Czech Republic: 3 Great budget destinations beyond Prague
It was my second visit to this delightful country. I should’ve known better than to ask the waitress if they offered anything to eat that “wasn’t so heavy.”
“Everything in Czech Republic is heavy!” came the curt reply.
And so I gave in, succumbing to giant portions of crispy roast duck with plump Knedliky dumplings. And afterwards, palacinky — sugary, stuffed crepes. There was beer, beer, and more beer. It was all delicious.
When the bill for dinner came round, I nearly fell off my chair: €22 for all that — for all of us? Surely, they had made a mistake!
Czech please! A budget traveler’s dream
But no, this was Western Bohemia, a budget traveler’s dream. After Budweisers at the amber-lit Budweiser city square, we went bar-hopping and food-tripping. We toured small spa towns with their preserved architecture. We swam in thermal pools for a third of the price of what they charged across the border in Germany.
The next day, we booked our luxury apartment an extra night. As a couple with two kids, the €60 price tag was too enticing to go home. It was smack in the historical center, had two bathrooms, two bedrooms, kitchen, and lounge. Even a breakfast buffet was included.
While most visitors head to Prague, budget travelers will also have a blast in these three cities. Here, culture doesn’t just “come alive” — it’s been around for hundreds of years. And so has the delicious, legendary beer.
Our tour of the Czech Republic outside Prague
Here are three destinations beyond Prague in the Czech Republic that should definitely be on every budget traveler’s shortlist:
1. Pilsen
2. Františkovy Lázne
3. Ceské Budejovice
Also going to Prague?
Be sure to check out our recommended budget hotels in Prague, and our articles on how to save when visiting the city.
About the author
Ladies and gentlemen
We would like to draw your attention to the fact that CZECHIA has become the
official geographic (short) name of the Czech Republic and included in the
United Nations’ UNGEGN World Geographic Names database on July 5, 2016
http://unstats.un.org/unsd/geoinfo/geonames/
https://www.iso.org/obp/ui/#iso:code:3166:CZ
For this reason, we kindly ask you for the inclusion of the name Czechia into
your vocabulary as it is no longer necessary to use the political name „the
Czech Republic“.
Thank you
On behalf of Civic initiative Česko / Czechia:
Vladimír Baar, geographer, Ostrava, Czechia
Libuše Čižmárová, linguist and translator, Brno, Czechia
Jiří Felix, linguist, Prague, Czechia
Vladimír Filip, technical consultant, Prague, Czechia
Vladimír Hirsch, composer and physician, Prague, Czechia
Eva Horová, linguist and translator, Brno, Czechia
Leoš Jeleček, historical geographer, Prague, Czechia
Marja Kilastemi, art photographer, Luxembourg
Karel Kopřiva, Brno, Czechia
Pavel Krejčí, linguist and translator, Brno, Czechia
Zdeněk Kukal, geographer, travel agency owner, Prague, Czechia
Vít Novotný, political scientist, Bruxelles, Belgium
Petr Pavlínek, geographer, Prague, Czechia / Omaha, USA
Pavel Procházka, journalist, editor in chief, Prague, Czechia
Martina Sanollová, teacher and translator, Břeclav, Czechia
Petr Schnur, historian, sociologist and publicist, Hannover, Germany
Václav Šulista, chemist, pharmaceutical manager, Basel, Switzerland
Barbora Těšíková, pedagogue, Prague, Czechia
Zdeněk Thoma, publicist and photographer, Prague, Czechia
David Vávra, architect and actor, Prague, Czechia
Martin Wichterle, industrialist and innovator, Prague, Czechia