3 Days in Prague at Christmas: Best Markets & More!
How to spend 3 Days in Prague at Christmas! Prague is an incredible city. On a multi-city Europe trip in 2017, it was one of my FAVORITE stops.
It is an absolutely beautiful city, and visiting during Christmas just amplifies it.
So, even if you have visited Prague before, it is worth visiting again for the Christmas magic!
Here is how to spend 3 days in Prague at Christmas seeing the best Christmas markets, visiting the must-see sites in Prague, enjoying a Christmas concert, taking a ride down the Vltava River and more!
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3 Days in Prague at Christmas Overview
We flew into Prague rather late, so we had 3 full days to explore Prague. The itinerary can still work if you happen to land in Prague early in the morning of your first day; just be prepared to be efficient when getting into the city.
Day 1: Walking tour, day time market at Old Town Square, Church of Our Lady, Old Town Hall Tower
Day 2: Petrin Tower overlook, Prague Castle, Old Town Bridge Tower, Na Kampฤ Christmas Market, Christmas concert, River Cruise, Wenceslas Christmas Market
Day 3: Klementinum Library, Franz Kafka statue & nearby Christmas market, Nรกmฤstรญ Mรญru Market at night
Tickets You Want to Purchase Ahead of Time
(Other activities can be booked day-of or closer to your trip)
| Old Town Hall Tower Entrance | Tickets via. Prague Tourism |
| Klementinum | Tickets via Prague Tourism |
| Christmas Concert at Mirror Chapel | Purchased Through Get Your Guide (closer to season) |
| Old Town Bridge Tower | Tickets via Prague Tourism |
Day 1: Walking Tour, Old Town Square & River Cruise
Spend day one getting a feel for the city and seeing the most central highlights.
Morning: walking Tour & Na Kampฤ Christmas Market
Unless you have been to Prague before, I recommend starting with a walking tour. Honestly, I had been to Prague in the past and still found it informative!
We booked with 100 Spires City Tours (which has great reviews), but another company with equally good reviews is Free Walking Tour Prague.
The two walking tours I mentioned start near the Powder Tower, which is pretty far on the east side of Old Town.
Then, they take you through many of the highlights of Prague including watching the Astronomical Clock, Old Town Square, Charles Bridge, etc as well as lesser known areas such as the Jewish Quarter before ending at the John Lennon wall. All while learning more history about the city of Prague as well!
With the walking tour, you get a feel of the layout of the city and mark off many of the must-see sights!
The walking tours are at different times, but I recommend choosing a morning tour (the popular ones start at 10 or 10:30 am) so you have the afternoon to explore!
Our walking tour ended at the John Lennon Wall, just west of the Charles Bridge.
From here, stop a small Christmas market with a local feel, Na Kampฤ Christmas market. Though the market is small, you can find a variety of mulled wines (svaลรกk) and a few vendors with food and crafts.
Afternoon/Evening: Old Town
After the Na Kampฤ Christmas market, head back to the Old Town Square.
This is where the main (extremely beautiful) Christmas Market is in Prague. It is worth seeing both in the daytime as well as night (and it is less crowded during the day.)
While in the Old Town Square, you can enter the Church of Our Lady Before Tรฝn for free. HOWEVER, it is not open the whole day, so make sure you time your visit right!
- Hours: 10am-1pm and 3pm to 5pm Monday-Saturday and 10:30am to 12pm on Sundays
Sunset in Prague in December will be around 4:00 PM. If you can, plan to climb the Old Town Hall Tower around sunset. This will allow you to get a view of the city while it is still daylight, but also be able to get a top-down view of the Christmas market below while it is all lit up!
- The Old Town Hall Tower can only be accessed via guided tour that has to be purchased via the official Prague Tourism website (350 CZK or ~$15 USD.)
After taking in the tower views, head back down to the Old Town Square Christmas market and a get a good feel of it at night. The tree will be lit up and beautiful and there will likely be live music as well!
Day 2: Petrin Tower, Prague Castle & Christmas Concert
Spend day 2 of your 3 days in Prague taking in some of the best views of the city, enjoy a Christmas concert at one of the most beautiful concert venues in Prague and take a ride down the Vltava River!
Morning: Petrin Tower, Prague Castle & Malรก Strana
Spend your morning seeing Prague from ABOVE!
Petrin Hill & Tower
Petrin Hill and Tower offers the HIGHEST view of Prague within walking distance of Old Town. While the hill itself provides good views, you can keep climbing up Petrin Tower for even better views!
Petrin Tower is a little out of the way compared to most things in Prague, so start your morning here and then work your way back to old town Prague.
