Agreed. Glad we went once, and I did enjoy it, but once is enough. Next time we're in Prague we'll avoid it. We found beer prices in Prague to be generally pretty reasonable. There are certainly tourist places where you can pay more, but my impression was that you really shouldn't have to pay more than $5 for a half liter of beer. At Hostomicka Nalevarna, I think we were paying around $2.40 for a half liter of very good beer. Granted, the atmosphere there wasn't the best (place is very divey), but if you can overlook that...
I’ve always been told U Fleku is THE place to have the beer nerd moment in Prague. But the more I read this seems to no longer be the case. Where is the special place that celebrates Czech lager now? (Still going to U Fleku as it is a rite of passage)
Beer is everywhere here. I think you need to hit U Fleku, but I like PULT as a beer nerd spot (like a less snooty Churchkey or a cleaner Toronado). Strahov seems very “authentic” to me (if only actually brewing in its current iteration since the 90s). So do a lot of the pubs up around the Castle. Hit a Pilsner Urquell tankovna right across from St Nicholas this evening; 49 czk a half liter. Very touristy area, and that’s still just $2.12 for the best Pilsner Urquell pour of your life.
IMO the best spots in Budapest right now are Constellation (a bistro type place that's a collab between two great Hungarian breweries) and Beer People (owned by a couple Americans, actually). Both super centrally located. As far as "outside the box" for BP ... Ruin Brew is pretty cool. Their house beers aren't outstanding by any means, but as far as I know it's the only brewery actually located in a ruin pub, which is a very Budapest phenomenon. For that matter, Szimpla Kert, the very first ruin pub, is super awesome to walk through (go at night to get a beer and be blasted by loud music, or be an old person like me and go to the Sunday morning market and explore it in the daylight). My last visit, I also liked Wunder Sörművek (Wunder Beer Works), a hole-in-the-wall dank basement pub with super fun staff and a small but nicely curated tap list.
Thank you very much for this updated list. I am familiar with both Gravity & Brew Your Mind. I drank both on two trips to Budapest. I will be headed back there this week & will definitely check out Constellation! Beer People will also be a new stop for me! Thank you again for posting!
I loved pretty much all of the Czech beers. Hungary Gravity and the breweries featured at Constellation were awesome. Austria… yeah ok
If anyone’s in Prague this month, PULT is selling a beer advent calendar on their site now for pickup starting November 26… An Advent calendar full of beers from all over the world! Look forward to pieces from America, Belgium, Poland, Estonia, Hungary, Croatia, Spitsbergen, and last but not least, the Czech Republic. It will be available for pick-up from November 26th directly at Pult.
My son and I were planning a trip here in Eastern USA for 10 days, however something made me consider Prague, so we will likely end up going to Prague. Questions for those that have been there: 1. Carry/Use USD or CZK or both? 2. Credit cards widely used? 3. Assume we will need electric plug converter? 4. Tipping, normal like here in USA or no tipping like Japan? 5. What do I need to know?
My visited back in 2019. My input: 1. Carry/Use USD or CZK or both? : I used CZK when I used cash; obtained from an ATM. 2. Credit cards widely used?: Yes 3. Assume we will need electric plug converter?: Yes 4. Tipping, normal like here in USA or no tipping like Japan?: I tipped but at a lesser amount 10% 5. What do I need to know?: Watch the many videos on the YouTube channel: Honest Prague Guide. Na Zdravi
I hope you and your son have a great visit. A 'benefit' of visiting Prague is that it is (was?) very economical. When I visited in 2019 a typical (and very good) meal for dinner was about 10 bucks at a nice restaurant. And the beers with the meal were very inexpensive. I am sure that prices have gone up over the past 5+ years but relative to the US I am confident they still cheap. My wife and I stayed at a nice but non-fancy hotel in the neighborhood of Smichov and it was very cheap by US standards with an inclusive buffet breakfast which was very good. Cheers! P.S. And since you plan on a 10 day visit I would recommend you take some trips outside the city. We took the train to Pilsen to tour the Pilsner Urquell brewery, a bus trip to Kutná Hora, a bus trip to Český Krumlov, an uber ride to Únětický pivovar to tour the brewery.
Keep the suggestions coming please. We are planning a plane/hotel/car bundle which is fairly cheap for all. Roughly $2700 total with breakfast and parking included. Not sure how much we will use the car, however it only adds about $130 to the overall cost so if we use it 3-4 times it is a breakeven with Uber. I do plan on Ubering most of the time though since this is a beer centered trip.
Český Krumlov is a lovely little picturesque town (the old town part, anyway), and there's a pretty decent brewery there too. (Though to be honest there are decent breweries in every Czech town ). Pilsner Urquell in Plzeň was cool, too, though it's a mega brewery (which is interesting in its own way). If you go on the tour you can taste the rare barrel-fermented Pilsner Urquell. Prague wasn't that cheap as of November 2025, but expect midsize US city prices and not New York-Seattle-San Francisco prices.
My wife and I had a beer at Eggenberg brewery and we enjoyed drinking those beers. Jacob poured me my beer: Na Zdravi
If I were visiting with a fellow beer lover, I’d do the Prague Zoo unofficial pub crawl: https://www.jidlonacestach.cz/en/prague-beer-zoo/ I only hit the first one off that list, and loved it. For a totally different vibe, PULT, in my limited experience, is far and away the best place to try multiple great beers in one sitting. They charge for the convenience though — almost twice what you’ll pay at other places. $4 a beer!
Hello, I just returned from 8 days in the CZ, it was my 3rd visit to Prague & 1st to Pilsen. Prague is great, but Pilsen was fantastic, (much smaller & more traditional CZ)! The brewery tour was awesome & Pilsen is the only place you will find unfiltered/unpasteurized Pilsner Urquell, (no matter what any Prague bar staff tells you)! You can exchange USD for CZK everywhere, Euro is also accepted much more now, but CZK is the currency of choice. CC are well received, with the exception of a few local bars, (they usually have a sign saying cash only). Tipping is becoming more common all over Europe, but they don't push it like they do in the states, 10% is an acceptable amount. Overall, prices have risen during the past several years. This is due to Prague becoming one of the top European destinations for the world's tourists. I would suggest using this site for the better beer bars, (personally, I stayed clear of the tourist areas/bars/restaurants). Seek out the out of the way bars, better beer, food & service! https://theeuropeanbarguide.com/czechia-czech-republic/ As mentioned above, a day trip to Cesky Krumlov is highly recommended, plus, Chesky Budejovice (home of the original Budvar beer) is along the route. Enjoy your trip, CZ is an awesome country!
