If you are planning to visit Prague, the first question that’s probably on your mind is how many days do I need?
To answer this question properly will really depend on your individual preferences and interests and how many days you actually want to allocate to your trip to Prague, but generally speaking, a 3-day itinerary works well to cover most of Prague’s main attractions.
Planning the perfect travel itinerary can be tough, as there is so much to see and do in Prague. On the one hand, if you have only one day in Prague, you will get a flavour for the city (and probably want to come back to see more) and if you have a whole week, you can easily fill it with sightseeing, admiring the stunning architecture, learning about the history, and experience the lively Prague culture.
There are of course people who said to me that they have seen ‘all Prague’ in 2-3 days (!!!) as there are people who stay for few weeks and still feel that they didn’t get the chance to visit everything they wanted.
By ‘Prague’ most people mean the centre – Prague 1, but there are so many other areas that are worth exploring, such as Vysehrad, Petrin, Karlin or Zizkov.
In this blog post, I wanted to share with you my top tips for creating your perfect Prague itinerary and help you to decide how many days you need to make the most of your stay in Prague.
How many days do I need for my visit to Prague? The Quick Answer
As a minimum, I would suggest three days (or 2-3 days), as anything less will feel very rushed and the chances are that most places you visit will turn into a bit of a blur.
Three days is enough to visit the Prague Castle, walk in the centre and across the Charles Bridge, stop for a coffee or lunch and visit one or two museums. You can also visit the Jewish Quarter, spend a few hours exploring the Vysehrad Castle or take a leisurely boat trip on Vltava river. You can easily plan your Prague trip over an extended weekend, arriving on Friday (as early as you can) and leaving on Sunday evening.
If you are visiting just for one day, then I would suggest to maximise your time by getting up super early and not visiting any tourist attractions inside. Walk around and experience the city on foot and see as much as you can.
How many days do you need to get to know Prague really well?
Again this depends on what you are interested in seeing in Prague, but if you like architecture, learning, museums, culture, food and walking you can easily spend a whole week here and never be bored.
I love history, so I go deep on every area of Prague and to me every house is interesting regardless whether it’s in the official guide book or not. In fact I like the little connections between places more than the large well known tourist attractions.
In 2018 I moved back to Prague (semi-permanently…) and I thought ‘I knew Prague’ since I’ve lived here, studied and worked here more than 20 years ago and, of course was also visiting Prague during that time on holiday! But, I have to say that after 5 years of exploring Prague (and writing my View from Prague blog), I’m still finding new places and learning! I quite like that Prague has changed over the last couple of decades and that there are always new attractions to visit, whilst historic Prague stays the same.
Planning your Prague trip itineraries
If you are in the initial stages of planning your Prague travel itinerary, I wanted to share with you my suggestions for each day depending on how much time you have. You can find detailed descriptions of each type of trip elsewhere on my View from Prague blog – just follow the links to take you directly to each individual section.
What I would like to say, that you should plan your visit based on what you like to do and see, so feel free to pick and choose whatever interests you most.
Notes to my itinerary suggestions
I’ve tried my best to keep things simple with each day dedicated to a particular area (or areas next to it), so that you can easily walk around or take a short ride by Prague tram to move to the next attractions.
How to get around Prague
My 1 or 2-day Prague itineraries require minimal transport as most of the attractions are close together and you can easily walk from one place to another. You only need one ticket to get to the top of Prague Castle and the rest is walkable.
From day three, I’d suggest getting Prague public transport card which will save you time (and your legs!). I’ve chosen one area per day, to minimise travel across the whole city, so in theory, you can still just get one ticket in the morning and one to get back to your accommodation in the evening. The public transport cost is inexpensive – your coffee will cost you about 1.5 – 2 times more than one tram ticket!
READ MORE:
- Using Prague public transport (tickets, prices & info) >>
- The full guide to tram network in Prague >>
- Comprehensive guide to Prague underground (Metro) >>
1 day Prague itinerary
My one day Prague itinerary might look quite long, but the trick here is to just walk around to soak up the history and experience Prague without actually going inside the main attractions, like Prague Castle or Jewish Quarter Synagogues.
You simply won’t have enough time to see everything, so this is the only way to pack everything into one day. Because of that, your one day in Prague will be also super budget-friendly, as all the attractions I suggest are accessible free of charge.
Be smart by taking the tram number 22 to the top of the Prague Castle area and then walk slowly down to the centre as you explore the town.
You will, of course, need to stop for lunch or coffee, but if you want to save time, you can visit one of the many traditional self-service canteens instead of restaurants. There are also plenty of coffee shops and fast food chains where you can pick a quick snack or stay for a coffee.
