Prague: Art museums with reduced or free admission
Viewing great art often comes at a price, but in addition to offering an impressive number of museums and galleries, Prague offers plenty of opportunities for museum discounts on its already fair admission prices. These discounts include special reduced-price hours and even free hours.
Here are a few museum discounts I’ve come across (or have already taken advantage of), followed by some additional Prague art museum and gallery cost-saving tips.
National Gallery (reduced every afternoon)
Various locations (see Web site)
Tel.: +420 224 301 024
Getting there: Malostranska metro stop
Hours: 10 a.m.- 6 p.m. (daily except Monday)
Admission: 80-150 CZK (adult), 40-80 CZK (reduced), free (first Wednesday of the month, 3 p.m.-8 p.m.)
Web site
Comprised of not just one gallery but rather of several, Prague’s National Gallery offers collections from the old masters, along with 19th-century, modern and contemporary art. Housed in some of the city’s most beautiful and historic buildings (works of art in themselves), the galleries offer a reduced price fare for the last two hours of every day (4 p.m. to 6 p.m.) as well as free admissions from 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. every first Wednesday of the month.
Among its offerings, the Sternberg Palace—a Baroque landmark—displays European Art from the classic through the Baroque era. Veletržní Palace, the seat of the National Gallery, houses four floors of 19th- to 21st-century European and Czech art. The House of the Black Madonna, designed by Josef Gocár, is one of Prague’s finest examples of cubist architecture and home to the Museum of Czech Cubism.
Prague Castle Picture Gallery (free Monday afternoon)
119 08 Prague 1
Tel.: + 420 224 373 531
Getting there: Malostranska (line A). Then tram 22 or 23 to Prazsky Hrad.
Hours: 9 a.m.-6 p.m. (summer), 9 a.m.-4 p.m. (winter)
Admission: 150 CZK (adult), 80 CZK (reduced), free (Monday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. during the summer)
Web site
Offering free admission every Monday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m., the Prague Castle Picture Gallery features approximately 100 paintings that were part of the personal collection of Emperor Rudolph II. The roots of the collection go back to the 16th century and include works by Rubens, Titian and Codazzi. It’s a small but sweet collection that’s well worth seeing, and it provides another opportunity to see the famous Prague Castle.
Museum of Decorative Arts (free Tuesday afternoon)
17. Listopadu 2
Tel.: +420 251 093 111
Hours: 10 a.m.-7 p.m. (Tuesday), 10 a.m.-6 p.m. (Wednesday to Sunday)
Getting there: Metro line A, Tram Nos. 17 or 18, Bus 133 to Staromestská stop
Admission: 120 CZK (adult), 70 CZK (reduced), free (Tuesday evenings)
Web site
One of my favorite museums, Prague’s Museum of Decorative Arts offers free admissions every Tuesday from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Housed in a beautiful Neo-Renaissance building, the museum showcases modern-day and historical crafts, as well as applied arts and design.
Just across the street is one of its branch museums, the Rudolfinum Gallery, which displays avant-garde and contemporary international art. The Rudolfinum Gallery is housed in the same buildings as the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra.
A special combined admission price to both the Museum of Decorative Arts and the Rudolfinum Gallery (180 CZK for adults, 100 CZK reduced) offers a significant discount.
Václava Špály Gallery (free Thursday night)
Národní 30
Tel.: + 420 222 356 213
Getting there: Národní Trída metro stop
Hours: Noon-8 p.m. (Tuesday to Wednesday and Friday to Sunday), noon-10 p.m. (Thursday)
Admission: 60 CZK (adult), 30 CZK (reduced), free (Thursday from 6 p.m.-10 p.m.)
Web site
With a concept centered on finding a link between contemporary art and the public, this private gallery offers free admission every Thursday from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Offering some of the most interesting exhibitions in the city, Václava Špály presents the work of mainly Czech artists.
The Golden Ring – City Gallery Prague (free exhibit)
Tynska 6 Praha 1
Tel.: +420 224 827 022-4
Getting there: Metro A/B Mustek or A Staromestska
Hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. (Tuesday to Sunday)
Admission: 120 CZK (adult), 60 CZK (reduced)
Web site
One of the six exhibition spaces that comprise the City Gallery Prague, The Golden Ring presents Czech art from the 20th and 21st centuries. As is the case with the other branches of the City Gallery Prague, the gallery offers no special reduced price hours.
However, a new series focused on young and emerging Czech artists—called “Start-up”—is free. You’ll find it on the ground floor of this very unique space, which was originally two medieval buildings, now unified into one.
Bonus Museum Tips
Most galleries and museums in Prague offer a family discount (you usually have to have one kid and two adults) as well as discounts for students, seniors and groups. Often, children under a certain age can get in for free. Check the Web sites of the museums and galleries that interest you.
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