Ladronka Park: inline skating and no tourists

Ladronka Park is rather a recreation and sports park than a classic park with lots of greenery, old trees and winding paths. Ladronka Park is especially popular with inline skaters because it has the longest illuminated inline track in Prague with a circuit of 4.6 km. Even avid Prague-visitors don’t know exactly where Ladronka is and what to do there. The park is located in the Brevnov and Motol districts in the north-west of the city and can be easily reached by tram 22 or 25 to the Vypich stop.

Ladronka Park: what to do and see

1. Inline track and outdoor sports
2. Trampolines
3. Ladronka farmstead
4. Art in the park

Ladronka Park is perfect for children as there are many playgrounds but also perfectly suited for sporty teenagers and adults. There are sports fields, and also restaurants that rent out BBQ. There are hard and soft surfaces for running and jogging and the longest inline skate circuit in Prague which can also be used for cycling

1. Inline track and outdoor sports

Ladronka is a combination of sports and recreation. Here you will find the longest illuminated inline track in Prague, a circuit of 4.6 km. There are also volleyball and beach volleyball courts, a sports equipment rental centre for inline skates, scooters, pennyboards and longboards, knee pads and other essentials.

Sports activities take place all year round, but summer is the main season. Beach volleyball, football, bowling alley, and pétanque are popular. The volleyball court has a stand seating some hundreds of spectators who can watch tournaments held on a regularly basis.

2. Trampolines

A special attraction in Ladronka Park are the air trampolines, bouncy castles, air cushions, water beds and bassabal, a ball game where one team is on a trampoline and the other team on an air cushion.

3. Ladronka Farmstead

In the Ladronka farmstead is home to a gourmet and grill-barbecue restaurant, with a summer terrace and a winter conservatory. The menu offers classic Czech cuisine, as well as vegan and gluten-free meals.

The Ladronka mini brewery brews HEYL beer. In summer, pale beer with top fermentation and an alcohol percentage of 3.3%. In winter, dark beer also top-fermented with an alcohol content of 4.3%.

At weekends, you can rent a barbecue with supplies such as charcoal, matches, the meat, as well as disposable plates, cutlery and cups.

4. Art in the park

* Šiška
Šiška (ice cream cone) is a work of art by the Czech artists Čestmír Suška (1952). It consists of two old storage tanks for liquids. One is a round tube 11-meters high that serves as a watchtower. In clear weather you have a perfect view over the neighbouring Hvezda Park. The second construction is also a round tube, but laid horizontally with an open door. It serves as a resting place and café for refershments
These two installations have been in Ladronka Park since November 2020. Čestmír Suška lends his work to various institutions. Previously it was in Brno and the Holešovice district in Prague. It is not certain how long it will remain in Ladronka.

*Peacock in Ladronka Park – Páv na Ladronce
A second work of art is a topiary in the shape of a peacock and made from shrubs and flowers. You can find it close to the Ladronka farmstead.

Ladronka Park: away from Prague centre and without the tourists

Ladronka, located on a hill in the chic residential area of Břevnov in Prague, is not only one of the largest parks in Prague but also one of the most crowded on sunny days. Especially in the summer, people are everywhere: siting on the large lawns, picnicking, looking at their mobile phones, or just sunbathing. Hundreds of inline skaters circle the asphalt tracks, some holding hands, and others pushing strollers.

A very brief history

The story of the Ladronka estate begins in the time of Charles IV (1316-1378) who had a great fondness for growing grapes. Therefore, the slopes of the hills of the villages Motol and Břevnov (now districts in Prague) were full of vines. At the end of the seventeenth century, the Italian count Filip Ferdinand de la Crone, or Lacrone for short, and corrupted it into Ladron, bought the estate. According to historians, the current name Ladronka is derived from Ladron.

The count had an inn built on his estate, and income was assured due to its favorable location near the pilgrimage route from Loreta, a pilgrimage destination in Hradčany, a district of Prague, to the monastery in Hájek u Unhoště some 20 km to the west of Prague. When a new road was built in the nineteenth century that no longer ran around the estate, the earnings declined.

In the early 1920s, the estate and inn became the property of the City of Prague and the buildings were used for housing. Several families lived here until the 1950s. After that it was a warehouse for some time, but over time the buildings and the grounds deteriorated. In 1993, squatters moved there. locals still associate the name Ladronka with alternative lifestyle and culture. In 2000, the squatters were removed, and Ladronka stood empty but the buildings were in very bad condition. In 2002, the Prague 6 Municipal District decided to renovate the inn and the adjacent park. We see the result of this to day.

Getting there

Address: Ladronka, Tomanova 1028, Břevnov, Prague 6
Tram 22 or 25 to Vypich stop

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Photos Marianne Crone