The Advent market on Old Town Square stands as an iconic symbol of the Christmas season, marked by the ceremonial lighting of the Christmas tree. This tradition, central to the holiday spirit, continues this year with the winning tree selected from the Tree Search competition. Experts will fell the tree for the Old Town Square market on Nov. 25 before transporting it overnight to Prague on November 27-28. The eagerly anticipated lighting ceremony at Old Town Square is scheduled for Saturday, December 2, at 4 pm. Attendees can expect the enchanting display of around forty angels, accompanied by four and a half kilometers of LED light chains. Post the initial lighting, the tree will be lit regularly at 4:30 pm, 5:30 pm, 6:30 pm, 7:30 pm, 8:30 pm, and 9:30 pm, continuing to grace the square until January 6, 2024. In 2022, the Old Town Market was named by CNN among the best to visit during that winter holiday season. Yet, the spotlight won’t be reserved for a singular tree. Karlínské náměstí will illuminate its tree on November 27, followed by Petrské náměstí on December 3 from 5 pm. St. Nicholas will make a grand entrance on December 5, ushering...
Pařížská Street in Prague has once again been ranked among the 20 most expensive shopping streets in the world in terms of rents, according to data from Cushman & Wakefield. The survey, which compares nearly 50 countries worldwide based on the level of rents in retail space, places Pařížská Street in the Czech Republic at the 19th position. As of the third quarter of this year, the highest rent reached EUR 2,700 (more than CZK 66,000) per square meter annually, equivalent to about EUR 225 (more than CZK 5,500) per square meter per month. This positions the street as the 19th most expensive shopping destination globally, 11th in Europe, and the top spot in the Central and Eastern European (CEE) region. “Pařížská has long been a primary destination for luxury brands entering the CEE region. Every year, we witness the opening of a store for one of the world’s luxury brands here,” says Jan Kotrbáček, Partner and Head of Retail Leasing, CEE, Cushman & Wakefield. This marks the second inclusion of Pařížská in the ranking, surpassing Na Příkopě Street, which represented the Czech Republic in previous years in terms of retail rents. The Czech Republic consistently stands out as the...
A lengthy trolleybus has been delivered to Prague, marking a significant addition to the city’s transportation. The vehicle in question is the first Škoda Solaris-24m trolleybus, obtained by Prague’s transport company. Scheduled to start operations in 2024, it will run between Václav Havel Airport and Nádraží Veleslavín metro station. This new addition will be showcased at the Czechbus exhibition hosted at the PVA Expo from November 21 to 23. A total of 20 Škoda Solaris-24m trolleybuses have been procured by the city, replacing buses on the current route 119 (to be renumbered as route 59). Construction of the contact line, connecting the metro to the airport, began in February and is expected to conclude in early 2024. The network’s overall length will be 11.6 kilometers, covering only half of the metro-airport-metro route with intermittent segments. In unequipped sections, the trolleybus will operate as an electric bus utilizing built-in batteries. Impressively, the articulated Škoda Solaris-24m spans three sections and measures 24.7 meters in length. It features electronic assistance for the driver during cornering, controlling the position of the rear wheels. Equipped with two electric motors boasting 217 horsepower each, the trolleybus includes a battery designed for 12 kilometers of autonomous travel...
The traditional and popular Charity Advent Market 2023 is set to return, continuing its legacy of giving back. Hosted at The Mozart Prague hotel, known for its picturesque setting, the charity market is organized by the socially committed foundation “Act for Others,” promising an immersive Christmas experience. Collaborating once again, The Mozart Prague, Bontonfilm, and Act for Others unite to bring international LIVE MUSIC, handicrafts, high-quality products, and a plethora of culinary delights during the first weekend of Advent. Families, Prague residents, expats, and tourists are all warmly invited to partake in this festive event. Proceeds from the market will continue to support the facilities in Neratov (Sdružení Neratov) for disabled children and adults, a cause championed by Act for Others over the years. The primary goal of Act for Others is to aid projects for the integration of people with disabilities in Neratov. Established by Baroness Melanie von Schilling and managed by four other dedicated board members, the Prague-based foundation has been organizing this cherished charity Advent market since 2014. It initially took place at the Malteser Palais until 2017, moved to the Senate in 2019, and has been held at The Mozart Prague since last year, alongside other...
