Our Long Weekend in Prague 🇨🇿

Our long-awaited weekend escape to Prague finally arrived — and honestly, it couldn’t have come at a better time after the eventful week we’d both had. Once I got home, finished packing, and dealt with a few last-minute IT issues, it was time to grab the bus to the airport.

While waiting on Westmoreland Street for our connecting Aircoach, Niamh nearly missed the bus over a donut. A donut. 🍩

(You can’t take her anywhere.)

At the airport we breezed through security, and although the flight departed a little late, it was smooth sailing. We touched down only slightly behind schedule, grabbed a taxi, and finally checked into the hotel around 3am. Despite the hour, we were excited for our city break.

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Day 1 — Castles, Penguins, Robots & More

We had a morning plan… which completely vanished thanks to jet lag and zero sleep. We were eventually jolted awake when the maid accidentally opened our room — which was more funny than anything. After dragging ourselves up, we headed down for the complimentary breakfast and re-planned the day.

Fueled up, we trekked up towards Prague Castle for the Changing of the Guard. We explored the courtyards and then made a pit stop at the Lobkowicz Palace balcony, enjoying the view.

After descending from the castle area, we visited the Yellow Penguins installation before crossing Charles Bridge. To reminisce on our visit two years ago, we stopped back into the Robotic Bar — it’s impressive how much it has evolved.

We then squeezed in a visit to the Infinity Book Tower in the Prague Library before our guided tour of the Klementinum Library and Astronomical Tower. After climbing back down the tower, we grabbed dinner and drinks at The Irish Times Bar, followed by a spontaneous round of glow-in-the-dark mini golf ⛳️ — a surprisingly fun way to wrap up our first full day.

Before heading to bed, we booked a day trip to Český Krumlov for the next morning.

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Day 2 — Český Krumlov: Fairytales, Fires & Falls

Our guide and driver, Jaroslav — who happened to own the company — collected us from the hotel. After one more pickup, we set off. On the way, we stopped at a charming Christmas market in České Budějovice.

Arriving in Český Krumlov felt like stepping into a Renaissance painting. The town is stunning — no wonder it’s considered one of Europe’s prettiest. We headed straight to Krumlov Castle, the second biggest in Bohemia after Prague Castle, and explored the courtyards and gardens with incredible views over the old town.

Once in the town centre, we wandered through the quaint streets before dining at Restaurace Krumlovský Mlýn, an old mill with open fires. We sat beside the big fire to thaw from the below-zero temperatures and watched the staff roast an entire pig as we enjoyed local food and drinks.

One of our final stops was the local church — and on the steps, I managed to fall in slow motion. Truly cinematic. The group didn’t know whether to laugh or worry… but honestly, it was hilarious.

We met back with Jaroslav and started the 2.5-hour return journey to Prague.

Back in the city, we headed out again to enjoy our last night. We perfectly timed the ringing of the Astronomical Clock, just two minutes from the hotel. After wandering through the lively streets, we finally found seats in the fourth bar we tried — everywhere was packed with people watching the rugby 🏉. We settled in for the night, soaking up the atmosphere before heading back to pack and prep for checkout.

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Day 3 — Final Wanders & Home Time

We took it easy in the morning — exhaustion was catching up. After checking out, we strolled through the city… and somehow ended up near Prague Castle again, which we had joked earlier would happen. Of course it did. At that point, we just grabbed a taxi to the airport (thankfully I had a promo!).

At the airport, we saw a massive queue and panicked — only to realise it was the non-EU passport line. We were through in two minutes and free to enjoy some shopping, food, and drinks before our flight.

A perfect, memorable finish to an amazing weekend in Prague. 🇨🇿✨