Where Prague locals drink their svařák

Why the smaller markets feel calmer

The big markets on Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square are built for the whole world. The neighborhood markets are built for the people who live around them, who come by after work to meet friends over a mug and buy a present or two. Most of them sit in Vinohrady, a residential district just beyond the top of Wenceslas Square. You trade the grand setting for room to move between the stalls, and you hear more Czech than English.

The trade-off is the calendar. Jiřák ends on 23 December, while the other Vinohrady squares close on 24 December along with Republic Square, so after Christmas only Kampa and the Palladium part of Republic Square remain away from the big pair.

When they open and how to get there

Three squares in Vinohrady

Peace Square

Náměstí Míru is the market locals tend to name first. It stands in front of the church of St. Ludmila and is the first market of the year to open, trading daily from 10 am to 8 pm between 20 November and 24 December. The stalls lean toward crafts and organic food rather than souvenirs. The metro A station of the same name opens onto the square, but it has no step-free access, so with a stroller come from I. P. Pavlova on line C instead.

Jiřího z Poděbrad

Jiřák, as everyone calls it, sets up below the big modern church on its square (the Most Sacred Heart of Our Lord), a single metro A stop past Náměstí Míru. It runs from 29 November to 23 December and sells more gifts than food, with the feel of a weekly farmers' market. Come in daylight if you want to shop properly.

Tyl Square

Tylovo náměstí, where Vinohrady meets the New Town, is the plainest of the three. The stalls sell cheap food and drink, and the crowd is mostly residents on their way home. It runs from 26 November to 24 December, right by I. P. Pavlova station on metro C.

Republic Square and Kampa

Republic Square, at the end of Na Příkopě, holds a market of handmade goods from 25 November to 24 December, daily from 10 am to 8 pm. It stands beside the Art Nouveau Municipal House, finished in 1912, whose café makes a warm stop between stalls. Its smaller second section, outside the Palladium shopping mall, stays open until 6 January. Metro B stops at Náměstí Republiky.

Across the river, the market on Kampa island sits in the Lesser Town just below Charles Bridge. It opens in early December and runs into early January, from 10 am to 8 pm, so it is one of the few places to drink svařák outdoors between Christmas and early January. It is mostly food and drink, with views across the Vltava to the Old Town. It pairs well with a morning at the castle, as our guide to Prague Castle in winter explains.

Havel's Market, open all year

Havel's Market has traded on the same street since 1232, between Old Town Square and Wenceslas Square. It runs all year, from 7 am to 7 pm Monday to Saturday and from 8 am to 6:30 pm on Sunday, and in Advent it adds seasonal stalls to its usual mix. It is the one market here you can visit before breakfast, and it sits on the walk between the two big squares, described in our guide to the Old Town Square market.

An evening route through Vinohrady

This route only works up to 23 December, while all three squares are trading. Allow about three hours.

1. Take metro A to Jiřího z Poděbrad in mid-afternoon and browse the gift stalls at Jiřák while it is still light. Check its hours before you set out;
2. Ride one stop back to Náměstí Míru, or walk for about 15 minutes, and reach Peace Square as the lights come on around 4 pm;
3. Stay for a hot mead or a svařák in front of St. Ludmila. This market is open until 8 pm;
4. Walk on for about 10 minutes to Tyl Square for a cheap supper among the residents, checking its closing time first;
5. Take metro C from I. P. Pavlova, which is step-free, one stop to Muzeum, and walk down Wenceslas Square to the big market.

For what to order on the way, see our guide to svařák and Christmas food. The full calendar is in market dates and opening hours, and the step-free stations are listed again in Prague at Christmas with kids.

The same idea with a local guide

If you would rather someone else chose the squares, the Christmas markets walk with Prague City Adventures is built on exactly this idea, and prices start from ~$95. Over 2.5 hours it visits three markets loved by locals. Up to 24 December two of them are neighborhood markets, and once those have closed the route moves to two others in the historic center. Along the way you get cookies baked at home the Czech way, cups of mulled wine and hot mead, and your tram and metro rides are covered. All the stalls you stop at are Czech-owned, and charity-run stalls get a mention as you pass. Children of any age are welcome, and drinks without alcohol can be arranged on request. It starts at Franz Kafka's birthplace by Old Town Square and finishes near Wenceslas Square. On Viator it costs about $97. Reviewers mention learning a Czech carol and receiving the cookie recipes afterwards. The catch is that the reviews are few next to year-round tours, at 5.0 from 71 on Viator and 4.9 from 34 on GetYourGuide. You also stand outside for most of it, and the meeting point is easy to walk past.