Shopping in Prague
Prague’s firmly established tourist popularity, coupled with a developed consumer economy, means that boutiques, speciality food and drinks stores and western luxury brand outlets are common sights around the city. You’ll also find souvenir shops by the hundred, particularly in and around the Old Town, with a good number of quality specialist vendors among the knick-knack stores.
You’ll find a myriad of shops in the winding lanes surrounding Old Town Square selling ornate crystal and glassware, a Czech speciality and part of the Bohemian tradition. Moser, which has a store at Černá růže, Na Přikopĕ 853/12 is consistently talked about as one of the best outlets. If labels are your thing, Parizska Street is generally seen as the most elegant and exclusive shopping stretch in town. Other good buys here include high-quality garnets (the national gemstone) as those mined here are among the world’s finest. There are also numerous antiquarian bookshops, and plenty of interesting independent art galleries dotted throughout the city.
Prague’s spectacular annual Christmas Market, which occupies the Old Town Square for the whole of December, is internationally renowned (there’s also one at Easter). During the rest of the year, the best market for handicrafts is the Havelské tržiště (literally “Havel’s Market”) held daily on Havelská Street, Prague 1. It also sells fresh produce.
Prague’s main shopping hub is centred on the top end of Wenceslas Square, extending along to Na Přikopĕ. Here you’ll find several shopping gallerias in a half-mile radius; notably the Myslbek Shopping Gallery (tel: +420 224 239 545; https://myslbek.com/en), a modern multi-level covered arcade, which plays host to popular names such as Calvin Klein, Gant and TM Lewin.
Prague's centrally-located shops rely on tourist business, and most are open Monday to Saturday 0800-1900. Many shops open later than this, and at their discretion on Sundays.
A major retailer of mass-produced keepsakes, Prague’s gift shops also sell some appealing handmade crafts. If you’re looking for something particular, such as the omnipresent wooden Czech puppets, it’s worth trying a few shops to compare prices and quality. Czech garnets – also known as ‘bohemian garnets’ are sold widely as souvenirs; be wary of counterfeits. Bohemian glass and porcelain items remain the souvenirs for which the city is best known.
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