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Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic.
Situated on the Vltava river in central Bohemia, Prague has been the political, cultural, and economic center of the Czech state for over 1000 years. The city proper is home to nearly 1.2 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 1.9 million.
Prague is widely considered to be one of the most beautiful cities in Europe and belongs to the most visited cities on the continent. Since 1992, the historic centre of Prague has been included in the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. Nicknames for Prague have included "the mother of cities (Praga mater urbium)", "city of a hundred spires" and "the golden city". |
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 The land where Prague came to be built has been settled since the Paleolithic Age. Several thousands of years ago, there were trade routes connecting southern parts of Europe to northern Europe which passed through this area, following the course of the river. From around 500 BC the Celtic tribe known as the Boii, were the first inhabitants of this region known by name. The Boii named the region Bohemia and the river Vltava. The Germanic tribe Marcomanni migrated to Bohemia with its king Maroboduus in 9 AD. Meanwhile, some of the Celts migrated southward while the remainder assimilated with the Marcomanni. In 568, most of the Marcomanni migrated southward with the Lombards, another Germanic tribe. The rest of Marcomanni assimilated with the invading West Slavs. (The Migration of Nations started in the 2nd century; it ended at the end of the 9th and at the beginning of the 10th centuries). The Byzantine historian Prokopios mentions the presence of the Slavs in the lands in 512 AD. The Czech Slavic tribe came to Bohemia at the beginning of 7th century and Forefather Czech became the founder of the Czech nation. |
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 In case of necessity you can obtain visa at the Czech Embassy in your country. Two kinds of visas are available; a tourist visa for 30 days or a transit one for 48 hours. The official language is Czech, Slovak language being understandable. Most local people have basic or possibly intermediate knowledge of English or German language. In majority of hotels, restaurants, travel agencies, historical monuments, shops and services the communication is possible in English, German or perhaps French.
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