My personal 10 favourite places in Prague

Prague is one the most popular tourist destinations in Europe. There are hundreds of spots worth visiting in this city. I want to share with you my own personal tips discovered during my students and early career life. Enjoy the reading.

1. Prague castle in the middle of the night
Prague castle is a top place to go for all Prague visitors. Therefore, the place might be a bit overcrowded - especially during the holiday times. I love going up there in the middle of the night. All the stands with tourist gadgets are closed, only a few other people walk around and the view out of the castle on Prague at night is splendid.

2. Vysehrad
Vysehrad is a place for dates, gathering with friends as well as a very pretty location for family walks. Vysehrad has its own unique atmosphere that you can enjoy at any time of the day. My favourite tip is to sit on the top of the wall surrounding the area and enjoy the view of either the castle or the river towards Podoli or just the trees around.

3. Farm market on Jiriho z Podebrad square
Not the oldest and not the most known farm market but I still prefer this one over the others. The farm market is located on a big square still close to the city center but apart of the crowds of people. I love taking the Moravian wine, local great bread and cheese and enjoying the breakfast under the trees in the little park on this square.

4. Delicatessen store Liberske lahudky on Vodickova street
This is very similar to the location above - not the most unique delicatessen in Prague but rathe a bit r old fashioned and definitely purely local and traditional place. At this place you can get all types of bread, rolls as well as sweet cakes, typical Czech desserts as well as open sandwiches or even salads (in Czech with mayo). There is also a little table to stand at, if you want to try what you got right away.

5. Walking from Troja around the Prague ZOO to Stromovka and further up to Letna
This is a beautiful walk with many nice spots around - I sometimes started even up on the hill in Bohnice to enjoy the view of Prague from that part. The area around the ZOO and the Troja castle is usually bit more busy and then come Stromovka - sport and family park in the middle of Prague. I love just walking on different paths around this area. After that I walk up towards Letna. If you want to take a break - either the café in Bio Oko or the beer garden in the Letna park are definitely places that I can recommend.

6. Taking traing from Prague main train station to Prague Smichov
This is just 10 minutes ride but I still enjoy this journey a lot. The rails are placed among old houses in the Vysehrad area, where you can almost see inside people's flats. Further on, the train crosses the rail bridge under Vysehrad with beautiful view of the Prague castle and in a few moments it stops in Smichov. If you want to come back to the centre again, take the walk through the rail bridge and continue on the other side of the river along the river bank called Naplavka.

7. If you really want to turn back in time and try local food as during the communism era, visi the canteen in Palmovka
Though not far from nowadays refurbished Karlin, Palmovka still keeps its own touch. Historically, it has been an area, where workers used to live and until nowadays you can still see and feel that this is a bit different Prague than in the city center. But it is real and authentic. If you are fans of the Czech traditional food and maybe are short of money, visit the canteet that is located just next to the tram stop towards Kobylisy. The portions are huge and price very low. This place is not about luxury but more about experience or as said cheap warm meals.

8. Sign up for the national library in Klementinum
This is not a tip for one time visitor but rather for a person staying in Prague for some time. The national library in Klmenetinum is a unique place with charming character - especially the main library hall. I used to spend there a lot of time when I was writing my diploma thesis and really loved it there. This is a place, where I literally felt the history and the old wisdom.

9. From Strahov to Ladronka
Strahov is probably not on any list of most visited places in Prague but I would recommend it anyway. There is a regular bus going from Karlovo namesti toward Strahov. In Strahov, you can see the huge Strahov stadium that was used for the sport gathering in past. Strahov is on the top of the hill, so you can again enjoy the beautiful view of Prague. Further on you can walk towards Ladronka, a nice green area nearby Prague center

10. Little alternative cinemas
Prague offers a wide range of cultural events. My favourite places are local cinemas such as Bio Oko in Letna, Svetozor next to the Wenceslas square or Lucerna just opposite to Svetozor, Kino Atlas in Florenc or Kino Aero in Zizkov. All these cinemas are showing alternative movies - most of them in the original languages with Czech subtitles. Going to any of these cinemas is already experience on its own. This is not about the unified world of multiplex cinemas, this is a cultural event on its own.