning. It just is. It’s breathtakingly beautiful, it’s dirt cheap, it’s old as f*ck so you won’t be stuck for beautiful buildings to look at, stunning side streets to wander down, or bridges to stand and gawk at for about 10 minutes.
Just a generally lovely and nice place to be.
So, you’re going. You are – I have decided it.
And once you get there, you’re going to want to hit up a few places, check out some spots, and do some things. You know, all the general bits that tourists get up to when they’re on holiday.
Here are some that you won’t want to miss.
1. Spend the day in the Jewish quarter
Prague’s Jewish quarter is incredibly upsetting for a lot of reasons.
The first is because most of the ghetto was torn down before the first world war to make it look more like Paris.
The second is because the quarter pretty much surrounds the Jewish graveyard – a spot that’s so high up off the ground because parts of it are 12 gravestones deep due to the lack of land Jews in Prague were given to bury their dead.
Prague’s Jewish quarter is also beautiful though. The synagogues are ancient, the museums are packed and the streets are probably some of the most impressive you’ll walk down during your time in the city – even if they are extremely new.
Worth getting lost in… And the tours are good too.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BrIQkM8HAbk/
2. Do a walking tour
Yeah alright, everyone says a walking tour is the best and only way to get your bearings in a new city but it actually is?
Book yourself onto one of the free ones your first day there, and you’ll become familiar with the streets in no time.
You’ll also meet a load of people on the tour itself, so if you happen to get increasingly sick of your own company, you can get sick of someone else’s instead.
Most of the standard walking tours in Prague are free – with the exception of specialised tours like the one up to the Prague Castle or to the Terezin concentration camp – but guides will ask tourists to donate whatever they thought the tour was worth at the end.
They’re good at what they do too, so you might as well.
3. Walk across Charles Bridge (at night)
And during the day. Do it twice. You might as well.
Prague’s Charles Bridge is probably the oldest bridge you’re going to walk across in Europe. Unless you’ve walked across older ones.
Construction on the bridge started back in the fourteenth century and finished over 100 years later – and it certainly shows… but in the best way possible.
It’ll take you about 10 minutes to walk across the bridge during the day because of the sheer amount of people on it, but it’s worth it.
The entire thing in lined with stunning statues too so if you, for some reason, get bored of the view, you’ll always have something new to look at as you go.
And they’re even more stunning at night.
4. Trek up to the Strahov Monastery
It’s a bit of a walk now, but it’s absolutely worth it.
Up there, excluding the monastery itself, is an adorable restaurant and one of the most stunning viewpoints you’ll ever experience in your genuine life.
You can see the entire city from that point, and if anything is going to take your breath away more than the walk up there, it’s gonna be this.
Go for the scenery and stay for the sunset.
Honestly, do.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BrIYrB_FEJk/
5. Check out the Kafka exhibitions
Kafka loved Prague. And incidentally, Prague loves Kafka.
Earlier this Autumn, there were three (3) whole Kafka exhibitions on at any one given time around the city.
One of them was the standard Kafka museum, the other was a Kafka inspired exhibition, and the last was a new, extremely surreal look at Prague’s true crime stories over the years blended with horror and general discomfort.
It was genuinely terrifying and has terrible reviews on Trip Advisor but was also sort of brilliant?
https://www.instagram.com/p/BoolZMJHsIO/
6. Go for a wander at night
Incredibly vague and yet, here we are.
Prague is divine during the day, sure, but it’s even more divine at night when it’s all lit up, the sun has set, and there’s less tourists milling about.
If you go during the summer or autumn, grab a bite to eat in one of the restaurants overlooking the Vltava river once it’s dark out and people watch until you’re sick of looking at other human beings.
And if you go during the winter or spring, hit up the Old Town Square and check out the stunning bits of architecture that are going to be accosting you from every single angle.
Make sure you stall it back on the hour to see the Astronomical Clock do its thing though. It’s a bit anti-climactic, but it’s pretty.
7. Climb up to Letna Park
It isn’t up a cliff face or anything, just a steep hill.
Once you get up there though, you can treat yourself to a pint at the open air bar or just laze around in the trees for a bit.
There’s also dogs. Lots of dogs.
It’s class.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BrIt2jeA5Ro/
