Blogs from Czech Republic, Europe - page 3

MON, 29 AUG 2022 – Day 17: Vienna - Prague - Today we’re off to the Czech Republic! Prague is a beautiful city, boasting elaborate baroque, gothic, art nouveau and cubist architecture, and rewarding those who explore it with quirky bars, cobbled lanes and secluded courtyards. Known for its brilliant beer and abundance of history, any exploration of Prague will be a memorable one. A local guide will take us on a walking tour and introduce us to the must-see sights of the city, before you have a free afternoon to explore more at your own pace. You have the option to experience a traditional Czech folk music and dancing evening including a traditional four-course meal tonight. Overnight – Hotel Amedia Express... read more

Took CK Shuttle to Cesky Kumlov from Prague. Cesky Krumlov is a UNESCO heritage site about a three hour drive south of Prague in a mountainous region. It is a well preserved city of 13,000 people with most of the structures from the 14th and 15th century. A river meanders through the middle of the city. Cesky Krumlov has the second largest castle in the Czech Republic and sits on top of the hill in the middle of the city. Why is that? It always makes it so much more difficult to get up there!! The streets are all cobblestone which also makes it difficult to walk. Most people take one day tours to the city and spend 3 to 4 hours here. Before Covid, up to two million people would visit a year. We decided ... read more

This evening we booked a dinner and show with my favorite booking agent VIATOR.COM. The Czech Traditional Folklore Show including dinner was available from Viking but due to overbooking the Viking version was booked solid so I turned to Viator and, boy, am I glad we did! I received a notice to meet our driver at 6:40 in the front lobby. At the precise time advised a very well dressed man in suite and tie approached me and asked , "Phil?" I said "Yes" and he offered, "Right this way; your private car is right outside. We followed him to a sleek, black, brand new, Mercedes Benz deluxe van! We were showed inside and off we went. Had we booked with the Viking team we would have been two people in a huge crowd of others ... read more

Tonight features dining and entertainment. I booked a special Historical Fantasy Show using Viator (my favorite booking website). The plan calls for a traditional Czech dinner, all the wine and beer you want, a full 5-Course meal, and entertainment. Sounds fun, so let's go! We asked at the front dest the best way to get to the restaurant. They said go out the door turn left and left again. Walk past the Astronomical Clock and 5 minutes from there is the restaurant. Great, 30 minutes later, after several wrong turns and going in the wrong direction once again, we arrived at our destination, U Pavouka at the Korma Restaurant. Dinner was scheduled for 8 PM. We arrived a little early. We left a full 45 minutes early to compensate for getting lost, so we had some ... read more

Prague is a very old town built back in the 800's as a fortified city on the Vltava River. The old castle sits on a hill overlooking the city that grew up around it. Today our plan was to walk around the city, get our bearings, see some sites, eat some local cuisine, and just enjoy. The only thing on our schedule was a Ghost and Legends Tour we booked through Viator at 8:30 this evening, so the day was ours. Our first order of business was to find the Old Town Center. We left the hotel turned left and walked through a tunnel into an alley and there, in front of us, was the Old City Center. Now this is a wide open space filled with restaurants, shops of every description, bars, and so much ... read more