Blog Posts
No post found
Capital: Prague
Area: 78,871 sq km
Population: 10.5 million
Language: Czech
| Cities | ||||
| Prague | Brno | Ostrava | Olomouc | Pilsen |
The Czech Republic is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west, Austria to the south, Slovakia to the east, and Poland to the northeast.[15] The Czech Republic is a landlocked country with a hilly landscape that covers an area of 78,866 square kilometres (30,450 sq mi) with a mostly temperate continental climate and oceanic climate. It is a unitary parliamentary republic, with 10.6 million inhabitants.
The Czech Republic includes the historical territories of Bohemia, Moravia, and Czech Silesia. The Czech state was formed in the late ninth century as the Duchy of Bohemia under the Great Moravian Empire. In 1002, the duchy was formally recognized as an Imperial State of the Holy Roman Empire along with the Kingdom of Germany, the Kingdom of Burgundy, the Kingdom of Italy; and became the Kingdom of Bohemia in 1198, reaching its greatest territorial extent in the 14th century. Prague was the imperial seat in periods between the 14th and 17th century. The Protestant Bohemian Reformation of the 15th century led to the Hussite Wars, the first of many conflicts with the Catholic Church.
In the 19th century, the Czech lands became the industrial powerhouse of the monarchy and were subsequently the core of the Republic of Czechoslovakia, which was formed in 1918 following the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire after World War I
USEFUL INFORMATION
Currency & banking
On 1 January 2002, along with 11 other Member States of the European Union, France adopted the euro currency. These notes and coins can therefore be used in any country belonging to the euro zone: Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain.
- €1 is made up of 100 centimes or cents.
- Notes: €5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 200.
- Coins: 1, 2, 5, 10, 20 and 50 centimes, as well as €1 and 2€.
Credit cards from major providers are accepted almost everywhere. That includes Visa and Mastercard as well as American Express and Diners Club.
Just be wary of the charges you might incur for using your credit card overseas. These can include:
- International transaction fees
- High exchange rate margins
- ATM fees
- Potential ‘cash advance fees if you use an ATM
Etiquette
- Greetings It’s customary to say dobrý den (good day) when entering a shop, cafe or pub, and to say na shledanou (goodbye) when you leave. When meeting people for the first time, a firm handshake, for both men and women, is the norm.
- Visiting If you’re invited to someone’s home, bring flowers or a small gift for your host, and remove your shoes when you enter the house.
- Manners On the tram and metro, it’s good manners to give up a seat for an elderly or infirm passenger.
- Beer Never pour the dregs of your previous glass of beer into a newly served one. This is considered to be the behaviour of barbarians.
Getting around
Air
Czech Airlines (www.csa.cz) runs a handful of flights weekly from Prague to the eastern city of Ostrava, but the country is small enough that air travel is usually impractical. There are no flights between Prague and Brno.
Car & Motorcycle
Driving has compelling advantages. With your own wheels, you’re free to explore off-the-beaten-track destinations and small towns. Additionally, you’re no longer at the whim of capricious bus schedules and inconvenient, early-morning train departures. That said, driving in the Czech Republic is not ideal, and if you have the chance to use alternatives like the train and bus, these can be more relaxing options.
Bus
Long-haul and regional bus services are an important part of the transport system in the Czech Republic. Buses are often faster, cheaper and more convenient than trains, and are especially handy for accessing areas where train services are poor, such as Karlovy Vary and Český Krumlov.
Cycling
Cycling is an increasingly popular weekend activity in nice weather, though its full potential has yet to be realised. Southern Moravia, especially along a marked wine trail that runs between vineyards, is ideal for cycling.
Train
The Czech rail network is operated by České dráhy. Train travel is generally comfortable, reasonably priced and efficient. Trains are particularly useful for covering relatively long distances between major cities, such as between Prague and Brno, or Prague and Olomouc.
It’s always safer to buy tickets in advance. Seat reservations are usually not necessary on smaller, regional trains, but are recommended if travelling on a Friday or over the weekend when trains tend to be more crowded. Bikes can be transported for a nominal fee (35Kč to 50Kč) on trains marked with a bicycle symbol on the timetable.
What to wear
Light cotton clothes are needed in the summer, medium weight in the Winter. raincoats and waterproof clothing are especially needed in the western areas and the mountainous regions. Wherever you go, take a sweater for cool evenings.
Health advice
The US Center For Disease Control maintains an updated list of medical advice for those travelling to the Czech Republic.
The CDC recommends being up to date with all your regular shots. These vaccines include measles-mumps-rubella (MMR) vaccine, diphtheria-tetanus-pertussis vaccine, varicella (chickenpox) vaccine, polio vaccine, and your yearly flu shot
They also suggest being vaccinated for hepatitis A. There is also some advice about protection for hepatitis B and rabies – but this depends to some degree on where you are heading and what you are doing.
