Pražský Hrad (Prague castle) is a definite must repeat visit for us. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, considered to be the largest intact castle complex in the world. Today the castle includes elements of Romanesque buildings dating from the 10th century, Gothic buildings from the 14th century, and more recent renovations from the 1900s.
During our visit in 2009 we took the Basic Circuit Tour. We decided to do the same again this trip. An adult ticket costs 250 Kč; a photo license costs an additional 50 Kč. As best we could tell, the photo license does not apply to cell phone cameras, only DSLRs and mirrorless cameras.
I distinctly remember buying a photo license in 2009 and having to show it several times. This year our photo licenses weren’t checked once. That did not really surprise me. What’s the point? Most folks take photos using their cell phones (or iPads). Why bother those that still use cameras?
Audioguide rentals are fairly steep at 350 Kč for three hours. Relatively few people seemed to be using them.
The Basic Circuit covers admission into four places: Golden Lane; Old Royal Palace; St. George’s Basilica; and, St. Vitus Cathedral.
Golden Lane is small, cramped, and really not all that interesting. The main attraction here are the tiny houses originally occupied by castle guards, other servants, and goldsmiths (hence “Golden” Lane). About half of the houses are restored to a time period demonstrating castle life centuries ago. The others are souvenir shops.
In the outer wall above the houses is an exhibition on armor and weapons, spread out in a long hallway about five feet wide. This we could have skipped. Honestly it seems that every museum, castle, fortress, and exhibition in Europe includes some armor and weapons.
Much of our time spent in Golden Lane was waiting for breaks in the tourist traffic to take photos, which is a pretty common pastime here.
Old Royal Palace consists of a large hall plus a few smaller rooms, most notably Vladislav Hall, the state royal room. This exhibit is nice enough, basically about a fifteen minute walk through.
St. George’s Basilica is another enjoyable walk through. The Romanesque appearance of the church originates from its reconstruction in the 1100s, followed centuries later by renovations in the late 1800s. Stephanie and I used this time to take a short break, sitting in a pew at the rear to rest awhile before continuing.
Finally, St. Vitus Cathedral. The jewel of Prague Castle. If we could have purchased tickets only for the cathedral, we probably would have done so. Construction of the current Gothic cathedral began in 1344, stopping in 1419 for the Hussite Wars. Incredibly construction of the cathedral was not completed until the late 1800s, with consecration taking place in 1929.
In our opinion, St. Vitus Cathedral is the most beautiful cathedral we have visited, period. The massive stained glass windows are strikingly impressive, casting a kaleidoscope of colors throughout. We probably spent a good thirty to forty minutes walking through the cathedral.
If you only have a limited amount of time in Prague Castle, if nothing else step into the rear of the cathedral. There is a free area at the back where you can get a good overview of the cathedral without having to buy a ticket.
After leaving the Cathedral, I walked around to the south tower to make the trek to the top. After purchasing a tower ticket for 150 Kč, I was greeted with a narrow circular stone staircase consisting of 287 steps. No landings or other stopping places. Just one continuous stairway. The views of Prague are worth it.
We bypassed the permanent exhibitions (another 250 Kč ticket each): The Story of Prague Castle (artifacts); the Castle Guard Exhibition; and, the Picture Gallery. Maybe next time.
On our way out of Prague Castle we happened to see the changing of the guard out front, which is a must watch if you are there at the time, but probably not worth a wait.
If you are exhausted from battling the crowds in and around Prague Castle, take some time and head over to Královská Zahrada (the Royal Gardens). It is a great place to relax and get away from most of the crowds as only a small percentage of the visitors to the castle bother to spend any time in the gardens. Don’t make that mistake.
South of Prague’s Old Town, on a hill above the Vltava River, is Vyšehrad, a fortress / castle dating back to the 10th century. Most of the complex was destroyed in the Hussite sacking of 1420, only to be rebuilt in the 1700s. Now it’s essentially a large park with several gates, walls, passageways, buildings, exhibits, and a small amphitheater. Guided tours of different parts of the complex are available.
After exiting the tram and walking uphill into Vyšehrad, we spent some time enjoying the gardens before heading over to the Bazilika svatého Petra a Pavla (Basilica of Saints Peter and Paul) and its adjacent cemetery. The basilica is one of a few buildings to survive the Hussite sacking. It underwent a major reconstruction in the 1820s and subsequent remodeling in the 1890s.
A ticket to enter the neo-Gothic basilica costs 130 Kč (about $5.60). We were behind a tour group so it took us a bit of time to get our tickets. On the plus side, several groups left the basilica while we were waiting.
Inside the basilica is nicely decorated. We spent about 10 to 15 minutes quietly walking around and admiring the interior … before noticing a large school group getting ready to come through. That was our signal to finish looking around fairly quickly and get out.
Leaving Vyšehrad, we followed a set of stairs down to the river. Along this route are several observation areas with great views of the Vltava River with Prague Castle in the distance.
We finished our day at U Kroka, a small family-owned restaurant not far from Vyšehrad. We arrived early and luckily got seated without a reservation. The host informed us that we had to leave before 7:00 PM as the table was reserved at that time. It was about 5:15 PM. He needn’t have warned us.
Okay, so the restaurant had an English language menu available, but the food was great. I opted for the beef goulash; Stephanie the beef cheeks. And a couple of beers. We were out well before 7:00 PM, and will definitely consider eating here again.
Garrett and Stephanie
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Next best thing to being there! Love all your photos!