When I visit a new city I always love to get up high and see the whole place from the clouds. I’ve dragged myself up some pretty tall places in my travels, just to get that perfect perspective (and the perfect shot for instagram). And Prague is such a beautiful city to see from above – from the winding streets and beautiful architecture, to an amazing view of the famous Charles Bridge, you’re going to want to get that view.

But where is the best place?

You can get a great view from Prague Castle, but I’ll be honest, when I visited Prague for a short break I think I stumbled upon the best – and that is from the Petrin Observation Tower. Located high up on Petrin Hill, this little gem of an attraction is going to be somewhere you want to prioritise. Here’s all the information you need to visit Petrin Observation Tower in Prague.

The Petrin Tower (also known as Petřínská rozhledna) is one of the most prominent landmarks in the city, having been built in 1891 as part of the Jubilee Exhibition. The design might even look a little familiar, as it was loosely based on the design of the Eiffel Tower. It’s located on Petrin Hill which in its own right is a beautiful place to explore, and itself has some lovely city views and was only a short walk from the Old Town.

There are a few ways to get to the base of the tower, and some of them will be dictated by when you go 9and a little luck). Petrin Hill has its own furnicular which climbs from the street below and takes you right up to the Tower without breaking a sweat. When we visited, the furnicular was closed, so we had a decision to make. Give up, or climb the hill.

We climbed the hill.

It’s about a 30 minute walk to the summit of the hill, but it is pretty steep – so if you have mobility options, make sure you check if the furnicular is operating. The walk is lovely though, and you can take it slowly. There are plenty of benches to stop at if you need a little rest, and you can enjoy the view at every level. You can also take a taxi, but where is the fun in that?

Once you reach the tower, you have 299 steps to climb to get to its peak, winding around the tower. It’s not incredibly steep, but the tower is 63.5 metres high so if you’ve climbed the hill too, make sure you get your breath back! Once you reach the top of the tower you are actually almost 400m high over Prague and the pay off are some of the most incredible views I’ve seen in Europe.

From our vantage point we could see Charles Bridge and the Vltava River (we could even spot our hotel), the Old Town and the beautiful Prague Castle in all its glory. This is why I prefer the view from the tower – you can see the castle from here.

Once you’ve got your fill of the view, there are a few other things to do. The tower is set within some beautiful gardens which are wonderful to walk round, even in the crisp winter weather. there’s also an observatory and telescope, a church and a mirror maze which are all fun to do, to make the most of your time climbing that huge hill!

Like many attractions in Prague, the tower is inexpensive to visit at 150 CZK per adult. It’s open all year round from 10am, and later in the summer – I can imagine seeing the view from here at sunset would be absolutely incredible.

Would you take a visit to the Petrin Observation Tower in Prague next time you are in town?

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