Health insurance
The European Health Insurance Card (EHIC) entitles EU citizens to the same emergency health-care benefits as local citizens receive from their national health care; therefore, most emergency care in the Czech Republic will be free for EU citizens, but transporting you to your home country, if you fall ill, will not be covered.
Citizens from other countries should find out if their personal insurance policy covers them abroad. Doctors expect cash if you do not have a national or European health-insurance card; make sure your insurance plan will reimburse your expenses.
Regardless of whether or not you carry an EHIC card, it’s always wise to bring cash, a credit card and a valid passport to any hospital or emergency clinic.
Recommended vacations
No jabs are required to travel to Italy, though the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends that all travellers should be covered for diphtheria, tetanus, the measles, mumps, rubella, polio and hepatitis B.
The level of health care in the Czech Republic is high, and all cities and large towns will have a hospital or clinic offering emergency medical treatment. Prague has several hospitals that are used to treating visiting foreigners. Costs are reasonable and generally lower than in Western Europe, and much lower than in the US.
Tap water safety
Tap water in Prague and other large cities is safe to drink. Opt for bottled water in rural areas.
Safety
Here is a link to the US State Department Travel Advisory for the Czech Republic for the latest information on travelling to Italy.
Remember the emergency number in the Czech Republic is 112. It works from any phone.
Travelling in the Czech Republic is generally safe, it’s highly ranked on the list of the safest and most dangerous countries. … Visitors of the country never faced any serious threats during their stay in the country, however, pickpocketing, petty thefts, bag snatching and ATM scams are possible.
Use ATM machines in a bank and not the ones on sidewalks. This is to prevent youngsters from rushing to you in a group and grabbing the money as it comes out of the machine. Also, some ATM machines on the street may have had their keyboards tampered with and will transmit your card number and code to someone who will try to empty your account. This is called card skimming.
Climate
The climate in the Czech Republic is moderately continental, with cold winters, during which the temperature is often below freezing, and warm summers, during which nights remain cool.
Precipitation is fairly frequent, but it’s not abundant in most of the country, amounting to around 400/500 millimetres (15/20 inches) per year. However, being scarcer in the winter months (when plants are at rest) and more abundant in late spring and summer, it is generally sufficient for agriculture. The only moderately rainy areas are found in the Sudetes Range, where precipitation exceeds 1,000 mm (40 in) per year, at the foot of the same mountain range (in Ostrava, precipitation exceeds 700 mm or 27.5 inches per year), and in the south-west, along the border with Germany and Austria.
During winter, from December to February, in Prague and in the other Czech cities, temperatures hover around freezing (0 °C or 32 °F) or just below, the weather is often dull and cloudy, and light snowfalls can occur. On the contrary, outbreaks of cold from Russia can bring intense frosts, with temperatures dropping to -20/-25 °C (-4/-13 °F) in the worst moments.
In spring, from March to May, the weather is unstable, and the first warm days alternate with the return of cold weather: frosts and snowfalls can still occur in April, especially in the first part of the month. There’s usually a turning point in the second half of May, when the maximum temperatures regularly reach or exceed 18/20 °C (64/68 °F), and the weather becomes enjoyable.
Summer, from June to August, is usually warm. There is a moderate amount of sunny days, during which showers or thunderstorms can erupt in the afternoon. Even in mid-summer, there can be cool and rainy days, with highs around 20 °C (68 °F), but also hot periods, during which the temperature may exceed 30 °C (86 °F) for a few days. However, temperatures are usually pleasant, with highs around 22/24 °C (72/75 °F) and lows around 12/13 °C (54/55 °F).
Autumn, which goes from September to November, is initially pleasant in the first half of September, and then becomes progressively more cloudy and cold, with fairly frequent rains.
Plains and hills
Most of the country is located between 200 and 500 meters (600 and 1,600 feet) above sea level and has a fairly homogeneous climate. In the capital, Prague, the altitude varies between 180 and 400 meters (600 and 1,300 feet).
Prague
Here are the average temperatures in Prague.
| Mth | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Min (°C) | -4 | -4 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 9 | 5 | 1 | -3 |
| Max (°C) | 1 | 3 | 8 | 14 | 19 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 19 | 13 | 6 | 2 |
| Min (°F) | 25 | 25 | 32 | 37 | 46 | 52 | 55 | 55 | 48 | 41 | 34 | 27 |
| Max (°F) | 34 | 37 | 46 | 57 | 66 | 72 | 75 | 75 | 66 | 55 | 43 | 36 |
In Prague, 525 mm (20.5 in) of rain or snowfall per year. Since the amount of precipitation falling during winter is not high, snowfalls are frequent but generally not abundant. During the summer, instead, the rains take place in the form of afternoon thunderstorms on sunny days or are brought by Atlantic weather fronts, which can arrive even in this season. Here is the average precipitation.