Anything involving bureaucracy in Czechia can be a horror experience for many foreigners residing in Prague. Whether signing a rental agreement for your new apartment, registering with the foreign police, applying for a visa, or even simply mailing a letter to the post office, overcoming the obstacles of language barriers and cultural differences can cause a roadblock in expat integration. For some of us who may not have a close Czech friend to rely on to assist us in these troublesome procedures, it may be important to look elsewhere for help before signing the contract, opening a business, or compiling the necessary documents to apply for residency. That’s where PRAGate comes in, providing translation and consulting services specifically catered to help you in these situations. Alexander Mikolas, head of PRAGate, expressed that navigating various matters can be challenging for foreigners in this environment. “This difficulty is amplified by the language, which acts as a protective barrier for the nation. It determines one’s inclusion or exclusion in Czech society, making interactions with offices, bureaus, and landlords especially challenging for those who find themselves excluded.” Alexander moved to Prague from his hometown of Karlovy Vary to study law after graduating from high...
The Czech Technical University (ČVUT) campus in Prague opened a training and research centre for simulated space missions on Tuesday, which was also attended by Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli. The Little Moon City project will provide facilities and conditions for scientific, university and commercial research. The entire concept is to allow testing of instruments, materials, procedures, or human crews in conditions resembling space. Little Moon City consists of a deep-sea station called Deep Lab H03 by the Hydronaut project. It is designed for long-term stays of small diving crews underwater, as well as on land, and can also simulate a stay in the space shuttle. The station has been designed for a wide range of research, from the effects of isolation and extreme environments on the human psyche, to testing the functionality of technologies under extreme pressure. “Our goal, among other things, was to enable people who don’t have diving training to work in the habitat. We could observe how a biologist or zoologist, for example, would work in such an environment. Getting such people into the module when it is ten metres underwater is a problem,” said project leader Jiří Schneider. The module is less than ten cubic metres...
The inaugural Christmas fair in Prague is set to start on Monday, 20 November 2023 at Náměstí Míru. The popular Christmas market in front of the picturesque Church of St Ludmila will once again include stalls offering a wide range of Christmas products such as mistletoe, Advent wreaths, candles, candle holders, toys, Christmas decorations, confectionery, Advent calendars, nativity scenes, and arts and crafts products. On offer will also be traditional Christmas goods such as Christmas punch, mead, mulled wine, roasted chestnuts, pancakes, BBQ specialties, and many more. Popular Czech foods on offer include: large hams roasted on spits (šunka); barbecued sausages (klobása); flatbread topped with garlic, cheese and ketchup (langoš); chips (hranolky); smoked meat dumplings (knedlíky plněné uzeným masem); sweet dumplings (sladké knedlíky); and pancakes or crêpes (palačinky). The imposing neo-Gothic Church of St. Ludmila overlooks the wintery Christmas market, complete with a massive Christmas tree and Nativity scene. Operating hours for this market are from 10:00 to 20:00 daily, concluding on Christmas Eve, 24 December. For details on the opening schedules of other Christmas markets in Prague, refer to the information available here.
Penta Real Estate, a top-tier development company, has secured a deal with Czech Railways, purchasing long-unused land near Prague’s magistral for a minimum of CZK 244 million. The price is expected to rise further following changes to the zoning plan. The funds from this deal will be utilized by Czech Railways for investments into new trains and services. The acquired land will see Penta continue its construction of a new district around its newly opened office building, Masaryčka. This move comes after Penta’s recent acquisition of ČSAD Praha Holding, which owns the Florenc bus station and adjacent plots. Pavel Streblov, Director of Commercial Construction for Penta Real Estate, explains, “We recently completed the first construction phase around Masaryčka. We want to continue building towards Florenc in the intentions of the urban competition from 2021 and thus connect the city center with Karlín. Thanks to the land purchase, we can now complete negotiations with the city about changing the zoning plan for this location.” A large part of the purchased land will become the city’s property once the streets and public spaces are built. Some of the plots currently house a commercial center designed by Iraqi-origin architect Zaha Hadid, which was...
