Prague Highlights for First Time Visitors Castle District
Prague Castle, situated on a hill, dominates the Castle District, Hradčany in Czech. In the evening, the illuminated castle, with the cathedral in the background, is an impressive sight and one of the most photogenic places in Prague. The district is steeped in history. There are churches, palaces, the royal gardens, picturesque streets and panoramic viewpoints. Here you will discover why Prague is sometimes called the city of a thousand spires.
Four highlights that you should definitely see.

1. Prazský Hrad Prague Castle
Prague Castle is one of the largest castle complexes in the world. Not only is it home to the Czech President it also includes many of Prague’s most popular tourist attractions: St. Vitus Cathedral, the Royal Palace, St. George’s Basilica and the Powder Tower. Visitors can easily spend a full day exploring the castle and the grounds; from admiring Alphons Mucha’s stained glass windows in the St Vitus Cathedral to watching the changing of the guards.
Stroll along Golden Lane, a row of picturesque cottages built for the castle’s guards and gunners now transformed into souvenir shops and always bustling with people.
TIP: Plan your visit early in the morning to beat the crowd and allow at least three hours for your visit. Book your tickets online for Prague Castle and beat the queue at the ticket office.

2. St Vitus Cathedral
St Vitus Cathedral dominates the Prague skyline. Not only is the cathedral a place of pilgrimage, it is also a museum, treasure chamber and a blockbuster attraction. The archbishop of Prague crowned here the Bohemian kings who have their last resting place in the cathedral.
Highlights include the silver tomb of John Nepomuk with an army of angels supporting a canopy, the coronation chamber with the crown jewels, Wenceslas Chapel with wall paintings depicting the saint’s life and the stained glass windows designed by Art Nouveau painter and decorative artist Alfons Mucha.

3. Golden Lane
Walk up and down cobbled Golden Lane, stop for a moment at No 22, the house where Franz Kafka lived for a while. It is now a bookshop and contains a tiny Kafka museum. Colourfully painted cottages line Zlata Ulicka, Czech for Golden lane. This picturesque alley runs along the northern wall of Prague Castle.
These tiny cottages were built for the castle guards. Later they provided housing for craftsmen, including goldsmiths. Today Golden lane is an open-air museum and popular among tourists who browse the souvenir shops that line the alley. At the far end is Dalibor Tower. When you climb up, you get to s small display of torture instruments.

4. Royal Garden
Stroll through the Royal Garden. Especially in summer the garden is a riot of flowers. Be sure to walk to the railings of the garden terrace for an unrivalled view of Prague Castle and St Vitus cathedral. Beautifully decorated with flowers, animals and Greek gods, the singing fountain does not sing anymore.
The music was created by drops of water dripping onto the metal bowls. After a complete reconstruction the singing stopped. Still the fountain is wonderful to see and so is the Royal Garden especially when in spring when ablaze with thousands of colorful tulips. On the northern side sits Belvedere, the summer palace of Queen Ann, wife of Ferdinand I of Hapsburg.
The ground plan of the palace is modeled after the temple of Poseidon at Paestum, near Naples in Italy. On the west side you will find the Ball House covered in exquisite sgraffito. This building was originally used to play a ball game resembling tennis. Look up at the statues on the roof. Number ten from the right is a lady bearing a hammer and sickle.

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