I've just spent a week in Prague (feb 2007) & I am impressed with their public transport system - easy, efficient & best of all cheap!
If you're flying in then you start straight away getting the bus from the aiprort to the centre.
Inside the arrivals hall (Terminal 1 for uk flights) ... Read review
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Advantages: Amazingly efficient, simple & easy to use & incredibly cheap public transport Disadvantages: Taxis can be a rip off, hearing the name of your tram stop & actually recognising it can take a bit of practice!
...then you start straight away getting the bus from the aiprort to the centre.
Inside the arrivals hall (Terminal 1 for uk flights) on the right hand side of the exit are some kiosks. Get your transport system tickets here (combined cover for bus, tram & metro on multi trip / multi day tickets) - and pick up a free map of the tram & metro systems while you are at it . You'll definately need this - stops are usually announced on bus, ... ...standard as ours, it means nothing! so the map is very usefully for counting stops etc!
Tickets range from single trip (really cant see the point of that) to multi-day passes. We got a 7 day pass for 280Kr, about £7 - a 3 day pass was 200Kr (£5).
To get into the centre you need the 119 bus (you can get a taxi or the airport express both of which are dearer & believe me the bus is simple).
I've just spent a week in Prague (feb 2007) & I am impressed with their public transport system - easy, efficient & best of all cheap!
If you're flying in then you start straight away getting the bus from the aiprort to the centre.
Inside the arrivals hall (Terminal 1 for uk flights) on the right hand side of the exit are some kiosks. Get your transport system tickets here (combined cover for bus, tram & metro on multi trip / multi day tickets) - and pick up a free map of the tram & metro systems while you are at it . You'll definately need this - stops are usually announced on bus, tram & metro but if your czech is the same standard as ours, it means nothing! so the map is very usefully for counting stops etc!
Tickets range from single trip (really cant see the point of that) to multi-day passes. We got a 7 day pass for 280Kr, about £7 - a 3 day pass was 200Kr (£5).
To get into the centre you need the 119 bus (you can get a taxi or the airport express both of which are dearer & believe me the bus is simple).
Go out of the arrivals hall & just across the road infront of you are the bus bays - the 119 is (with your back to arrivals) last one on right hand side. Its the Dejvicka / 119 bus that you want. On boarding the bus, stamp your ticket in the machine (grey & yellow with a big arrow on it) & thats your ticket validated for its length of use - you dont stamp it again anywhere (bus, tram or metro) but you do need to carry it on you in case of checks (not that i saw anyone having their ticket checked in the week i was there).
The 119 takes about 25 minutes into the centre. Dejvicka is the last stop & they even play in english a 'please get of the bus now' so you will know when you are there.
Dejvicka is the start of metro line A - the green line. There are 3 metro lines running across Prague - A - green, B - yellow, C - red. Entrances to metro stations are identified by a square sign in either green, yellow or red with the corresponding letter, A, B, C & a big arrow pointing down to the entrance. Decision for direction is made on the platform. Signs over hang the central walkway, with the station name circled & then all the stopping stations either side of that listed with an arrow pointing to either platform 1 or 2 depending on direction. (hard to describe but easy when you see it.). Metros run frequently although on the platforms you only get to see how long since the last train NOT how long til the next train!?
Trams - trams skirt around & through the city & again are very simple & convienient (we used trams & metro all the time & only the bus to & from the airport) + you get to see where you're going which is nice when you cross the river (Vltava). Tram stops look a bit like our bus stops. A pole with a rectangle board on top with a picture / schematic of a tram. The signs also have the timetables - the stop you are at is highlighted in bold and the direction is towards the stops listed below the bold one. If that's not the direction you want cross over to the other side & that one will be! Trams seem to stop at every stop anyway but to be on the safe side there is a little green button ususally on a pole nearest the doors & if you push that after the stop before yours the tram will definately stop. Trams run roughly every 10 minutes.
night time - things change around 11.30 / midnight for trams & buses (not sure re the metro) & then you get night service so if you are planning to be in the centre late & your staying outside of the centre it is worth making sure you know how you're going to get back.
Warning - we didnt have any trouble at all, but residents & tourists talk of serious pickpocketing going on, particularily on trams & metros & i can see that in the busy summer months with loads of people squashed in then it could easily be a problem.
Taxis - Both Brits & Czechs that we met just said taxis are a NO - if you really need to, then get your hotel to book one for you & you're less like ly to be ripped offf. We never actually needed one - seriously their transport system is simple & cheap & did everything we needed of it.
So, I hope this has helped you & I wish you an enjoyable stay.