Longer day
- Prague Castle – walk around the castle ground only
- New World Area – narrow streets of old houses at the back of Prague Castle
- Hradcany Area – walk around the Loreta Church and Hradcany Square and surrounding streets
- Nerudova Street – independent shops, restaurants and beautiful historic houses
- Waldstejn or Vojanov Garden – beautiful gardens (free to enter)
- Kampa Island, John Lennon Wall & Certovka River
- Charles Bridge – walk around the Charles Bridge to take great photos
- Old Town Square – Old Town Astronomical Clock
- Jewish Quarter – walk around only
- Walk through the back streets of Old Town via Havels Market and Bethlehem Square to Narodni and see the Franz Kafka Rotating Head Statue nearby
- Wenceslas Square – for the nightlife, restaurants and Prague art cinemas
Shorter Day (1/2 day)
- Old Town Square
- Jewish Squarter
- Paris Street
- Ungelt Area
- The Kings Route
- Charles Bridge
READ MORE
2 days Prague itinerary
If you have two days in Prague, you can cover the centre of Prague first day as it’s all nice and flat (level walking) and the second day explore the Prague Castle and the Lesser Town area.
If you prefer, you can leave out visiting the inside of Prague Castle (the actual exhibitions and stately rooms) and visiting inside the Jewish synagogues, which will give you more time to explore the areas or have a break for lunch or coffee.
If the visibility is good, then you might like to visit the Astrological Clock Tower because you get some amazing views of the Old Town Square as well as seeing the clock from the inside and learning about its history.
- Day 1: Old Town Square, Astronomical Clock, Paris Street, Jewish Quarter (walk around only), The Kings Route, Charles Bridge, John Lennon Wall and then back to the centre – Wenceslas Square for the evening
- Day 2: Prague Castle Grounds, New World Area, Hradcany Area and Lesser Town Area Streets, Waldstein Garden, Vojanovy Garden, streets around Kampa Island, including the streets around Kafka Museum, Gingerbread House Shop and the Pissing Statues one of many art sculptures by artist David Cerny
3 days Prague Itinerary
If you have three days in Prague you will have enough time to visit all the exhibitions and stately rooms at Prague Castle (if you wish), the Jewish Synagogues and the Astronomical Clock Tower.
- Day 1: Old Town Square, Astronomical Clock, The Kings Route, Klementinum, Charles Bridge, John Lennon Wall (optional visit the Old Town Tower at the Charles Bridge)
- Day 2: Prague Castle, Golden Lane, New World Area, Hradcany Area and Lesser Town Area Streets, Waldstein Garden, Vojanovy Garden, Kampa Island (optional visit Vrtba Garden or the gardens under the Prague Castle)
- Day 3: Jewish Quarter – Josefov district, Old Jewish Cemetery, Spanish Synagogue, Jewish Museum, The Municipal House, Na Porici Street shops, Wenceslas Square
4 days Prague Itinerary
There is a lot you can see in four days in Prague, but make sure that you allow enough time for breaks and have plenty of rest for all the walking each day!
I would still suggest choosing which attraction you want to visit inside – Prague Castle can easily take a whole day if you visit everywhere. You might like to walk around instead and then visit the Strahov Monastery inside instead.
- Day 1: Old Town Square, Astronomical Clock, Ungeld Square, Tyn Church, The Kings Route, Charles Bridge and visit John Lennon Wall, Lesser Town Area Streets, Waldstein Garden, Vojanovy Garden, streets around Kampa Island
- Day 2: Prague Castle, New World Area, Hradcany Area, Strahov Monastery, Petrin Lookout Tower and park
- Day 3: Jewish Quarter – Josefov district, Old Jewish Cemetery, Spanish Synagogue, Jewish Museum, The Municipal House, Na Porici Street shops, Wenceslas Square
- Day 4: Vysehrad Castle Grounds, Naplavka, Emauzy Monastery or Botanical Garden at Karlov, Ginger & Rogers Dancing House, Shooters Island
5 days Prague Itinerary
If you have five days in Prague, I’d suggest also adding walking around Petrin Hill and visiting the Strahov Monastery, where you can see the most beautiful baroque library. There are great views from the Petrin Lookout Tower and the park is great for picnics.
- Day 1: Old Town Square, Astronomical Clock, The Kings Route, Charles Bridge, John Lennon Wall
- Day 2: Prague Castle, New World Area, Hradcany Area and Lesser Town Area Streets, Waldstein Garden, Vojanovy Garden, streets around Kampa Island
- Day 3: Jewish Quarter – Josefov district, Old Jewish Cemetery, Spanish Synagogue, Jewish Museum, The Municipal House, visit the historic Powder Tower, Na Porici Street shops, Wenceslas Square
- Day 4: Vysehrad Castle Grounds, Naplavka, Emauzy Monastery or Botanical Garden at Karlov, Ginger & Rogers Dancing House, Shooters Island
- Day 5: Kinsky Garden (Folk Museum), walk along the Hunger Wall, Petrin Hill Park, Lookout Tower, Strahov Monastery
6 days Prague Itinerary
Six days is a good amount of time to space out all the main Prague attractions and add less-known areas, such as Zizkov or Karlin. Alternatively, if you decide to visit most attractions inside, six days gives you more time to visit all the places you want.
