Prague’s sights stretch from Wenceslas Square through Old Town and across Charles Bridge to the Castle hill. Level central streets give way to cobbles, stairs and an uphill approach. Public transport links those sightseeing areas with the main railway station, the zoo and the airport.
Walking, trams or the metro?
| Criterion | Walking | Metro | Tram | Bus | Booked taxi |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Useful for | Central sightseeing | Longer cross-city journeys | Castle climb; late returns | Zoo and airport connections | Luggage; direct late returns |
| Practical limits | Cobbles, stairs, hills | Station access; final walk | Correct stop side needed | Request-stop procedure | Fare depends on journey |
| Cost basis | Free | Integrated transport ticket | Integrated transport ticket | Integrated transport ticket | Separate ride fare |
Walking is the default for the central sights. Upper Wenceslas Square starts beside the National Museum. Old Town Square leads towards Charles Bridge, then Lesser Town Square below Prague Castle. Stop to enjoy the squares and bridge along the way, rather than treating the route as a continuous march.
| Walking leg | Distance | Walking time |
|---|---|---|
| Upper Wenceslas Square → Old Town Square | about 1.2 km | about 16 minutes |
| Old Town Square → Charles Bridge | about 650 metres | about 9 minutes |
| Charles Bridge → Lesser Town Square | about 500 metres | about 6 minutes |
| Lesser Town Square → Prague Castle | about 650 metres | about 12 minutes |
Cobbles make wheeled luggage awkward, and the Castle approach adds stairs and a climb. Nerudova rises through Lesser Town towards the Castle district, so wear shoes suited to uneven paving and allow yourself breaks on the uphill stretch.
Txllxt TxllxT · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Edited
Metro lines and useful stops
| Line | Daily service | Intervals |
|---|---|---|
| A, green | 05:00–24:00 | Peak 2–4 min; otherwise 5–10 min |
| B, yellow | Approx. 05:00–24:00 | Peak 2–4 min; otherwise 5–10 min |
| C, red | Approx. 05:00–24:00 | Midday: weekdays 5 min; weekends 7.5 min |
Follow the line letter and terminus on the platform signs. Change between A and B at Můstek, A and C at Muzeum, and B and C at Florenc. The directions below apply to the named starting points, not every journey to that stop.
| From → stop | Line | Direction | Serves |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nádraží Veleslavín → Staroměstská | A | Depo Hostivař | Old Town |
| Staroměstská → Malostranská | A | Nemocnice Motol | Lesser Town |
| Zličín → Anděl | B | Černý Most | Smíchov |
| Muzeum → Hlavní nádraží | C | Letňany | Main railway station |
| Hlavní nádraží → Vyšehrad | C | Háje | Vyšehrad district |
From Hlavní nádraží, take C towards Háje to Vyšehrad: the station-to-station journey takes about 6 minutes. You still have a walk to the historic fortress grounds after leaving the metro. Ticket choices and first-use actions are explained in the payment sections below.
- Name
- Prague main railway station
- Location
- Wilsonova 300/8, Vinohrady 120 00 Praha-Praha 2 Maps
- Essential fact
- Prague’s main railway station, with access to Hlavní nádraží metro station on line C.
Dezidor · CC BY 3.0 · Edited
Trams to the Castle and at night
| Night | Service window | Interval | Transfer point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunday–Thursday | Approx. 00:00–04:30 | 30 minutes | Lazarská |
| Friday and Saturday | Approx. 00:00–04:30 | 20 minutes | Lazarská |
From Lesser Town, take tram 22 from Malostranská to Pražský hrad for the Castle approach. The stop-to-stop ride takes about 6 minutes. Choose the side whose forthcoming stops include Pražský hrad, rather than boarding by line number alone.
| Stop | Line | Castle-bound display | Serves |
|---|---|---|---|
| Malostranská | 22 | Bílá Hora / Vypich | Boarding in Lesser Town |
| Pražský hrad | 22 | Bílá Hora / Vypich | Prague Castle |
| Pohořelec | 22 | Bílá Hora / Vypich | Upper Castle district |
Pohořelec offers another approach through the upper Castle district. Prague tram routes and boarding covers the stop choice, ordinary versus sightseeing trams and travelling at night in more detail.
- Name
- Malostranská tram stop
- Location
- Malá Strana 118 00 Prague 1 Maps
- Essential fact
- A tram stop beside Malostranská metro station in Lesser Town.
Dezidor · CC BY 3.0 · Edited
The Petřín funicular has resumed trial operation with passengers, running daily from 07:00 to 22:15. It climbs Petřín hill from Újezd. The travel-pass section explains which visitor tickets include it.