Advantages: cheap, good network Disadvantages: taxi drivers will fleece you
...longer then I would advise getting a day ticket CZK70, a three day ticket CZK200, a week ticket CZK250 or a fortnight ticket CZK280. For the longer tickets you have to sign them, and that means that they are not transferable. The inspectors will often pick out foreigners for ticket inspections and are very punitive for those without tickets, and at 6 pounds for a fortnight's ticket, there really is no reason to faredodge. The tram network runs from ... ...routes with trams roughly every 40 minutes. The trams are often packed, and it is adviseable to mind your pockets and their contents in the general throng. There are also bus routes and these operate with a similar frequency.
In case you are not put off by the dodgy cab drivers, I feel it only fair to reward those who have read this far with the other cab experience I had. Czech cab drivers use the tramtracks as extensions of the carriageway. I ...
Morgenhund 08.01.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Getting around in Prague
Advantages: Beautiful Exciting City - A Must See Disadvantages: Cunning Taxi Drivers
I can honestly say I had no preconceptions about Prague. Being quite a niave and ignorant person I wasn't even sure what a "czech" looked like.....I wasn't even too sure where abouts on the map it was either.
Me and my friend decided to go to Prague for a weekend break, it was cheap and it was a break.....and to be honest it was as simple as that. We went at the end of September and I had taken 2 coats because without even thinking to check the ... ...it would be cold. As usual my instinct was wrong. We arrived in Prague early Friday evening although we did start our journey at 5am that morning. We couldn't get a direct flight as we had booked too late, and had to get a connecting flight from Frankfurt....which is not recommended. Book in advance and get a direct flight so you don't have to spend 5 hours in Frankfurt airport drinking heffemeister - its strong stuff.
Anyway, our arrival in Prague ...
hlmccarron 13.10.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Getting around in Prague
Advantages: Beautiful city centre, fascinating outskirts Disadvantages: Too many English drunks
...To me flying is like getting in a lift in the UK and getting out again in another city, with no idea where that city is and how you got there. We drove in through miles of countryside. The farms were interesting to me in the way that they differed from those in other countries we'd driven through. In Germany there were immaculate fields of golden crops, or meadowland, whereas in the Czech Republic there was either just great areas of scrubland or ... ...and weeds. Our Rough Guide told us that the country cannot afford the Mosquito Programme. In the whole time we were travelling in the Republic, we never saw a single cow, sheep, horse, pig, duck or even a chicken. Very strange.
The forests were very dense, dark and enormous. But the intriguing thing to me was the fact that at nearly every crossroads there was usually a girl, just standing there, or sitting on the ground, having a fag - in the middle ...
Gingersnap60 27.10.2005
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Getting around in Prague
Advantages: Cheap, efficient, easy to use. Disadvantages: Confusing to newcomers
...end up with the police getting called. The penalty for getting caught without a ticket is around 800kc (Around fourteen pounds), so if you're trying to skive a 12kc ticket, you've only got yourself to blame for being so !
However, the ticket inspectors sometimes offer to let you pay half the fine on the spot - which usually means it goes straight into their pocket.
The metro system has three lines, that cross around the Mustek/Muzeum area in the ... ...of horror stories about tourists getting ripped off by Prague taxi drivers. In practice, you'll generally be fine if you flag down a moving taxi, and agree a price before you get in. Fares tend to vary, but if you're obviously a tourist, you're going to end up paying between 300-500kc for a taxi in the center of Prague.
Keep away from groups of taxis huddled around clubs, restaraunts and tourist spots. These guys WILL rip you off, and probably take ...
PlisskenInPrague 31.10.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Getting around in Prague
Advantages: Trams and the underground are regular, reliable and CHEAP! Taxis have improved as well. Disadvantages: You've just got to watch out for pickpockets and cowboy taxi drivers...
As far as I can tell, general security for tourists in Prague has improved markedly over the last few years. I first visited the Czech capital in the spring of 1997, and when I returned in July 2000, there were markedly less hawkers around the main attractions and the city itself feels safer. The Charles Bridge in particular is now mercifully free of people pushing and jostling you, and the traders on the bridge all now appear to be licensed. Whether ... ...sold is a moot point, but it's definitely an improvement!
As others have pointed out, the the underground service and trams are an absolute bargain - normally packed but reliable, and it is very easy to get around the city using public transport. The hotel I stayed at last summer even provided the all-day tram tickets at reception, thus avoiding the intricacies of Czech ticket machines! Make sure that you stamp the tickets when on the trams though, ...
JVL 08.01.2001
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Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful Review of Getting around in Prague
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