Not to miss

Franz Kafka Museum

This much-hyped exhibition on the life and work of Prague's most famous literary son opened here in 2005 after three years in Barcelona and three years in New York. Entitled 'City of K', it explores the intimate relationship between the writer and the city that shaped him through the use of original letters, photographs, quotations, period newspapers and publications, and video and sound installations.

Does it vividly portray the claustrophobic bureaucracy and atmosphere of brooding menace that characterised Kafka's world? Or is it a load of pretentious old bollocks? You decide.

Prague Castle

With a magnificent clifftop outlook, a 1000-year-old history going back to a simple walled-in compound in the 9th century, and a breathtaking scale that qualifies it as the biggest ancient castle in the world, Prague Castle is the indisputable centrepiece of the Czech capital. Spend at least half a day in awe here.

Prague Castle (Pražský Hrad, or just Hrad to the Czechs) claims its 'largest' title with the following figures: 570m long, an average of 128m wide and 7.28 hectares of land. The castle has been the seat of Czech government since Prince Bořivoj founded the first fortified settlement here in the 9th century, though president Václav Havel chose to live in his smaller (and less touristy) home on the outskirts of the city. Some of the complex's highlights, like the Spanish Hall and Rudolf Gallery, are only open one Saturday a year (usually in early May). The rest of the castle's collection of architectural and artistic marvels, created over the course of the last millennium, is on display.

Charles Bridge

Charles Bridge withstood wheeled traffic for 600 years, legend says, due to eggs mixed into the mortar. It was made pedestrian-only after WWII. Strolling its length, admiring the bridge's many monuments and grand Vltava views, seems to be everybody's favourite Prague activity (including pickpockets).

When a flood consumed the Judith Bridge in 1357, work immediately began on another bridge across the Vltava. Completed in 1402, Charles Bridge (Karlův most) was the only structure spanning the river for 460-odd years. Spanning 520m, the sandstone edifice named Stone Bridge didn't become Charles Bridge until 1870. Apart from the towers at either end, the bridge is lined with statues and monuments, the oldest and most popular being the statue of St John of Nepomuk, the Czech patron saint, who was thrown into the Vlatva by bad King Wenceslas IV in 1393.