When to Go

Prague is beautiful year-round, but it's busiest in summer and during the Christmas and Easter holidays. Spring offers generally good weather with a more relaxed level of tourism, as flowers are blossoming, historical sights are open longer, and the Prague Spring Music Festival is in full swing. During the busy Easter season you can watch an unusual fertility ritual with pagan roots, in which boys with willow branches whip the girls in order to keep them fertile; the girls reply by splashing their tormentors with water. When fall arrives, trees take on red-and-gold hues, and Czechs head to the woods to pick their beloved mushrooms. In winter you encounter fewer visitors and find much cheaper hotels; you also have the opportunity to see Prague breathtakingly covered in snow, but it can get very cold and dark, as the sun tends to set by 5 and many days are overcast. Also, some castles and museums, especially those outside of Prague, close for the season. January and February generally bring the best skiing in Bohemia's mountains -- and there's great difficulty in finding a room at the ski resorts. If you're not a skier, try visiting the mountains in late spring (April or May) or fall, when the colors are dazzling and you have the hotels and restaurants nearly to yourself. In much of the rest of Bohemia and Moravia, even in midsummer, the number of visitors is far smaller than in Prague, and trips to the towns that dot the countryside can be a welcome break from the long lines and crowded areas of the Golden City.

Climate

Winters can be bone-chillingly cold, with dark, overcast days. The maximum average temperature in December and January is 32° F, and temperatures frequently drop to the low 20s F. Things brighten up considerably in the spring and summer seasons. The days peak in July with around 10 hours of sunshine per day. Showers are infrequent and usually light and short, while temperatures hover in the high 70s F. Fall brings with it fewer crowds and slightly cooler temperatures in the 60s F, as well as a riotous display of color on the foliage in parts of the city and countryside.