The truth is, I would’ve loved to stay longer in Prague as there was just too much to see with so little time while backpacking Eastern Europe. Nevertheless, being able to see Prague in real life such a fairy-tale finish: a city I was longing to visit ever since.
After spending a few rainy and cold days in Vienna, I headed next to Prague hoping for a better weather as I continued the awesome backpacking in Eastern / Central Europe. Instead of riding a bus, which I already did twice for Budapest-Bratislava and Bratislava-Vienna via Flixbus, this time I decided to travel by train from Vienna to Prague. Travel time is just similar for both bus and train anyway, which is roughly 4 hours.
Also read: Things To Do in Budapest, Hungary
To book a ticket, I just searched online and found ÖBB, an Austrian railway company that has a Vienna-Prague route. It’s best to buy the ticket ahead of time and online as Prague is a top tourist destination to avoid running out of tickets on the date of travel.
What I didn’t hope for though was a train delay, which unfortunately happened on that day as the train didn’t arrive after more than an hour. Being in Europe, I expected less of these mishaps, but then we were told that there was an accident on the tracks, which in turn affected several train departures and arrivals.
I arrived Prague just in time for sunset, which was as beautiful as the rays reflected on the old buildings. From the central station, I took the metro then transferred to a tram. Actually, while finding the tram, I asked around but noticed that mostly could only speak Czech, the official language in Czech Republic. Luckily, I have a former workmate, Kat, who’s been living for years in this beautiful city, thus she knows the city really well and helped me in every way she can.
A few years back in the Philippines, Kat and I were workmates in an IT company. Ever since, I know Kat as that girl who fell in love with Prague after traveling there as a tourist. She amazingly worked her way to live and to work there, which is something I highly admire of her.
In the castle compound, I was also able to see this Gothic Catholic Church called the St. Vitus Cathedral. It’s probably the most eye-catching attraction because of its size.
This viewing deck should not be missed. As the Prague Castle sits on a hill, you can catch the panoramic view of Prague from there especially these uniformly orange-roofed houses!
Prague is probably known best for this Charles Bridge, which is, aside from being an overly populated bridge (I honestly got a bit dizzy while walking due to many people), it’s a historic bridge that witnessed several battles and triumphs during the 19th century. The bridge sits on the Vlatava River, which connects the Malá Strana and Old Town.
After crossing the bridge and walking further cobblestone paths and narrow alleys, I finally reached the Old Town. Similar to the Prague Castle compound, it’s a huge area with several sights to see.
To name a few, this the Church of Our Lady before Týn, a Gothic church in Old Town which I find very unique for its antique look.
If you see a mob at the Old Town Square, they’re probably after the “Walk of the Apostles,” an hourly show presented at the Astronomical Clock, one of the oldest functioning clocks in the world. It’s mounted on the building of the Old Town Hall.
24-hour ticket: CZK 110
72-hour ticket: CZK 310
Meanwhile, there are also timed tickets that you can use to transfer as many as you want in one direction (not allowed to return to your origin) on a given time frame. For example, on my way to the airport, I bought the 90-minute ticket where I took the tram first and hailed at Nádraží Veleslavín station, then transferred to bus 119, which is the specific bus number for the Prague-Ruzyne / Václav Havel Airport.
30-minute ticket: CZK 24
90-minute ticket: CZK 32
After spending a few rainy and cold days in Vienna, I headed next to Prague hoping for a better weather as I continued the awesome backpacking in Eastern / Central Europe. Instead of riding a bus, which I already did twice for Budapest-Bratislava and Bratislava-Vienna via Flixbus, this time I decided to travel by train from Vienna to Prague. Travel time is just similar for both bus and train anyway, which is roughly 4 hours.
Also read: Things To Do in Budapest, Hungary
To book a ticket, I just searched online and found ÖBB, an Austrian railway company that has a Vienna-Prague route. It’s best to buy the ticket ahead of time and online as Prague is a top tourist destination to avoid running out of tickets on the date of travel.
What I didn’t hope for though was a train delay, which unfortunately happened on that day as the train didn’t arrive after more than an hour. Being in Europe, I expected less of these mishaps, but then we were told that there was an accident on the tracks, which in turn affected several train departures and arrivals.
I arrived Prague just in time for sunset, which was as beautiful as the rays reflected on the old buildings. From the central station, I took the metro then transferred to a tram. Actually, while finding the tram, I asked around but noticed that mostly could only speak Czech, the official language in Czech Republic. Luckily, I have a former workmate, Kat, who’s been living for years in this beautiful city, thus she knows the city really well and helped me in every way she can.
A few years back in the Philippines, Kat and I were workmates in an IT company. Ever since, I know Kat as that girl who fell in love with Prague after traveling there as a tourist. She amazingly worked her way to live and to work there, which is something I highly admire of her.
What to see in Prague
Exploring Prague, first up, I went to climb the Prague Castle. When you say going to the Prague Castle, it’s not just seeing the castle alone. It’s rather a compound with several points of interest. At the entrance, there’s no fee required, but note that access to several buildings may have a fee, including the access inside the Prague Castle itself.In the castle compound, I was also able to see this Gothic Catholic Church called the St. Vitus Cathedral. It’s probably the most eye-catching attraction because of its size.
This viewing deck should not be missed. As the Prague Castle sits on a hill, you can catch the panoramic view of Prague from there especially these uniformly orange-roofed houses!
Prague is probably known best for this Charles Bridge, which is, aside from being an overly populated bridge (I honestly got a bit dizzy while walking due to many people), it’s a historic bridge that witnessed several battles and triumphs during the 19th century. The bridge sits on the Vlatava River, which connects the Malá Strana and Old Town.
After crossing the bridge and walking further cobblestone paths and narrow alleys, I finally reached the Old Town. Similar to the Prague Castle compound, it’s a huge area with several sights to see.
To name a few, this the Church of Our Lady before Týn, a Gothic church in Old Town which I find very unique for its antique look.
If you see a mob at the Old Town Square, they’re probably after the “Walk of the Apostles,” an hourly show presented at the Astronomical Clock, one of the oldest functioning clocks in the world. It’s mounted on the building of the Old Town Hall.
How to move around
To be straightforward, moving around Prague could get tricky in the sense that the names of the stations (in Czech of course) aren’t easy to read and some even spell almost similarly. With this, to move around Prague, I bought an unlimited transportation card for all trams, metros, and buses. Tickets can be bought from the machine at any station. To me, it’s a good way to save in transportation expenses. In case of taking a wrong route or having to take a short ride from point A to point B, the unlimited rides come handy.24-hour ticket: CZK 110
72-hour ticket: CZK 310
Meanwhile, there are also timed tickets that you can use to transfer as many as you want in one direction (not allowed to return to your origin) on a given time frame. For example, on my way to the airport, I bought the 90-minute ticket where I took the tram first and hailed at Nádraží Veleslavín station, then transferred to bus 119, which is the specific bus number for the Prague-Ruzyne / Václav Havel Airport.
30-minute ticket: CZK 24
90-minute ticket: CZK 32
What do you love most about Prague?
Shelly Viajera Travel
