Vaclav Havel Airport is the international airport of Prague, the capital city of Czech Republic. In this article you will find all my notes about Prague Vaclav Havel Airport, money exchange at Prague airport, drinking water, transportation from Prague airport to the city center and public transport in Prague.
Prague Vaclav Havel Airport
Prague Vaclav Havel Airport, named after Czechoslovakia (the country name used when the Czech Republic and Slovakia were together), First President of the Czech Republic one Vaclav Haveligot it from. The airport is located 18 km from the city center of Prague. However, there is no direct public transport from the airport to the city centre. I will also tell you how to go.
Prague Airport is a very busy and large airport that will also handle the heavy tourist traffic coming to Prague. Freeshop stores start before the passport control and when you pass through the passport, you are now in the departures section of the airport.
Is it possible to drink water from the fountain at Prague Airport?
There are drinking water fountains at the entrance of the toilets for drinking water at the airport. If you have an empty bottle with you, you can fill water from here. By the way, let me underline that you can drink water from the fountain in Prague, you don't have to pay extra for water. I always have a flask or an empty pet bottle with me to use in such cases, and I highly recommend it to you.
Sleeping at Prague Airport?
At the airports I go to, I always check to see if it is possible to sleep at the airport for early arrivals or late flights. Prague airport does not have “silence rooms” like Doha airport, meaning there are no quiet rooms where people can sleep for long waits. You can curl up on the seats in the waiting areas and sleep. Do not prefer too many window-side chairs, it is cold from the windows 🙂
Changing Money at Prague Airport
While doing research on Prague, there was one thing that everyone warned about, which is money exchange. There are plenty of warnings such as "Don't change your money at the airport, the exchange rate is too low, they take commission". Taking these warnings into account, we did not change money at the airport, but as we were walking around the city, we realized that the situation was not that dire.
You can buy your bus ticket at Prague airport from kiosks with a credit card. Thus, you have the chance to go to the city center without exchanging money. However, here, too, you do not know what exchange rate the bank you are working with will reflect to you. Be careful not to fall into the bank's trap while trying to get rid of the airport rate. Again, in these cases, I prefer to use cash instead of credit card as much as possible, the bank first converts the currency of the country you are in to euro or usd and then to TL. So you get the exchange rate difference twice.
While going to any country, there are a few precautions I take to change money, let me share with you;
- Before I go, I always check the currency of the country I go to, USD and EURO rates. I use a phone app called XE Currency for this. Thus, I do not have to keep the rate in mind, even if I do not have an internet connection, this application updates the international rate during the last internet connection.
- I am trying to understand the conditions of that country in order to decide on the type of currency I will carry with me. Since Prague is already in the heart of Europe, I took Euros, but in many countries, USD is more widely used. Even in some Asian, African and South American countries, even the date of the USD in your hand is important.
- If I have to change money at the airport, I exchange a small amount. Like 20 euros, 50 euros maximum. That's why I want them to give me cash when I'm preparing my money in Turkey (usually I withdraw it from the bank).
- If there is more than one exchange office (which is usually the case), I check their rates and prefer the exchange office that is close to my own exchange rate and has a better rate. We followed a similar path in the city center of Prague. We had our money changed in different exchange offices by looking at the exchange rates and commission rates, and we were not screwed in any of them.
Exchange money, use credit and debit cards abroad I wrote a very detailed article about it, you can take a look at it.
Prague Airport Terminal Information
Prague Václav Havel Airport has 2 terminals, 1 international and 3 used for charter and domestic flights. Terminals used for international flights Terminal 1 ve Terminal 2'Dr.
- Terminal 1: Prague airport Terminal 1 is the terminal for mostly intercontinental flights outside the Schengen agreement. Flights to regions such as England, America, Canada, the Middle East, Africa and Asia are made from this terminal.
- Terminal 2: Prague airport Terminal 2 is the terminal for flights to Schengen countries, Europe and nearby countries. We flew from this terminal with Turkish Airlines flight Istanbul>Prague.
- Terminal 3: Only charter flights, cargo planes or private planes take off from here.
You can use the buses numbered 100 and 119, which have stops inside the airport, for the transition between the terminals.
Transportation from Prague Airport to Prague City Center
Transportation from Prague airport to the city center takes about 40-50 minutes, although it varies depending on what time of day you land. It is possible to reach the city center from Prague airport by bus+metro, taxi or airport express service.
Of course, the most economical solution among these options is public transportation, and we preferred public transportation as it is both fast and cheap.
Public Transportation from Prague Airport to City Center (bus+metro)
There is no direct bus from Prague airport to the city centre, so you have to transfer by metro. Transfer points and boarding are very easy.
