Iconic Prague Castle: A Walk around the Ancient Complex with Context

(46 reviews)

Prague audio tour: Iconic Prague Castle: A Walk around the Ancient Complex with Context

This is an indoor tour

Prague

Czech Republic

$9.99

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About the Tour

Embark on a riveting journey through Prague Castle, the largest ancient castle complexes in the world. On this walking tour, art historian and Context Travel expert, Katerina Prusova, will guide you through Prague's history and share stories about dynasties, empires, and the people who helped shape the nation. You'll explore the castle's iconic landmarks and find out why more about the Czech Republic, like how locals used to refer to the area as the Lands of the Bohemian Crown.

Starting in Hradcany Square near the Archbishop‘s Palace, you'll explore the castle complex and its main sights. Katerina will show you the hallowed grounds of St Vitus Cathedral which took 600 years to complete. You'll learn about the Romanesque St George's Basilica and how its the burial place of the first princes of Bohemia since the 900s. You'll also hear about Charles IV, who laid the foundations for Prague's New Town, transforming the city into a European epicenter of culture. Throughout the tour, you'll enjoy spectacular vistas of Prague, particularly at the Vyhlídka Na Opyši observation deck where the tour ends.

On this Prague walking tour, you‘ll:

Take in the obelisk at Prague Castle, a colossal granite monolith created by Joze Plecnik
Hear about the public beheading of 27 Protestant rebel leaders in the Old Town Square following their defeat by Catholic Habsburgs
See the Church of the Virgin Mary's ruins at Prague Castle, the first structure within the castle‘s complex, built in the 800s by Prince Borivoj
Learn about Prague‘s connection to a Slavic pre-Christian cult
Marvel at the awe-inspiring St Vitus Cathedral, a testament to architectural brilliance and one of the most remarkable cathedrals ever built
Pass by Golden Lane, an enchanting area with quaint houses that once housed Castle workers
Find the only private building within the castle complex, the Lobkowicz Palace, now an art museum
Gain a deeper appreciation for Rudolf II, the Habsburg emperor responsible for moving the imperial seat to Prague, leaving an indelible mark on the city‘s history
Discover how one of Europe‘s bloodiest conflicts, the Thirty Years War, started inside the Old Royal Palace

By the end of this hour-long tour, you‘ll have a greater appreciation for Prague Castle‘s art and architecture, and the city‘s over 1,000 years of history.

Tour Producer

Context Travel

92 tours

Context was founded in Rome in 2003 by Paul Bennett and Lani Bevacqua an expat couple eager to curate experiences for travelers, not tourists. Since then Context has taken over 200,000 people to 60+ destinations around the world – accompanied by thousands of leading experts. What started as a dream to create cross-cultural connections is now a worldwide network and community of thoughtful, engaged travelers and experts.

Join a live private or small group tour in destinations around the world at contexttravel.com.

Preview Location

Location 1

Start Tour: Hradcany Square

Hello and welcome to this walking tour of Prague Castle.

Throughout this tour, we'll walk from the statute of TGM or Tomas Garrigue Masaryk, the first president of Czechoslovakia, which is situated right in front of the main entrance to the Prague Castle, towards the viewp... Hello and welcome to this walking tour of Prague Castle.

Throughout this tour, we'll walk from the statute of TGM or Tomas Garrigue Masaryk, the first president of Czechoslovakia, which is situated right in front of the main entrance to the Prague Castle, towards the viewpoint Na Opysi, which is located right outside the Castle's Eastern gate. That means that we'll walk through the entire complex of the Prague Castle, which, according to the Guinness Book of Records, is considered to be the largest ancient castle in the world.

My name is Katerina Prusova, I hold a Ph.D. in Art History from the Charles University in Prague where I also teach various classes in the history of art and architecture. I have also been a lecturer at the Anglo-American University in Prague since 2009.

As a guide at Context, my goal is to ignite your curiosity by connecting you to the art, history, and culture of Prague. Context offers live tours in Prague and cities around the world as well as audio guides like this one.

If you look in the same direction as TGM, or President Masaryk, you see the main entrance to the Prague Castle surrounded by guards and giant statues of wrestling Titans right above them. Towards your left is a white rococo building, the Archbishop's palace. On your right-hand side is the Salm Palace, which is a part of the National Gallery and an entrance to an exquisite Czech restaurant where you can have a beer, lunch or dinner with a beautiful view of Prague.

Czechoslovakia was formed in 1918 upon the disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian empire. The wife of the first president of Czechoslovakia, Charlotte Garrigue, was born in Brooklyn, New York, and she was originally from an old French family that settled in the United States. The statue of TGM was unveiled in the year 2000 by the first post-Communist president of the country, Vaclav Havel, and the US Secretary of State, Madeleine Albright, who was born in Prague.

We'll take a couple of minutes for a few basics before we set off. First, I'll explain briefly how VoiceMap works.

At the end of each track, I’ll give you directions to where to go next and show you a picture on your phone to help you find it. Once there, just tap the red 'I am here' button to hear the next track. There are also thumbnail pictures of all the stops at the top of your screen. You can explore at your own pace and the directions of where to go will also be displayed on your phone.

If you enjoyed the panoramic view of Prague on the right-hand side of President Masaryk, you can now turn towards the left and walk closer to the Archbishop's Palace which will be our next stop. Read More

View locations and route

How VoiceMap Works

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Major Landmarks

Prague Castle
Hradcany Square
Statue of Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk
Archbishop Palace
Church of the Virgin Mary at Prague Castle
Second Courtyard of Prague Castle
St. Vitus Cathedral
Obelisk at Prague Castle
Fountain and statue of Saint George
Southern Tower at Prague Castle
Old Royal Palace
St. George's Basilica
Lobkowicz Palace
View at Opys
Na Opyši

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Getting There

Route Overview

VoiceMap tours follow a route from a set starting point. It’s how we give turn-by-turn directions and tell a story greater than the sum of its parts.

Start location
118 00 Prague 1, Czechia
Total distance

0m
Final location
Jiřská, 119 00 Praha 1-Malá Strana, Czechia
Distance back to start location

605.11m

Directions to Starting Point

The tour beings in front of the Tomas Garrigue Masaryk statue just outside the Prague Castle. Travelers can take tram lines 2 or 18 to Malostranska or lines 22 or 23 to Prazsky hrad to reach the Tomas Garringe Masaryk statue.

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Tips

Places to stop along the way

This tour will stop in front of the Prague Castle Picture Gallery, open daily from 9 AM till 4 PM, and the Old Royal Palace, open daily from 9 AM to 5 PM. The Cathedral of St Vitus and Basilica of St. George can also be visited, and both are open daily from 9 AM to 5 PM but noon to 5 PM on Sundays.

Best time of day

The Prague Castle is open daily from 6 AM till 10 PM. If you'd like to enter the churches, museums and interior of the Prague Castle, the best time to visit is from 9 AM till 4 PM.

Precautions

Please bring a pair of headphones and a bottle of water. Don‘t forget to keep an eye on your belongings.

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“This app has become my go-to app for audio tours. I pretty much use it for every trip and it works wonderfully. I highly recommend VoiceMap for travelers to truly experience cities.”

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“Great app. walk around at your own pace, stop where you want, move on or speed up when you want. Read the script before you go or during the commentary, speed it up or replay it. Repeat the tour whenever you like.”