Going to Prague?
Don't Pay Old Town Prices.
The beer really is $1.60 — the taxi, the exchange booth and the trdelník stand all want $10. This guide shows you every fair price, and the 12 Prague traps visitors fall for, with exactly what to say to avoid each one.
Prices updated August 2026 · One-time payment · Money-back guarantee
The quiet overcharge
It starts before you leave the airport. A man in a vest offers a ride to the centre for what works out at $60 — the licensed rank charges $25 and the Airport Express bus $3. Then a "0% commission" window on Wenceslas Square hands back koruna worth 20% less than the board suggested, with no fee line on the receipt to point at.
By dinner it's the bread basket nobody ordered, the steak priced per 100g, and a terrace beer on Old Town Square at four times the price of the identical Pilsner two streets behind it.
None of it looks like a scam in the moment. It looks like Prague. Prague is still one of the best-value capitals in Europe — you just need to know which prices are the real ones.
What a day in Prague should actually cost
Based on real local prices for food, transport, and sights — not hotel-concierge prices.
Hostel dorm, self-catered or pub lunch, public transport, free sights like Vyšehrad and Old Town walking.
Private hotel room, sit-down meals at local (non-square) restaurants, a paid attraction or two, occasional taxi.
4-star hotel, guided tours, spa treatment, taxis/Bolt on demand, a nicer dinner with wine most nights.
What visitors arrive for
The four prices nearly every visitor checks in their first 24 hours — local rate vs what you'll typically be quoted in the tourist core.
| Item | Local | Tourist |
|---|---|---|
Pilsner beer, 0.5L (draft) per 0.5L | $1.60 | $4.80 3.0× local |
Trdelník (chimney cake) per piece | $2.50 | $6.50 2.6× local |
Men's haircut per cut | $12 | $28 2.3× local |
Airport transfer, PRG to city centre per ride | $12 | $45 3.8× local |
Old Town Square terrace beer: the same 0.5L Pilsner is $1.60–2.50 in a neighbourhood pub and $6–9 on a terrace facing the Astronomical Clock — and some menus list the terrace surcharge only inside.
The full guide costs out a whole day, stop by stop.
This is 4 of 20 items in the full guide.
What's inside the guide
You're about to make dozens of small spending decisions in a city that rounds every one of them up for visitors. Here's what the full guide gives you:
- The 12 Prague tourist traps — and exactly what to say to avoid each. From the "0% commission" exchange window to the fake plainclothes police currency check to the per-100g menu trick. Real tactics, real scripts.
- Every fair Prague price — all 20 items, local price vs tourist price, side by side.
- A first-90-minutes arrival cheat sheet — PRG to the centre without the $60 car, getting koruna without losing 20%, and the transit ticket most visitors buy wrong.
- A full day costed stop by stop — Old Town → Castle → Malá Strana, what it should cost, and where people get overcharged.
- Daily budgets for 3 travel styles, so you know if your trip is on track before you land.
- Works offline — pull it up at the pub or the ticket window, no signal needed.
The '0% commission' currency exchange window
Signs on Wenceslas Square and around Old Town Square advertise '0% commission' or 'no fees' in huge lettering. The catch is the buy/sell spread baked into the posted rate, which can run 15-25% worse than the interbank rate. A tourist changing $200 might get back CZK equivalent to $150-170 in real value, with the loss invisible because no separate fee line appears on the receipt. Some outlets post one rate on a street-facing board and apply a worse one once you're inside and money is already on the counter, pointing to fine print about 'rates for large amounts' or minimum transaction thresholds. Walking away after handing over cash is made socially awkward on purpose, and a few chains near the tourist core have been flagged repeatedly by consumer complaints and local press for this pattern.
That's one. The full guide has eleven more — including the ones that cost real money.
Less than one overpriced airport taxi. Less than two terrace beers on Old Town Square. If this guide doesn't save you more than it costs, we'll refund you — just ask.
One-time payment · Instant access · Works offline · Money-back guarantee
The full guide
Unlock the full price table + 12 trap warnings
Every one of the 20 prices, plus the 12 specific Prague tourist traps with the exact phrase to avoid them.