In Prague, the sun is rarely seen from November to February, while in summer, the sun can be obscured by Atlantic disturbances as well as by cloudiness in the afternoon, which, as we said, can also lead to thunderstorms.
Mountains
In the north, in the Sudetes mountainous area, on the border with Poland, temperatures decrease with altitude, especially in summer: at 800 meters (2,600 feet) above sea level, summer is cool, and the daytime temperature is typically around 18 °C (64 °F).
The highest point in the Czech Republic is Mount Snežka, 1,603 meters (5,259 feet) high. Here are the average temperatures on the top of Mount Praded, at 1,500 meters (5,000 feet) above sea level, in the Eastern Sudetes.
Best time to visit
The best time to visit the Czech Republic runs from mid-May to mid-September, since it is the warmest, or at least the mildest, of the year. Temperatures can be cool in May and September, and sometimes in June, while they are normally higher in mid-summer (July and August).
What to pack
In winter: bring warm clothes, such as a sweater, a down jacket, a hat, gloves, and a scarf.
In summer: bring light clothes, t-shirts and shorts, but also long pants, a jacket and a sweatshirt for the evening or for cooler days, and a raincoat or umbrella. The best time to visit Italy is during spring (March-May) and autumn (September-November), when the temperatures are comfortable and there are fewer crowds. Wildflowers in early April and rising temperatures through to the end of June are a real draw. From October, the summer heat eases off, the grape harvest is in full swing, and the cities are quieter for sightseeing. Temperatures in the south remain mild in winter. While it is the off-season and some attractions have limited opening hours, it’s still an enjoyable time to explore many of the country’s historical sites. Winters in northern Italy, however, are normally wet and cold. The summer months of July and August see higher temperatures and visitor numbers reach their peak. Prices are also higher
Visa information
What is Schengen?
Schengen refers to the EU passport-free zone that covers most of the European countries. It’s the largest free travel area in the world.
What is a Schengen Visa
A Schengen visa is a short-stay visa that allows a person to travel to any members of the Schengen Area, per stays up to 90 days for tourism or business purposes.
The Schengen visa is the most common visa for Europe. It enables its holder to enter, freely travel within, and leave the Schengen zone from any of the Schengen member countries. There are no border controls within the Schengen Zone.
However, if you are planning to study, work, or live in one of the Schengen countries for more than 90 days, then you must apply for a national visa of that European country and not a Schengen Visa.
The 26 Schengen countries are:
Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
Citizens of Which Countries Need a Schengen Visa to go to Europe?
The countries whose citizens are required to obtain a Schengen visa in order to enter any member country of the Schengen Area are:
| Afghanistan | Gabon | Oman |
| Algeria | Gambia | Pakistan |
| Angola | Ghana | Papua New Guinea |
| Armenia | Guinea | Palestinian Authority |
| Azerbaijan | Guinea-Bissau | Philippines |
| Bahrain | Guyana | Qatar |
| Bangladesh | Haiti | Russia |
| Belarus | India | Rwanda |
| Belize | Indonesia | Sao Tome And Principe |
| Benin | Iran | Saudi Arabia |
| Bhutan | Iraq | Senegal |
| Bolivia | Jamaica | Sierra Leone |
| Botswana | Jordan | Somalia |
| Burkina Faso | Kazakhstan | South Africa |
| Burma/Myanmar | Kenya | South Sudan |
| Burundi | Kosovo | Sri Lanka |
| Cambodia | Kuwait | Sudan |
| Cameroon | Kyrgyzstan | Suriname |
| Cape Verde | Laos | Swaziland |
| Central African Republic | Lebanon | Syria |
| Chad | Lesotho | Tajikistan |
| China | Liberia | Tanzania |
| Comoros | Libya | Thailand |
| Congo | Madagascar | Timor-Leste |
| Cote D’ivoire | Malawi | Togo |
| Cuba | Maldives | Tonga |
| Dem. Rep. Of Congo | Mali | Tunisia |
| Djibouti | Mauritania | Turkey |
| Dominican Republic | Mongolia | Turkmenistan |
| Ecuador | Morocco | Uganda |
| Egypt | Mozambique | Uzbekistan |
| Equatorial Guinea | Namibia | Vietnam |
| Eritrea | Nepal | Yemen |
| Ethiopia | Niger | Zambia |
| Fiji | Nigeria | Zimbabwe |
| North Korea | Northern Mariana’s |
Electrical
Which power plugs and sockets are used in Europe?
In Europe, the power plugs and sockets are of type F. The standard voltage is 230 V and the standard frequency is 50 Hz. Check out the following pictures.
Type F: also known as “Schuko”. This socket also works with plug C and plug E.
 |
| Type F: This socket also works with plug C and E |