Buses to the zoo and airport
| Service / day | Departures from Holešovice | Intervals |
|---|---|---|
| 112 weekdays | 05:02–00:01 next day | 5 min; then 6–7 min; later 30 min |
| 112 weekends / public holidays | 05:25–00:03 next day | 5 min; later 30 min |
| 59 daily | — | 3–10 min |
For Prague Zoo, board 112 at Nádraží Holešovice towards Zoo Praha – Troja. Get off at Zoologická zahrada. The ride takes about 12 minutes.
| Boarding stop | Service | Direction | Connection |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nádraží Holešovice | 112 | Zoo Praha – Troja | Prague Zoo |
| Airport Terminals 1 and 2 | 59 | Nádraží Veleslavín | Metro A |
| Airport Terminals 1 and 2 arrivals halls | 100 | Zličín | Metro B |
From the airport, service 59 connects with A towards Depo Hostivař: Nádraží Veleslavín to Staroměstská for Old Town takes about 16 minutes on the metro. Bus 100 connects with B towards Černý Most: Zličín to Anděl for Smíchov takes about 24 minutes on the metro.
Jakub Macek (JacubTheGamer13) · CC0 · Edited
All ordinary bus and trolleybus stops are request stops. Stand visibly in the stop area to board. Waving is unnecessary. To get off, press STOP or the door-request button soon after leaving the previous stop so the driver has time to stop safely.
Taxis and app-booked rides
Arrange a taxi through an app or telephone dispatcher rather than hailing one on the street. Liftago, Bolt and Uber are examples, not the only choices. Liftago also offers website booking without registration.
For an electronically ordered ride, the fare must be disclosed before departure and a confirmation sent immediately after the journey. With a metered taxi, make sure the meter is running and ask for a receipt at the end. Keep the booking or receipt so you have a record of the ride and its charge.
PatrikPaprika · CC BY-SA 3.0
Single tickets and travel passes
| Product | Validity | PID Lítačka app | Paper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Short single | 30 minutes | 36 | 39 |
| Long single | 90 minutes | 46 | 50 |
| Day pass | 24 hours | 140 | 150 |
| Three-day pass | 72 hours | 340 | 350 |
These Prague tickets allow transfers within their time limit. They cover integrated city transport, including ordinary airport services 59 and 100, but not Airport Express. Singles exclude the Petřín funicular; the passes include it. Choose the Prague product rather than a Region-only ticket.
Passes run for a rolling period from first validation or app validity, not to the end of a calendar day. Allow enough validity for the whole journey, including transfers.
- For four separate short journeys, singles cost CZK 144 in the app or CZK 156 on paper, while the day pass costs CZK 140 or CZK 150 respectively.
- For three separate longer journeys, singles cost CZK 138 in the app or CZK 150 on paper. Fewer such journeys favour singles.
- Three day passes cost CZK 420 in the app or CZK 450 on paper, versus CZK 340 or CZK 350 for a three-day pass.
Buying and validating tickets
Buy in PID Lítačka’s Tickets menu or through a searched connection, choosing activation and paying by card, Apple Pay or Google Pay. Internet access is needed for purchase and activation.
Button machines take Czech coins only, while touchscreen machines take coins and contactless payment, some also chip cards. Touchscreen terminals are contactless-only. Onboard contactless purchase is available on all city trams, buses and trolleybuses, but not Airport Express or suburban buses.
Do
- Stamp unstamped paper once: before the metro paid area or immediately on boarding a tram or bus.
- Keep the ticket for inspection and retain its first stamp through transfers.
- Activate app tickets and wait for validity before entering the metro paid area or boarding.
Don’t
- Re-stamp paper when changing vehicles.
- Stamp onboard purchases or tickets with validity already printed.
- Treat an app purchase as an already-valid ticket.
Sources & fact-checking
Checks against the sources below cover: services and fares and charges.
- Dopravní podnik hl. m. Prahy, akciová společnost — service
- Daytime operation
- Prague Airport — service
- Prague Integrated Transport (PID) organiser — service
- Metro
- Pražská integrovaná doprava — service
- Prague Main Railway Station | Prague City Tourism
- Getting around
- Liftago — service
- Prague Integrated Transport (PID) — service
- Petřín Funicular Resumes Operation After Two Years
- Jízdné a tarif
- Fare pricelist
- Tickets and fare
- New PID Tariff from 1 January 2026: Don’t pay more than you have to
- Welcome to Prague
- Tarif PID — Prague fare table
- Tarif 2026
- How do I get from…?
- Travel to Airport and Stations
- Tariff zones
- Journey from/to the Airport
- PID Lítačka — service
- How and where to buy tickets
- Contactless ticket purchase now on board every vehicle
- Pražská integrovaná doprava (PID); the Prague-zone surcharge is set for DPP inspectors — fares and charges