A skating rink will be opened under the Nusle Bridge in Prague’s Folimanka Park in the Jammertal sports and recreation area. It will open on 1 December and will be open until 29 February 2024. The area of the ice rink is 630 square metres. Next to it, visitors will find skate hire and a tent with warming drinks and snacks. The entrance ticket for the whole day will cost CZK 50, while children under six years old can enter free of charge. On the opening day of the ice rink, the organisers will launch a webcam aimed at the ice rink so that visitors can get an idea of how busy it is in advance. In spring, summer and autumn the park is open for roller sports, in winter there is an ice rink. There are also two Pétanque courts, a yoga space, ping pong tables and interactive water features for children. The area is also attractive for non-athletes, as there are picnic tables and barbecues. Address: Park Folimanka, Prague 2 Opening hours: 01.12.2023 – 29.02.2024 weekdays – from 14:00 to 20:00 weekends and holidays – from 09:00 to 20:00
On Wednesday, 15 November, a vending machine offering filtered tap water was installed at Prague Main Station. This marks the beginning of the “Plastic-free railway” (Železnice bez plastů) ecological project started by the Czech Railway Transport Authority. In the coming weeks, similar machines will be introduced at Kolín, Praha-Smíchov, Hradec Králové hl. n., Náchod, Děčín hl. n., Plzeň hl. n., České Budějovice, and Břeclav railway stations. The water stations will be conveniently placed in halls or main corridors and will use carbon filtration in combination with UV-C LED technology to ensure water quality. The primary aim of the project is to encourage passengers to minimize waste in public spaces and provide them with an alternative to bottled water. Jiří Svoboda, the director general of the Railway Administration, explained that the project’s goal is to provide passengers with a more sustainable alternative to buying bottled water. “In the current situation, people don’t really have a choice, and when they decide on their drinking regime while traveling by train, they usually end up buying bottled water. In addition, our long-term surveys and experience show that classic public drinking fountains are not among the preferred sources of drinking water, mainly because of their...
The Prague Transport Company (DPP) will acquire up to 200 unidirectional articulated trams, specifically the Škoda ForCity Plus, for a total of 16.6 billion CZK. Initially, DPP will place a firm order for 40 trams, with the first batch of 20 expected to arrive in the capital by 2025. Daniel Šabík, the head of DPP’s press department stated that the agreement with the supplier would be formalized after a 15-day objection period for bidders has concluded. The company will announce the exact appearance of the trams after the objection above period has passed. DPP evaluated the vehicles on various parameters, including the presence of electromagnetic brakes, eco-friendly coolant in the air conditioning, a wheel diameter of no less than 640 millimeters, and the vehicle’s capacity and weight. The transport company received two final bids in the tendering process. In addition to the tender winner, Stadler also applied with a vehicle codenamed Stadler Tango NG Prague, raising a proposal for approximately CZK 17.77 billion. Currently, DPP has around 800 trams, with approximately half of the vehicles being low-floor. With nearly 11,000 employees, DPP is the largest city company responsible for operating public transport. The trams serve 35 lines. In the past,...
The shape of the Dvorecký bridge, which is currently under construction, will be complemented by neo-cubist sculptures with water features and special lighting. The completion of the connection between Podolí and Zlíchov for public transport, cyclists and pedestrians is expected in November 2025. On Monday, councillors approved the purchase of sculptural objects for the Dvorecký bridge for a price of CZK 8.5 million. “I’m glad that Prague is investing in culture again,” said Jiří Pospíšil, deputy mayor for culture and heritage preservation. “The so-called botanical garden of light will grow under the newly emerging Dvorecký bridge. The selected works come from artists from all over the world. The botanical garden will offer another link between public space and culture. I see it as a great use of open space for artistic activity.” Five works of art will be created, including a neo-cubist concrete sculpture called Heavy Head Boy with an electronically controlled water system. The shape of the sculptures is part of the winning design that emerged from a two-round architectural competition. “In addition to completing the decoration of the bridge, we want the sculptures to complement the newly emerging public space with valuable artistic elements and functional furniture,” added...
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