Wenceslas Square market and the ice rink
Wenceslas Square is less a square than a long boulevard, climbing from Můstek to the National Museum. In Advent its lower end holds the second of Prague's two big Christmas markets, with the same hours as Old Town Square, and an open-air rink lets you skate on into February. This guide covers the market and the rink, then the short walk that joins them to Old Town Square.
The market at the Můstek end
The market fills the lower end of Wenceslas Square, Václavské náměstí, around the Můstek metro entrance. It shares its calendar with Old Town Square, running from 28 November to 6 January, daily from 10 am to 10 pm. It closes at 2 pm on 24 December and opens at noon on 25 and 26 December.
| What | Dates | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Market stalls | 28 Nov to 6 Jan | 10 am to 10 pm; 24 Dec until 2 pm; 25 and 26 Dec from noon |
| Stage | Thursday to Sunday | 4 pm to 6 pm |
| Open-air ice rink | 28 Nov to mid-February | 9 am to 9 pm |
The final dates and hours are fixed by the organizers only shortly before each season, so look at the official pages before you go. Every other market is in our calendar of market dates and hours.
Compared with Old Town Square, the tree here is smaller, about 49 feet (15 m), and the stage is quieter, with music from Thursday to Sunday between 4 pm and 6 pm. What Wenceslas Square has that its bigger sister lacks are the blacksmiths, who give demonstrations among the stalls. A nativity scene stands between the huts as well.
The open-air ice rink
The rink opens with the market on 28 November and stays long after the huts have gone, into February. It runs daily from 9 am to 9 pm, so you can be on the ice an hour before the first stall opens. You can hire skates on site, and there is no need to book ahead. We have no verified prices, so read the board at the entrance before you join the queue.
The ice tends to be roomiest on weekday mornings. After dark it fills up along with the market, though watching from the side with a hot drink is free. For families, our guide to Prague at Christmas with kids pairs the rink with the weekend workshops on Old Town Square and other ideas for children.
A boulevard with a long history
The square began as the horse market of the New Town, which Charles IV laid out in the 14th century. It runs uphill for nearly half a mile (about 750 m), and at the top the statue of St. Wenceslas on horseback stands in front of the National Museum. In November 1989 huge crowds gathered here during the Velvet Revolution, which brought down Communist rule in Czechoslovakia. Today it is a busy shopping boulevard, and the Christmas stalls bring a little of the old market back to its lower end.
Old Town Square or Wenceslas Square?
If you have only one evening, see both, since the walk between them takes about 7 minutes. Old Town Square is the bigger spectacle, with the tall tree and its light shows set among Gothic towers and the Astronomical Clock. Wenceslas Square is plainer and more open. People heading for the metro cut straight through it, yet the lanes between the huts are usually less packed, and the skating gives it a second purpose. Pick it for the rink and an easier crowd, and pick Old Town Square for the setting. For the main market in depth, read our guide to the Old Town Square market.
A walk between the two squares
- Start at dusk by the statue of St. Wenceslas at the top of the square. Muzeum metro station, served by lines A and C, is step-free;
- Walk down the boulevard to the market and watch the blacksmiths at work;
- Leave the square at Můstek by the narrow street Na Můstku, which runs straight into Melantrichova;
- Look into Havel's Market, open until 7 pm from Monday to Saturday and until 6:30 pm on Sunday, with extra stalls in Advent;
- Reach Old Town Square as the tree's next light show starts, then carry on to Charles Bridge, about 10 minutes further.
The morning after, from the Old Town to the castle
Once you have seen the markets by night, a daytime walk shows you the city around them. Get Prague Guide's three-hour Old Town and castle walk, from ~$30, starts at the company's office at Maiselova 5, about 4 minutes from the Astronomical Clock. Old Town Square comes first, with the stories told about the clock, and then the group works its way across Charles Bridge, stopping at the statues. A tram, with one ticket included, takes you up the hill to Hradčany square and the castle complex, with views back over the river. Tours run in six languages, and the walk holds 4.8 stars from 7,234 reviews on GetYourGuide, where reviewers describe it as a good introduction on a first morning. The catch is that you see the castle only from the outside, with no interiors. Groups can be large, and the walk goes ahead in any weather. It does not suit strollers or wheelchairs. For St. Vitus Cathedral and the Old Royal Palace from inside, read our guide to Prague Castle in winter.
Three hours from the clock to the castle gates
Meet near the Astronomical Clock the morning after the markets, cross Charles Bridge and ride the tram up to Hradčany, from ~$30. Wear boots with grip, since the cobbles are slippery and the walk runs whatever the weather.
Shopping streets around the square
From Můstek, the wide street Na Příkopě leads off to Republic Square, lined with shops the whole way. At its far end, the Republic Square market stands beside the Art Nouveau Municipal House, and its second part, in front of the Palladium shopping mall, keeps trading until 6 January, long after the main square has closed on 24 December. Further out, the Vinohrady markets at Náměstí Míru and Jiřího z Poděbrad are one and two stops from Muzeum on metro A. Our guide to the neighborhood markets covers them, and the svařák and food guide explains what to order at the stalls.