Prague
Bar Guide

Old Town holds Prague's most dramatic bar settings: medieval cellars, Art Nouveau hotel bars, and Gothic-arched drinking rooms that were built when this was the capital of an empire. 38 bars in our guide, from tourist traps to world-class cocktail destinations. The gap in quality between the best and worst here is enormous. Follow our recommendations carefully. Best cocktail bars in Stare Mesto.

The small town beneath Prague Castle holds some of the city's oldest bars in some of its most beautiful buildings. The beer is always Pilsner, the streets are always cobblestoned, and the tourists thin out significantly after the Castle closes. 19 bars in our Mala Strana guide, including the city's best wine bar and a jazz cellar that has been operating since 1958. Hidden gems in Mala Strana.

More bars per capita than any other neighbourhood in Europe, according to a study that Zizkov residents have been repeating since 1998. It is a reasonable claim. The streets behind the TV tower are packed with pubs that serve cheap Pilsner to a mix of students, creatives, and the locals who have always lived here. 34 bars in our guide. Come on a Thursday night. Best pubs in Zizkov.

Prague's most fashionable residential neighbourhood has developed a bar scene that reflects its inhabitants: educated, well-travelled, and interested in natural wine and serious cocktails. 29 bars in our Vinohrady guide. The bars here close earlier than Zizkov but the quality is consistently higher. Come for a pre-dinner aperitivo or a late-evening digestivo. Date night bars in Vinohrady.

The 14th-century New Town that Charles IV built to accommodate Prague's expansion holds the city's main commercial streets and some of its best rooftop bars. The Wenceslas Square area is chaotic and overpriced, but two streets away you find serious cocktail rooms operating below tourist radar. 22 bars in our guide. Rooftop bars in Nove Mesto.

Prague's former industrial district has been converted into galleries, creative studios, and a cluster of bars that attract the city's most interesting crowd. 18 bars in our Holesovice guide, with a concentration of craft beer venues and cocktail rooms that opened after 2015. The Cross Club here is the city's most extraordinary bar space, built entirely from recycled industrial machinery. Planning a wider Central European trip? The Budapest bar guide makes the ideal next stop.