I actually climbed to the Petrin Tower on my first trip to Prague. And when we went, we had no idea there was a funicular that took you to the top of the hill. I recommend taking the funicular unless you just really like to climb hills ๐ฅต
- You can purchase funicular tickets for around 100 CZK ($4.50 USD) on the PID app or on site
Once you get to the top of the hill, you can either climb 299 stairs to the top of Petrin Tower or you can take the lift/elevator.
Petrin Tower Informationโฌ๏ธ
Entrance Fee: 250 CZK (~$11 USD)
Lift Fee: 150 CZK (~$7 USD)
Hours: During Christmas, the tower is open from 10am to 6pm
Helpful $$-Saving Tip: You get 50% off your ticket if you arrive within the first hour of the tower being open!
Tickets to Petrin Tower can be purchased online through the Official Prague Tourism webpage or on site
Prague Castle
It shouldn’t take any more than 2 hours to get to the funicular, climb the tower and get your views from Petrin Hill. From Petrin Hill, make your way to Prague Castle, which is a must-see site and on the same west side of Prague as Petrin Hill.
Prague Castle is about a 20 minute walk from Petrin Hill and is, unfortunately, going to be a bit hilly walk.
Prague Castle is a must-see anytime of year, but during the holidays it beautiful. You will find a small market at St. George’s square of the castle and near the stalls of the castle.
Also, be sure to stop by and see the interior of St. Vitus Cathedral; the stain-glassed windows and gothic architecture are incredible.
- Entrance: 450 CZK (around $20 USD), which can be bought on the Prague Tourism website or when you arrive at the castle
Malรก Strana Neighborhood
On your way back down from Prague Castle, you can take a couple of different routes. I recommend heading toward Malรก Strana neighborhood.
This neighborhood is located just a bit up from Charles Bridge and has a lot of shops and the beautiful St Nicholas Church.
If you want, make time to climb the Old Town Bridge tower while you are on this side of town. It costs around 280 CZK (~12 USD) to enter and consists of around 138 steps.
Afternoon/Evening: Christmas Concert, River Cruise, Christmas Market
It should take you a good part of the morning and early afternoon to explore Petrin Hill, Prague Castle and Malรก Strana neighborhood.
A little something extra you can add to your Prague Christmas itinerary is to experience a Christmas concert.
There are a few offered in different concert halls and Christmas Concert options.
We opted to see the Christmas concert in the Mirror Chapel located in the Klementinum Hall.
- Start time: 3:00pm
- Duration: 1 hour (until 4:00 pm if you choose this time slot)
- Cost: ~$32 USD per person
The concert consists of mostly classical music, alternating between a violinist and a singer. Then toward the end, they come together to perform renditions of parts of popular Christmas songs.
As I am not a big classical music fan, I was hoping for more traditional Christmas songs throughout the concert. But, it was fine and the Mirror Chapel is really pretty.
Tickets can be purchased through Get Your Guide (though the Christmas concert at Mirror Hall is not listed yet as of October 3rd.)
After the concert, head to the Vltava River for a river cruise. I love seeing a city from the water. Though, admittedly, there isn’t as much to see from the Vltava River as compared to the Seine River Cruise in Paris, it is still a nice way to see parts of Prague.
You can catch a 5pm river cruise which gives you plenty of time to get from the Mirror Hall to the river, which is about an 11 minute walk.
There are several river cruises in Prague to choose from. We opted to cruise with Premiant City Tour on a 50 minute panoramic cruise.
The cruise leaves from Pier 17 and costs less that $20 USD per person.
During the cruise you can opt to stay inside or head to an outdoor deck or rooftop terrace. They also offer snack foods as well as beverages such as wine, beer, hot chocolate and more.
Book an affordable Vltava River Cruise with Premiant City Tours!
After the cruise, I recommend either visiting the Nรกmฤstรญ Republiky Christmas market or the Wenceslas Christmas Market.
The Wenceslas Christmas Market is one of the bigger and best markets in Prague and is a must-see market. On Day 3, you will be in the area of Wenceslas market, but you may pass it during the day.
If you would like to see it at night (which I recommend), this is a great way to spend your second evening!
The Wenceslas Christmas market is one of the only markets that has ice skating. It also has a good variety of craft markets and food.
Day 3: Klementium, Franz Kafka & Christmas Markets
On day three in Prague, start with a must-see site in Prague and then spend the rest of the day visiting several different Christmas markets!
Morning: Klementinum & Franz Kafka Statue and market
One of the main things I wanted to see during our 3 days in Prague was the Klementinum library. And, of course, I missed it.
