DiAblo

I have a few basic questions since I?m entertaining the idea of making my first sojourn to Prague late this year.

I?ll be flying out of the Midwest, probably Kansas City. Can anyone who?s made the trip give me an estimate about how long the flight to Prague is? I imagine we will have to change planes in Chicago, but are their sometimes other transfers, perhaps in Europe?

Do you know of any good websites for Prague and is it reasonable to make one or two day trips from there to other regional cities? If so are there any cities you would particularly recommend and what is the best way to get from Prague to there, coach or train?

Are there "famous" sites in Prague that you particularly enjoyed and were there any that you would avoid?

I will have from 10 days to two weeks total time and, as always, on a bit of a shoestring budget. I may be traveling alone, but am planning on their being two of us though we?re not ?joined at the hip? and will surely spend several days (at least) on our own.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

DiAblo

I should also have asked what is the major airport and how far is it from the city-center? Is there an area that is more economical to find rooms in?

rex

First, you need a good book about Prague; I would recommend a trip to your largest best bookstore or public library to proceed with your planning.

You can find good overview information about Prague Ruzyne airport at http://www.csa.cz/en/let/letiste.htm

And a lot of good general information about Prague at www.jasoncholt.com - - one of those "labor of love" websites all about Prague. And Jason comes here sometimes as well.

Best wishes,

Rex

jor

I hope "DiAblo" is from the Midwest. If not, you need to spend some time in the Midwest. Lets leave it at that.

Christina

I really liked Frommers Prague/best of Czech Republic guidebook. IN addition to Prague itself (and excellent recommendations for restaurants, shopping), it covers logistics and sightseeing for major day trips from Prague, so is nice for that. I got the Eyewitness Prague and I don't think it's good for anything outside the city and not very good for hotels/restaurants.

First, you can check travel websites for flight times, but you will probably have to transfer in Europe, although there might be something nonstop from Chicago. Most flights from US to Prague go through other major cities, I choose London or Paris, but you'll find Vienna and Zurich perhaps, maybe Frankfurt. It's about 1-1/2 to 2 hrs from Paris or London.

I do know some good websites, www.praguepost.com, www.cedok.cz, www.pis.cz, www.prague.cz, www.timeout.com has good Prague info.

www.czechcenter.com and www.locallingo.com cover Czech Republic in general, but have a lot of Prague info

There are lots of good day trips from Prague, but I think it's better for you to do some reading and figure out what might appeal to you. Cesky Krumlov is terrific, and Kutna Hora is nice -- there are other choices depending on your interests, such as Terezin, Karlovy Vary, Telc. Often bus works out better in the Czech Republic than trains for local transport, but the Frommers books gives details on those items.

There haven't been any sites I saw in Prague that I would not recommend or didn't enjoy of the main tourist attractions.

The Prague airport is fairly close to city center in comparison to many cities -- maybe 10-12 miles.