Arriving in Prague, Czech Republic

10-Aug-2012 • Prague Czech Republic

After visiting Frankfurt and Berlin in Germany and Szczecin and Poznan in Poland, Prague in the Czech Republic was our next destination. To be honest, I was quite apprehensive about going to Prague given the negative reviews I read about the city with regards pickpocketing. It seemed like it happened very often and practically everywhere. In the metro, on Charles Bridge, in all heavily touristed areas. None of that happened to us, thank goodness, but we did get scammed by some young men selling Czech ham from a food stand in Namesti Square (more about that in a later blog).

Anyway, we did find Prague to be a very beautiful city. Walking in its streets really felt like walking in a fairy tale picture book. It was so medieval. So picturesque. I remember walking all over the city and actually saying, "Wow!" each and every time we walked on a new street. I have honestly never seen any place as beautiful. Only Venice in Italy can rival Prague in terms of beauty and history.

As far as I can recall, the train trip from Berlin to Prague took approximately five hours. It was a good thing Marc made seat reservations on this leg of the trip as the train was full. So full some passengers who had tickets but without reservations actually just stood in the aisles. I couldn't quite understand why the train company sold tickets when there were no seats available.

We did reach Prague after traveling in a cramped and crowded train for five hours after we left the Berlin Bahnhof. We were surprisingly just two of the six passengers who got off from the train. I never realized 99% of the passengers we were with on board were all headed for Vienna which was the train's last destination.

The train station we got out off was not the main train station in the city and I was quite turned off by the drabness of the place. It was so gray, so drab, and so old. It was so unlike the image I saw of Prague on TV up until then. Just a few days earlier, there was a news feature about Prague on CNN International while we were in Berlin stating how hip and happening the whole place was. I couldn't believe it.

There was a man who did follow us and told us in English where to go even though we didn't really ask. We ignored him and we followed the sign that pointed towards the tourist information office in the station. We were the only ones walking in this path that seemed like a tunnel. Thankfully, the info office was nearby and we were able to purchase our metro tickets there. Just like what our Frommers guide book stated, we purchased two extra tickets, one for each of our suitcases. We were likewise careful to validate our tickets right before we entered the premises of the metro. It wasn't difficult at all. The validating machines were right by the gates prior to entrance.

The employees at the tourist information office advised us to get off at the Museum stop. We didn't follow their advice though. Instead, we followed what one tripadvisor suggested all travelers going to stay at the IBIS Wenceslas to do. We got off at the I.P. Pavlova Metro Station, a mere five minute walk to the hotel.

We were quite surprised there were no ticket inspectors at the exit. We were expecting them to be everywhere. After all, that's what I read in many travel reviews on Tripadvisor. We didn't know where to go nor which street to follow after we left the station. Fortunately, there was one local gentleman who pointed us to the right direction after we approached him and asked him for help. He was kind enough to accompany us to the next block until we were close to the hotel.

By this time, our hotel in Prague was going to be the third IBIS chain we were going to stay on this trip. Like I stated before, we chose this chain of hotels primarily because they were present in all the cities we were traveling to and their rates were very reasonable. So reasonable, they came out cheaper than practically all hotels we know in the US of A up to the present time. It is truly hard nowadays to find a room in the US for less than a $100. Only a Motel 6 charged a rate of $50-$60 and that is one in the boonies.

Check in at our IBIS Wenceslas Hotel was quick and easy. After receiving our keys, we freshened up and went straight out to the city center.

This is the back of the National Museum on Wenceslas Square. Our hotel, the IBIS, was walking distance to this fabulous pedestrian only shopping and commercial street.

The beds in our IBIS Hotel room

The room was small but it worked just fine for us.

The shower stall in the bathroom. By now, we were already accustomed to the IBIS Hotel room layout and there were no longer any surprises. We knew what kind of room we reserved and the familiarity helped. The quality of the hotel was very good and for the price we paid, we couldn't be any happier.

The shower handle and soap dispenser. We were in Europe for nearly three and a half weeks this past summer and having stayed in IBIS Hotels all throughout the trip, I used this soap dispenser on a daily basis. It was a liquid soap good for hand, body, and hair wash. There was a soap dispenser exactly like the one in this picture by the sink.

The ubiquitous hair dryer and soap dispenser right above the sink and next to the bathroom mirror

The two towels we were supplied with and replaced every day

The hallway where our room was located

Of all the IBIS Hotels we stayed in though, the one in Prague was my least favorite. Mind you, the location was superb and the room rate, perfect. I only wished they vacuumed the carpeting a lot better. First off, I am not fond of carpeting in any hotel room. They all seem not clean to me. One can imagine the number of people who come and go inside the rooms. I did notice one tiny corn nut, under the table by our room window present during out entire stay in the hotel. We were there for four nights. It's either they vacuumed but missed the same exact spot every single day we were there or the help either vacuumed very little or not at all.