Tickets need to be pre-booked for this and were sold out every day we were in Prague ๐ฉ
You can only visit the baroque Klementinum library via guided tour and these tickets have to be pre-booked via the Official Prague Tourism website. The tickets are released on Monday for the following 2 weeks, so BE READY TO BOOK!
- Entrance: 380 CZK (~.$17 USD)
- Hours During Christmas: 9am to 7pm
The line when we passed was long, even with ticket holders. So I recommend starting with this first thing in the morning!
Don’t miss out; purchase your tickets via the official Prague Tourism website
Right outside the Klementinum library is one of my favorite, smaller Prague Christmas markets, the Mariรกnskรฉ Square Christmas Market.
It has some great food vendors, but it also has a small stage where live Christmas music was performed both during the day and in the evening.
Afternoon/Evening: Franz Kafka Statue & 4 Christmas Markets
After you hear a little live music at Mariรกnskรฉ Square market, prep to see more of the south portion of Prague.
One of the most popular statues in Prague is the Franz Kafka rotating head statue. Since you will be heading this way, it is worth a pitstop to see.
On your walk from Mariรกnskรฉ Square to the Franz Kafka head, you will pass by the Havel’s Market (Havelskรฝ Market). This is Prague’s oldest market, dating back to the 1200’s!
It is set up more like a farmers market, because it started as a traditional market. At Christmas, however, you can find a bit more festive influence in the foods, drinks and items displayed at the market.
Franz Kafka Rotating Head & Market
On every list of “things to do in Prague” you will see the Franz Kafka Turning Head Statue. This is a statue of Kafka’s head made from 42 tiers that rotate 90 degrees for 15 minutes at the start of every hour.
In all honesty, it isn’t my favorite site. However, it is fascinating how the statue moves and works to create a shape-shifting face!
Also, in this square is another small market. While the vendors are limited, you can still grab some mulled wine while you are waiting for and enjoying the moving statue.
Wenceslas Market, Tylovo Nรกmฤstรญ Market (optional) & Peace Square (Nรกmฤstรญ Mรญru) Market
Spend the rest of the day going on a Christmas market hop.
Your final destination will be the must-see market at Peace Square (Nรกmฤstรญ Mรญru.) However, there are a couple of markets between here and there.
From the Franz Kafka head statue, the popular Wenceslas Market is only a 9 minute walk. Even if you decide to visit this market on day 2 night, it is still worth taking the route that will let you walk along this market during the day!
From Wenceslas Market, Tylovo Square Market is a 12 minute walk. I didn’t even know this one existed when we visited, but it is a small, local market mostly filled with food and mulled wine rather than crafts, per TripAdvisor reviews.
Tylovo Square is only a 7 minute walk from the must-visit Peace Square (Nรกmฤstรญ Mรญru) Market. So if you have time, the proximity to Peace Square justifies a pit stop at Tylovo Square (remember, these are marked on my free Google Map!)
The Peace Square Christmas Market is another beautiful market in Prague. It is set with a backdrop of the Church of St. Ludmila behind it. You will find lots of craft vendors as well as good food and a variety of hot drinks as well.
With the church lit up at night, I think it is best to save the Peace Square market for night time!
A Bonus Christmas Activity
Every Christmas season, there is something called the Parade of Angels.
Walking throughout the city is a group dressed as angels with lit-up wings on stilts.
The Parade of Angels occurs only on certain days of the month in December and the location varies a little.
Therefore, it depends on exactly when you will be in Prague as to when the best night will be to see them.
To find the exact dates and locations, wait until closer to December and you should find it either on social media or the Prague Tourist websites!
Day Trip to Dresden
We actually spent 4 nights in Prague, but only 3 exploring Prague. On the other day we took a day trip to Dresden, Germany; the Christmas market capital of Europe!
Maybe not officially, but it IS the world’s OLDEST Christmas market, dating back to 1434!
The markets here do NOT disappoint. The market stalls are like nothing I have ever seen at any other of Europe’s Christmas markets.
Plus, they have a good variety of markets as well. Along with the main market, they have a medieval market and several more markets geared toward locals.
You can easily take a bus or train from Prague to Dresden. Both around a 2 hour journey.
Book a trip to Dresden for the day!
Final Thoughts on 3 Days in Prague
Prague is such a beautiful city and it REALLY does Christmas well! Though it doesn’t have quite as many Christmas markets as some of the other European cities (and doesn’t yet have Christmas market mugs!), the city decorations and the markets they have make visiting Prague at Christmas so worth it!
I also definitely recommend the day trip to Dresden, Germany if you have never been there!
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