Tourist attractions Prague

There are few places in the world where a city shows its soul such as here. Although Prague was recognised as a city in 1230, it wasn't until 1338 that Jean de Luxembourg allowed the city to build a City Hall . From then on, this square became the h..

Bordered by the curving Vltava and the boulevards that have replaced the fortifications, the Old Town of Prague has a long history, visible everywhere in its maze of streets and squares (Staromestské námestí, námestí Republiky). Old churches - St. J..

A powerful symbol of the magic of Prague, the clock represents the passing of time and life. When the hour strikes, Christ appears with the twelve apostles, Death, the Turk, the Jew and Vanity. The cock crows at the end the display. The clock was ins..

For some, the Staronová Synagoga was built with stones brought from the Temple of Jerusalem. Others claim that it appeared entirely built, on a plot of land that was being levelled out. Others say that its Hebrew name, which means ‘‘Provisional’’, si..

The Jewish quarter in Prague goes back to the city's very beginnings. From the 9C, communities were set up and in the 13C settled in a ghetto complete with its own fortifications in the heart of the Old City. Over the years and monarchies, the Jews w..

There are 12,000 tombs, but probably close to 80,000 people are buried in the Jewish Cemetery (Starý zidovský hrbitov). The Jewish rite forbidding disinterment means that coffins have been buried on a dozen different levels. Both humble and illustrio..

Erected between 1905 and 1911 opposite the Powder Tower , the Municipal Building (Obecní dum) was a challenging project: constructing an edifice intended for prestigious official and cultural gatherings, and the various related services, on an irreg..

This was the first stone bridge over the Vltava built under the orders of Charles VI. It joins Stare Mesto and Mala Strana and was built between 1357 and 1402. Charles Bridge is a 516-metre-long, 9.5-metre-wide Gothic structure resting on mortar join..

Terraced gardens, known as the ‘‘gardens below the Castle’’, run all along the southern side of the Castle to Malá Strana , affording magnificent views of the entire city. The main architectural asset of Ledebour Garden is its splendid sala ter..

Between the bend in the Vltava and the Castle, bordered by the green Petrin hill to the south, the «little side» of Mala Strana is strewn with palaces and churches. While it is difficult to find the traces of the area's troubled history here, you can..

This is a 750-metre avenue that ends at the imposing National Museum and the Statue of Wenceslas on Horseback . It was originally the horse market that Charles IV wanted to make the centre of his New City. Since the 19C, this has been the symbolic g..

The façade of the Church of St. Nicholas , giving onto Old Town Square , is a splendid Baroque construction (1732-1737), the work of Prague architect Kiliá Ignác Dientzenhofer. While the exterior is not very different from most of Prague’s churches..

Charles IV was responsible for the construction of a cathedral within the Castle walls to replace the Romanesque basilica. St Guy's was started in 1344 under the direction of Matthew of Arras in the French Gothic style. His work was continued by P..

The Castle is more than that: it is a string of courts, a puzzle of palaces and churches, mazes and alleyways; a real city within a city. Despite its long and often troubled history, through times of starvation and decline, it has been a unifying for..

Hradcany is the most visible area of the city, due to the Castle and the spires of St Guy's, as well as the most visited, because of the many attractions that delight monument-seekers: from its paintings, buildings and churches to its views. It is al..

A simple church has stood here since the 10C, frequented by foreign merchants who negotiated in the walls of the Tyn. In 1270, it was replaced by a first Gothic building, succeeded by the current one, started in 1380 but not finished until the late 1..

This superb statue by Ladislav Saloun, evoking the honesty and courage of the famous reformer Jan Hus, stands in the centre of Old Town Square. Hus is shown surrounded by faithful Czechs forced into exile for having listened to his sermons in the chu..

This wide street, built in the early 20C in the former Jewish ghetto ( Josefov ), combines Neo-Renaissance, Neo-Baroque and Secession styles in a series of buildings unlike anything else in Prague. Corbelling and richly decorated balconies adorn faça..

Pinkas Synagogue, built in 1535, is the second oldest in the ghetto. Inside, a vaulted Gothic nave stands next to a lateral Renaissance nave added to the original building between 1607 and 1625 in order to have a separate area for women. Extensively ..

Between Old City Square and Crusader Square , Charles Street snakes through some of the oldest buildings in Prague. Behind their Baroque facades lie Gothic courtyards and Romanesque basements. With every twist and turn, the small streets and alley..