Practical Information for visiting Czech Republic

The currency is the Czech koruna (CZK), often written Kc. Czechia is in the EU but has kept its own currency and there is no date set for the euro.

Do not use exchange booths in the Prague tourist centre. The “0% commission” signs conceal terrible rates, and the scam has been running for decades. Use a bank ATM, and decline the machine’s offer to convert to your own currency — always choose to be charged in koruna.

Cards and contactless are accepted almost everywhere, including trams, ticket machines and most pubs. Cash is still useful in villages and at markets.

Some shops and restaurants accept euros at a poor rate; paying in koruna is always better.

Tipping: round up or add five to ten per cent. Say the total you want to pay as you hand over the money rather than leaving coins on the table.

Coverage for mobile networks is comprehensive and fast, with 4G everywhere and 5G in the cities, from O2, T-Mobile and Vodafone. Trains, the metro and rural areas all have usable signal.

As an EU country, roaming from another EU or EEA plan works at domestic rates. Visitors from elsewhere can buy a prepaid SIM cheaply from any operator or supermarket.

Wi-Fi is free and widespread in hotels, cafes, restaurants, trains and long-distance buses — RegioJet and Leo Express both provide it, along with onboard entertainment.

Fixed broadband is fast and Prague has extensive public Wi-Fi. There are no access restrictions.

Czechia is a safe country with low violent crime. What affects visitors is almost entirely financial and concentrated in central Prague.

• Pickpocketing on tram 22, the metro, the Charles Bridge and Staromestske namesti is the main risk, and the operators are skilled.
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• Currency exchange booths in the tourist centre give rates far below the real one and rely on you not checking. There is a legal right to cancel within three hours, which they will not mention.
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• Taxis hailed on the street near tourist sites routinely overcharge. Use an app.
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• Bars in the centre that bring unordered snacks then charge for them, and strip clubs with extraordinary bills. Check prices before accepting anything.
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• Tram tracks and cobbles. Look both ways for silent trams, and wear sensible shoes — the cobblestones cause more visitor injuries than crime does.
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• Tick-borne encephalitis in forested areas — see health.

Healthcare is good, with a well-developed public system and private clinics in the cities. EU and EEA visitors are covered by the European Health Insurance Card; everyone else needs insurance, and travel insurance is a formal condition of entry for some visa holders.

Vaccinations: routine cover. Tick-borne encephalitis is genuinely worth considering — Czechia has one of the highest incidences in Europe, ticks are active from spring to autumn in forests and long grass, and the vaccine is the only reliable protection. Check yourself after walking and remove ticks promptly. Lyme disease is also present.

Pharmacies — lekarna — are well stocked and pharmacists knowledgeable; some are open around the clock in the cities.

Tap water is safe and good everywhere.

Air quality in the Ostrava basin and in the northern coal regions is poor in winter, which matters if you have a respiratory condition.

Drinking: Czech beer is stronger than it tastes and spirits are poured generously.

Say hello on entering. Dobry den when you walk into a shop, a compartment or a waiting room, and na shledanou when you leave. Not doing so reads as rude.

Remove your shoes when entering a Czech home. Slippers will be offered.

Toasting: make eye contact with each person as you say na zdravi, clink, and touch the glass to the table before drinking. Skipping the eye contact is a real faux pas.

In the pub, sit where there is room, including at an occupied table after asking. Beer arrives without ordering once you have had one; wave off further glasses or say when you are done.

Alcohol has a zero limit for drivers — absolutely zero, enforced. Drinking in public is restricted in Prague’s centre.

Smoking is banned indoors in restaurants and bars.

Czechs are reserved with strangers and warm once past that; the flat expression is not hostility.

Emergency numbers: 112 across the EU, or 155 for ambulance, 158 for police, 150 for fire. Operators on 112 speak English.

Medical. State hospitals treat emergencies; in Prague, Na Homolce and the Motol university hospital have foreign-patient departments, and Canadian Medical and similar private clinics are used to English-speaking patients. Carry your EHIC or insurance details.

Mountain rescue — Horska sluzba — covers the Krkonose, Sumava and other ranges on 1210. Walking routes are well marked with the Czech colour-blazing system, which is one of the oldest and best in Europe.

Lost documents: report to the police for a record, then contact your embassy — almost all are in Prague.

Pharmacies display the nearest all-night one in the window.