Prague city transport is a well-functioning system, which should be understood from the very beginning, so that then you can travel around the city without any problems. In the Czech capital, you can ride the funicular, bus and metro, but the most convenient form of transport is the tram, with which you can get to the place you need from anywhere in the city. The main thing is to clearly remember the scheme of Prague trams and their schedule, and then all your trips will certainly be successful.
History of Prague Tram
The length of the Prague tram tracks is about 500 km. However, before studying in detail the schemes of Prague trams in Russian, it is worth diving into the history of this type of transport.
For the first time, the car began to work on its tracks at the then very slow movement, September 23, 1874, and he rode thanks to a harnessed horse, which carried passengers along the Karlin-National Theater route. Then, in 1876, the rails were laid across the bridge to Smikhovsky Station, and a year later the routes were already 20 km long, but the trams were still driven by horses.
The first electric tram was launched in 1891. And then the development of Prague trams went on a swift path - new routes were built, new trams went on the rails, there were more and more passengers, and as a result, today in the tram park there are about 1000 cars of two brands Skoda and Tatra.
Tram tickets
Also, before a detailed study of the Prague tram scheme in Russian or Czech, it is necessary to deal with the purchase of a ticket for this type of transport. Actually, a unified transport system operates in the Czech capital, so a single ticket (jízdenka) is bought here immediately for a tram, bus, metro and funicular to Petřín. The distance and type of transport do not play any role in its purchase, only the time that you will spend on the tram is important. Therefore, based on how much you plan to travel in Prague, you can buy these types of tickets:
- normal for 90 minutes, which for adults costs 32 CZK, and for children and senior citizens - 16 CZK;
- half an hour for 30 minutes, which costs CZK 24 for adults, and CZK 12 for children and senior citizens;
- daily allowance for 24 hours, which for adults costs 110 CZK, and for children and senior citizens - 55 CZK;
- three-day for 72 hours costs for all, without exception, 310 Czech crowns.
Tram Travel
If you plan to stay longer in the city, then it is better to buy a ticket in Prague, which will allow you to save a lot and not think that the ticket is about to expire. In total, there are several types of travel cards, which, again, differ solely in the time of use:
- a monthly pass is valid for 30 days and costs 550 kroons for adults, 260 kroons for children and students, 250 kroons for pensioners;
- the quarterly pass is valid for 90 days and costs 1,480 kroons for adults, 720 kroons for children and students, 660 kroons for pensioners;
- a five-month pass is valid for 150 days and costs 2,450 kroons for adults, 1,200 kroons for children and students, 1,100 kroons for pensioners;
- a ten-month pass is valid for 300 days and can be bought only for children and students, giving 2400 kroons;
- the annual pass is valid for a whole year from the date of purchase and costs the same for everyone - 3650 CZK.
Where to buy a ticket or travel card
Also, before a detailed study of the tram scheme of Prague in Russian or Czech, you need to figure out where to get a document confirming the right to travel. Actually, there are a lot of options.
- Knowing the exact price of a ticket, you can buy it in a vending machine located at a bus stop or metro station, paying either with coins or bank cards.
- In any kiosks where newspapers and cigarettes are sold, as there are experienced sellers who can easily talk to foreigners.
- If you have a Czech SIM card, you can send an SMS to 90206, where you can book yourself a half-hour ticket by typing DPT24, regular - DPT32, daily - DPT100.
- If you have a smartphone, but don’t have a Czech SIM card, you can reserve a ticket using the Sejf application, which can be downloaded for free from iTunes or Google play.
- In addition, you can buy a tram ticket directly from the driver of this tram, however, in this case you will have to pay a larger amount.
Tram Schedule
There is no need to panic that you may get confused in the tram scheme of Prague and accidentally take the wrong route or wait a long time for the tram at the bus stop. In order to avoid such troubles, for tourists, guests and residents of the city in the public domain post all the necessary information about transport routes. You can find out about the time and following a particular tram at any tram stop where its route diagram and exact arrival time are posted, both at this stop and at the end station.
But in the event that you do not know what tram number you need, you can go to the Czech Ministry of Transport website, and there, in the special section "Passenger Transport Schedule", you just need to enter the name of the starting stop located near you and the final stops, as well as fill in the time of arrival at the destination or time of departure. And in the end, on the site you will be given all the necessary information about the number of the tram on which you can get there, travel time, possible transfers and distance in kilometers.
Day trams
In accordance with the scheme of trams in Prague, in the city from half past five in the morning until midnight, they run on 24 routes. Usually, the waiting time for a daily tram does not exceed five minutes, so you should not worry if you arrived at the stop when the tram has already left, because the next one will have to wait a long time. The main thing is to carefully look at his number, since 2-3 routes always pass through one stop, and sometimes more.
