Information for Visitors

(This page is almost entirely taken from the homepages of the Mathematical Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences, created by Jiri Sgall)

basics (safety and emergency, travel documents, money)
arriving to Prague

air

train

car

Prague transportation (public and taxi)
telephones
shopping and services

Basics

SAFETY AND EMERGENCY

Prague is a reasonably safe city. Violent crime is rare in Prague. However, as in many big cities, tourists are often subject to attempts of theft, pickpocketing, or overcharging. Also, occasionally racist attacks happen in Prague, mostly due to skinhead groups, so people with dark skin should be more cautious. Most of the problems can be avoided if you follow these simple rules (refer to further sections for details).

Do not take a taxi from a stand or flag one. If you need a taxi, call a company.
Never change money with strangers on the street.
Be reasonably aware of your surroundings.

If you are suddenly surrounded by a crowd, it is possible that its purpose to distract your attention from pickpockets at work.
Some tricks we are aware of (read: it has happened to our visitors) involve requests for changing money, help (to find some place, etc.), or flashing a fake police identification.

The emergency phone numbers are: 158 - police, 155 - medical emergency, 150 - firefighters. These calls are free of charge.

TRAVEL DOCUMENTS

You need a valid passport to enter the Czech Republic. Citizens of most European countries, U.S.A., Israel, and some other countries do not need visa for short term visits. Starting April 1, 2001, citizens of CANADA need a visa for any visit. Please check the details with the nearest Czech embassy.

MONEY

The Czech currency is koruna (Czech crown, Kc). 1 Euro is about 30 Kc, 1 US$ is about 32 Kc. There are many banking machines (ATM's) in the city which can be used with Plus and Cirrus bank cards as well as major credit cards and they give you a very good exchange rate. Alternatively you can exchange money in most banks or at exchange offices throughout the city (these have somewhat higher commission, up to 10%). Do not change money with strangers on the street, otherwise you will be cheated.

ORIENTATION

The campus of the University of Agriculture is located in a northern outskirt of Prague called Suchdol.

Arriving to Prague

BY AIR

Czech Airlines (CSA) go to many places, and offer reasonably good service. They have a convenient direct flight from/to Newark, NY. Their toll-free number in U.S.A. is 800-223-2365. More information is available at Czech airlines www homepage.

Prague airport (Ruzyne) is served by many European and other carriers (including Lufthansa, British Airways, KLM, El Al) from their home countries. Among U.S.A. carriers, Delta has a flight to Prague, with a stop in Amsterdam. Continental has a code share for the direct flight of Czech Airlines from/to Newark, NY.

From/to the airport you can use:

The company CEDAZ (pronounced "CE" as in "Czech" and "DAZ" as in "does"). They operate vans from the airport for a fixed price 360 Kc for a company up to 4 people to any place in the city center. You find their white vans and cars directly at the sidewalk in front of the arrival hall of the airport, the ride takes about 30-45 minutes. You can also order a return trip to the airport at phone number 20114286 or 20114296.
Public transport. Take the bus 119 from the stop in front of the airport arrival hall to the subway station Dejvicka, then another bus, either no. 107 or 147, from Dejvicka terminal to the bus stop "Kamycka". The ride takes in total about 40 minutes.) See the public transportation below.
Taxi. We strongly recommend that you avoid this option. Prague cab drivers, and especially those from/to airport, are known for overcharging foreigners. If you wish to try anyway, try to negotiate the price in advance. Obviously, it should not be significantly higher than for CEDAZ vans, but we know of cases of visitors paying close to 1500 Kc! See a separate section on taxi services below.

BY TRAIN

On-line schedules of Czech Railways (and Czech buses) or German Railways are available (the latter has better interface and contains all the trains you are likely to need).

All major train (and also bus) stations are on one of the subway lines. Most trains from abroad go either to Praha - Hlavni nadrazi (the main station, often abbreviated Praha hl. n., adjacent to the subway station Hlavni nadrazi) or to Praha-Holesovice (adjacent to the subway station Nadrazi Holesovice). In order to get to the campus of the Czech University of Agriculture from either the main railway station (Hlavni nadrazi) or from Nadrazi Holesovice please take subway line C to Muzeum station, then switch to the line A, go to the Dejvicka terminal and then continue as indicated above. See also the public transportation below.

