See the world going round.

Being in old town square in Prague is an amazing experience. Full of people of all nationalities, great food, great wine and beer. There is magic. Put it on your wish list. Center of Old Town with churches, attractions, dining and shops surrounding all sides. Great for people watching, relaxing, grabbing a bite to eat. Every visit to Prague should begin here!

Very crowded, but it is a must see
Everyone goes here, better to go early or late, mid day was packed! Nice architecture, lots of restaurants.
This old town square is the mecca for tourists visiting Prague's old town. It offers many tourist attractions along its sides, shopping opportunities, and outdoor eateries. It also seems to be a connecting point to other attractions nearby like the Jewish section, Lesser Town, and the namesti Republiky. There were no impromptu umbrellaed kiosks offering market foods and home crafted tourist souvenirs cluttering up the space on this old town square. Although spacious, it was difficult to imagine this square being filled with thousands of people protesting during the Cold War years.

I was attracted to the huge bronze Hus memorial off to one side of the square which was nicely underplanted with a surrounding bed of annuals and benches for resting. It still is used as a symbol of resistance to oppression.

The 2 churches along the sides of the square - Tyn and St. Nicholas - were each different having been built in different centuries demanding different architectural styles. The exterior Gothic features of the Tyn church are hard to see as the church is squeezed in among other buildings at its front and along its side. It was a worthwhile visit (free) to see its interior (many enormous black baroque altars) and very narrow but tall stained glass windows behind the main altar. Outside in the alley, don't miss seeing the crucifixion sculptures over its north exterior door. The interior of St. Nicholas's Church is the complete opposite of the Tyn Church with its creamy walls, frescoes on the ceiling, rounded arches with baroque detailing, and the nave altar as the focal point. Both churches offer 1 hour concerts in the evening.Tickets can be bought at the church door or at the shop, Via Musica, conveniently located beside the Tyn Church in the alley; its sign is noticeable.

Alongside the St. Nicholas Church is Parizska street with designer shops - nicely shaded too and each store has very good display windows. Other streets leading to the square also offered shopping opportunities for tourist souvenirs. Many shops offered crystal glass from clear goblets (expect to see prices from 1200+ Kr) to colored vases. Along the side streets, fast foods were an alternative to the square's many outdoor cafes. We walked 2 blocks from the central square, along Dlouha/Kozi, to find a bakery which sold sandwiches to go (along Dlouha/Kozi). On a hot day, the small shops selling ice cream and the local specialty, trdelnik - twisted fried dough cones sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar (about 199 Kr) - were big sellers. Horse and buggy carriages have a station on the town square - beside the little park which offers the only shade on this cobbled square on a hot day.

The main attraction for most tourists on the square was the Astronomical Clock Tower attached to the town hall. Even though it was under a tarp in mid June, it attracted crowds of people - not an area that I wanted to linger in.

When I think of Prague, it is this cobbled old town square that I remember as we walked around it and through it several times as we visited the nearby attractions.

Great choice of restaurants surrounded by beautiful buildings, each with their own with outstanding architecture.

Old Town Square is a big square with nice old buildings waiting for your camera. From there a lot of interesting places to visit are nearby. But you are not alone and it's very crowded.