It is also important to read the information at the stop stands, as they can report a change in the route, which can be connected either with holidays or with track repairs. In addition, it should be remembered that the schedule of trams may differ on weekdays and weekends, so be sure to read all the information on the leaflets at the bus stop in order to not get into trouble.
Night trams
According to the tram route scheme of Prague, trams with numbers 51-59, which leave the depot at 20.00-22.30 and then travel their routes until 4.30, carry passengers at night. It is important to remember that the night tram tracks coincide with the daytime only on a couple of routes, but basically they are completely different.
However, all tramcars eventually arrive at the Lazarska terminal station (in Czech - Lazarská), located in the city center, from where passengers can transfer to any other tram or bus route to arrive where it should.
Also in the Czech capital there are several more stops where you can get out of the tram at night to change to another vehicle, the main thing is to find out in advance or just peek at the night trams that hang at every stop. Moreover, it is not at all difficult to find out where the route of night trams passes, since they are highlighted in black.
Prague 22 tram scheme
One of the most popular Prague routes is tram route 22, which allows a full-fledged city tour. He travels with an interval of 5-10 minutes, so that every tourist, taking a single ticket, can safely ride along this route, leaving at any stops to enjoy the sights of Prague. Then you can take the next tram again and continue on. Stops should be highlighted along this route:
- Narodni Trida, near which there are many hotels and restaurants;
- Narodni Divadlo, which allows you to see and visit the Prague National Theater and the cozy Slavia cafe on the opposite bank of the river, to which you can sail by ferry;
- Ujezd is especially distinguished in the scheme of tram 22 in Prague, because when you get out here you can admire the park, look at the bronze monument erected in honor of the victims of communism, as well as transfer to the funicular to Petřín Hill;
- Hellichova, allowing you to appreciate the beauty of the Church of Mary the Victorious;
- Malostranska, next to which is the magnificent Charles Bridge and the entrance to the beautiful gardens of Wallenstein;
- Kralovsky Letohradek, across the road from which rises the wonderful Royal Summer Palace, surrounded by the Royal Garden;
- Prazsky Hrad, which is notable for the Prague Castle castle next to it, where you can spend several hours admiring its beauty;
- Brusnice, from where you can look at the amazing New World district of Prague, which is amazing with its cobbled streets and small houses.
Historic tourist tram 91
Separately, in the tram scheme of Prague, route 91 is allocated, which is served by the Vozovna Střešovice depot, located at the final stop of the tram. Arriving there, tourists can go to the Public Transport Museum, located right in this depot, where they can learn more about how passenger transport developed in Prague, how transport changed and improved, and how the city tram network became what it is.
But not only the museum is curious about this tram route. The tram itself, which runs along it, is interesting here, because it is made exactly like the oldest trams, inside it is completely decorated with wood and moves very slowly, which allows sitting in its place to make out the streets of Prague in all their glory.
But what are the streets there, according to the Prague tram route scheme, this vehicle will pass by such attractions as the Prague Castle Fortress, the Royal Garden, Belvedere, Wenceslas and Malostranska Squares, the National Theater, the Veletřžni Palace, the Vyshtavite complex and Republic Square. The only thing is that you will have to buy a ticket for a trip in such a tram directly from his conductor and pay 35 CZK for him.
Tram route 23
However, if you carefully look at the scheme of trams in Prague with stops, you will notice that many of the attractions from excursion tram 91 can be seen from the windows of tram number 23. This route was launched in March 2017, the trams run on it are not modern, but made " antiquated ", which is especially noticeable on bulky speakers.
However, the trip in it is carried out on standard tickets, so here you can feel the spirit of old Prague, see the sights of the city and, at the same time, not overpay. This route passes through the historical center of the city, originating from the Kralovka stop, and then the tram travels through Malostranskaya and Karlovskaya Square, the National Theater and Pavlov Square, ending with the Zvonark stop.
Tourist note
Arriving in the Czech capital, it is important not only to learn everything about the Prague tram scheme, but also to remember a few important nuances of trips to them:
- In Prague, it does not matter if the person is a tourist or an indigenous person, but if the controller catches him riding a hare in a tram, he will be fined 500 Czech crowns.
- Children under 7 years of age and senior citizens over 70 can ride trams for free
- The ticket is considered valid after you validate it in the composter at the entrance to the tram so that the number and time of boarding are displayed there, and then you can safely change to any other trams, monitoring the time so as not to exceed the limit for which the ticket was bought.
In order not to get confused in the tram routes, you can buy the “Let's Drive through Prague” card at the Information Center, where all the routes of day and night trams are detailed, as well as their working hours and intervals between runs.