You will see the bus signs when you exit the arrivals gate at Vaclav Airport. There are two buses that will take you to the metro line from the airport to the city center: bus number 100 and bus 119. It would be better to decide which bus to take according to where you will stay. You can decide on the metro line to which you will transfer, according to where you will stay, and choose your bus accordingly. Since our accommodation is close to Florence metro stop, we chose the bus number 100 because we would use the SARI metro line.
It is possible to complete this transfer process by purchasing a 30 or 90-minute public transport ticket. A 30-minute ticket costs 24 CZK (Czech Krona), while a 90-minute ticket costs 32 CZK. I think the best solution is to buy a longer ticket than the duration of your stay when buying the first ticket.
Bus Number 100
Bus line 100 ends at Zlicin, the first stop of the Yellow metro (line B) line. It takes about 15-20 minutes to reach Zlicin from the airport. Most of the people who use the line are foreigners like you who have come to see Prague.
You can take the metro from Zlicin stop and get off at the metro stop, which is close to your accommodation, via the yellow line. Namesti Republicky or Mustek stops are the most central metro stops of the city. From these two stops, it is enough to walk for 5 minutes to reach the old town square.
Bus number 100 runs between 05:45 in the morning and 23:39 in the evening.
Bus Number 119
Bus line 119 takes you to Dejvická, the first stop of the Green metro (line A) line. It is possible to reach Dejvická metro station from the airport in 20 minutes.
If you take the green metro line and get off at the Starometska stop, you will get off the metro at a point close to the city center.
Bus number 119 runs between 04:15 and 00:10 in the evening.
Night Bus Number 510
Buses numbered 100 and 119 do not operate after a certain time at night, and since the metro does not operate at night, a transportation solution has been considered for those arriving at night. You can reach the city center at night by taking the tram number 23 after taking the bus number 47, which runs between 03:57 and 510:51 at night, and getting off at the Štěpánská stop. Access to the city center at night is possible only by tram.
Airport Express (Shuttle)
You can think of Airport Express (AE) bus like Havaş, Havataş. AE's fee 60 CZK in half an hour The central train station reaches the Hlavni Nadrazi stop. This place is at a very central point. However, it may cause you to stay in a bit of traffic as it enters the city during traffic hours.
The AE bus operates between 05:00 in the morning and 22:00 in the evening.
Taxi in Prague
I do not prefer the option of traveling by taxi abroad, especially in the Eurozone. Although it may seem like the easiest and fastest option for getting from the airport to the city center for Prague, the most expensive option is taxis. Again, the traffic problem should be taken into account when choosing a taxi. If you prefer a taxi, it costs 700-800 CZK from Prague airport to the city center.
Urban Transport in Prague – Public Transport
Of course, the job doesn't end when you reach the city center from the airport, I wanted to write down the notes on what to do for transportation in Prague. Although Prague is a city that can be visited on foot, public transportation can be preferred because it saves you time when you go for a short time, to get rid of long walks in cold weather and to have lower accommodation costs outside the main center. So let's take a look at what you need to know about public transport in Prague.
If you have a few days in Prague, you can buy a short-term public transport ticket, and if you are staying for a long time, you can get monthly or annual cards. Since we are traveling for a short time, let's look at those options. Whichever of the following tickets you buy, you need to have it scanned at the ticket machine in the first vehicle you get in to make the ticket valid. And you only have the first one read, so it's clear how long you've been using it.
- 30 minute ticket – 24 CZK
- 90 minute ticket – 32 CZK
- 24-hour ticket – 110 CZK
- 72-hour ticket – 310 CZK
It is possible to get on public transport without buying a ticket, there are no obstacles. However, on the tram, bus or subway, civil servants are constantly checking tickets, or the security stops at the subway exits and asks for tickets. If you do not have a ticket, there is a fine of 800 CZK, that is about 30 euros.
Prague Card
In Prague, there is a card that you can use both as an entrance to museums etc., airport transfer and public transport card. You can get this card called Prague Card for 2, 3 or 4 days. You can find the details by searching the internet.
- 2-day Prague Card 58 euro
- 3-day Prague Card 68 euro
- 4-day Prague Card 78 euro
It's not bad in terms of unlimited public transportation, airport transfer, city tour by bus and free entrance to many museums, but I didn't choose it.
Prague is definitely a city that needs to be separated 3-4 times. For this reason, the more efficiently you use your time, the better. I hope the airport and transportation suggestions will be useful to you, if you write your comments under the article, you can contribute to the next article to be better.
My Other Prague Travel Posts
- If you say what you will do when you land in Prague; Prague Vaclav Havel Airport and Transportation in Prague
- If you need suggestions for places to visit and sightseeing routes in Prague; Prague places to visit
- What to eat when you go to Prague; What to eat in Prague, where to eat?
- If we saw Prague in blood, you say; Prague travel video
- If you are wondering about Prague Christmas Markets; Prague Christmas Markets
- If you ask how much a trip to Prague will cost; 3-Day Prague Trip Cost
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