- Day 1: Old Town Square, Astronomical Clock, Ungelt Square, Tyn Church, Klementinum, Kings Route, Charles Bridge, John Lennon Wall
- Day 2: Prague Castle, New World Area, Hradcany Area and Lesser Town Area Streets, Waldstein Garden, Vojanovy Garden or Garden’s Under the Prague Castle and streets around Kampa Island (Kafka’s Museum, Gingerbread House Shop, The Narrowest street in Prague)
- Day 3: Jewish Quarter – Josefov district, Old Jewish Cemetery, Spanish Synagogue, Jewish Museum, The Municipal House, Na Porici Street shops, Wenceslas Square
- Day 4: Vysehrad Castle Grounds, Naplavka, Emauzy Monastery or Botanical Garden at Karlov, Ginger & Rogers Dancing House, Shooters Island
- Day 5: Kinsky Garden, Hunger Wall, Petrin & Petrin Lookout Tower, Strahov Monastery
- Day 6: Main Train Station walk to Zizkov, Army Museum or Vitkov Monument, Vitkov Hill or Zizkov Television Tower, Farmer’s Market at ‘Jirak’ & Karlin, Karlin Army Accommodation Art & Culture Area, Independent shops
READ MORE
7 days Prague Itinerary
If you have seven days in Prague, you can see some of the lesser visited parts of the town (which is a great way to avoid crowds in Prague, by the way), such as Karlin, Zizkov or Vysehrad. I’ve added more attractions to this list and you can choose which one to spend more time in and which ones to skip based on your personal preferences.
- Day 1: Old Town Square, Astronomical Clock, Ungelt Square, Klementinum Area, The Tyn Church, The Kings Route Streets, Charles Bridge
- Day 2: Prague Castle, New World Area, Hradcany Area and Lesser Town Area Streets, Kampa Island, John Lennon Wall
- Day 3: Jewish Quarter – Josefov district, Old Jewish Cemetery, Spanish Synagogue, Jewish Museum, Paris Street, churches and streets beyond the Old Town Square
- Day 4: Vysehrad, Naplavka Farmer’s Market (Saturdays), Emauzy Monastery, Botanical Garden at Karlov, Dancing House, Shooters Island
- Day 5: Kinsky Garden, Hunger Wall, Petrin & Petrin Lookout Tower, Strahov Monastery
- Day 6: Main Train Station walk to Zizkov, Army Museum or Vitkov National Monument, Vitkov Hill & Karlin, Karlin Army Accommodation, Independent shops
- Day 7: Letna Park (Technical or Farming Museum), lunch at Hanau Pavilion, Stromovka Park & Exhibition area
8 days & longer Prague Itinerary
If you have a week or longer, I would suggest pacing yourself! What I found is that I can jam-pack 3 days with back-to-back activities, museums and experiences, but when I try to continue at the same speed, it’s super hard and travelling burnout can be real!
I try to mix longer days with shorter days and not have more than one museum or castle or something similar a day. I take longer to have a traditional breakfast in one of the Prague’s cafes, sit in the park to read a book or allow myself to stroll through unknown parts of Prague to see where the streets take me. I might have one thing that I like to see and then take the afternoon to explore the area to find out more and get a feel for the place.
I also mix Prague exploring days with days out away from Prague and visit nearby castles, experiences or UNESCO listed towns in the Czech Republic. My favourite places, which are no more than 1-1.5 hr by public transport from Prague centre include:
Castles & Chateaus
- Karlstejn – How to get to Karlstejn by train, car and on the foot >>
- Krivoklad
- Konopiste
- Veltrusy
- Mnisek pod Brdy
Historic Towns
- Kutna Hora
- Karlovy Vary
- Plzen
- Ceske Budejovice
- Pisek
- Pardubice – Visitors Guide >>
- Tabor
- Cesky Krumlov (3 hrs one way)
- Zatec – Visitors Guide >>
Interesting Places & Experiences
- Lidice – WW 2 memorial & new Lidice town, including house visit
- Okor Castle– large ruins of a castle, flat level walks in woodland and through pretty villages
- Pruhonice Park – Chateau and large park and gardens
- Nelahozeves – Art gallery in beautiful Chateau, flat level walks along Vltava river
- Nizbor – glass factory, castle museum, Berounka River and woodland walks
This blog post was originally written on 3 July 2023 and last updated on 3 July 2023
PIN THIS GUIDE FOR LATER