BY CAR

The campus of the Czech University of Agriculture in Suchdol lies in a northern outskirt of Prague. Go to the square "Vitezne namesti", continue north towards the Vltava river (the nearest ladmark is the huge hotel Crowne Plaza built in a Russian style), continue straight on north along Vltava, then bear left, following the main road uphill. The campus can be found on the top of the hill to the left from the main road.

Transportation within Prague

PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION

The Prague subway runs approximately from 5am till midnight. Several tram and bus lines (numbers with first digit 5) operate during the entire night with a 40 minute headway.

A regular ticket costs 12 Kc for one trip including transfers (not to exceed 60 minutes on weekdays or 90 minutes on weekends and evenings after 8pm) or 8 Kc without transfers (not to exceed 15 minutes on trams and buses or 4 stations of the subway). Children of age 6-15 pay half of this price. For each (big) piece of baggage an extra 6 Kc ticket should be used. The tickets must be purchased in advance, they are sold in the machines at major stops, at many subway stations, and at most news-stands. On buses they might be purchased from the driver for 15 Kc. The ticket has to be stamped (including the one bought from the driver!) upon entering a subway station, or the tram or bus (only the first time, no stamping on transfers). Keep the ticket until you exit the subway station, you can be checked also after leaving the train!

One can also buy a 24 hour ticket for 70 Kc (sold in the machines, stamp it the first time you use it), 3 day ticket for 200 Kc, 7 day for 250 Kc, or 15 day for 280 Kc (these are sold at some subway stations and news-stands; one has to write the name and date of birth on them and stamp them the first time they are used). All these tickets allow transportation of one piece of baggage free of charge.

TAXI

Prague cab drivers are known for overpricing foreigners. In the case you cannot avoid using a cab, here are some hints to put up your chances:

The current maximal prices set by the city government are 30 Kc flat rate plus 22 Kc per kilometer (and 4 Kc for a minute of waiting). This holds only for official cabs, which must have a light with the word TAXI on the roof, a price list and a license number on the front door, and a black-and-white checkerboard strip below the windows on the doors. Cars deviating from these rules (e.g. with a name of a hotel on the light instead of TAXI) do not have a taxi license, and do not have to obey by these rules!
If possible, do not take a cab from a stand, especially not at the railway stations and near the tourist attractions. If you call a company the chances of overcharging are smaller, and even the official prices are lower that way.
Two major companies which we have used before and which appear to be reliable and safe are TAXI PRAHA, phone 66776677, and AAA TAXI, phone 14014 (yes, this number has only 5 digits). With both of them, you do not pay extra for the trip of the empty cab, i.e., the meter should start from the flat rate (about 25 Kc) when you get in. They should give you at least an estimate of the price in advance. For trips to/from the airport try the CEDAZ vans.
Always confirm the rate in advance, even if calling the company, or negotiate a fixed price if taking a cab from a stand. Check that the meter is consistent with the rate.
The rate should be posted at the door of the cab and also inside the cab. (However, the rate on the door is not reliable, there have been cases when the rate on the door changed during the ride to a much higher one than the one observed before getting in!) The driver should give you a receipt printed from the meter.

If you are satisfied, a tip of 5-10% is customary.

Telephones

Most public phones in Prague use only special phone cards, sold at news-stands and some post offices. The cheapest cards have 50 units and cost 175 Kc. A unit is good for 2 minutes of a local call or for a few seconds of an international call. The rates are somewhat lower after 7pm and on weekends.

The country code of the Czech Republic is 420, the city code of Prague is 2.

The international prefix from the Czech Republic is 00. To many countries (including USA and western Europe) you can use the prefix 052 to get cheaper rates after 5pm for connection over internet (with a bit lower quality).

Shopping and services

Prices displayed in all Czech shops include all taxes. (In restaurants it is usual to add a tip about 5 to 10%.) The business hours are not very regular. Most shops are open on weekdays till 6pm (perhaps with a lunch break in smaller shops) and on Saturdays till 11am. Many shops in the city center have longer opening hours.

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