Where you stay in Prague shapes the entire experience of the city. The historic centre is compact enough that most areas are walkable to each other on a good day, but Prague is also a city of distinct neighbourhoods with very different characters — and getting the right one for your trip makes a real difference to whether you feel like a visitor or a temporary resident.
This guide covers the areas most visitors choose, what each one is actually like to stay in, and the practical detail of how long it takes to get there from Václav Havel Airport by private transfer.
Old Town (Staré Město) — Prague 1
Who it suits: First-time visitors who want to be in the middle of everything. Couples. Short stays.
Old Town is where most visitors want to be for their first Prague trip. The Astronomical Clock, Old Town Square, the Týn Church, the Jewish Quarter, and Charles Bridge are all within walking distance of each other and of most hotels in this area. The streets are dense with restaurants, bars, and cultural sites. At its best — early morning or late evening — it is genuinely one of the most beautiful urban environments in Europe.
The honest caveat is that the core of Old Town is also one of the most tourist-concentrated areas in Central Europe. In summer, the main streets are extremely busy during the day. Most visitors who return to Prague for a second trip tend to choose a neighbourhood with more everyday city life alongside the sightseeing.
Hotels in this area: Marriott Prague on V Celnici sits at the edge of Old Town, steps from náměstí Republiky — one of the best-positioned business hotels in the city. The Four Seasons Prague is technically at the Old Town / Malá Strana boundary, directly facing the Vltava — one of the most extraordinary hotel locations in the city.
Airport transfer time: approximately 25–30 minutes via the D0 ring road and city centre approach. Book your Old Town transfer →
Malá Strana & Hradčany — Prague 1
Who it suits: Visitors who want history and atmosphere over convenience. Luxury hotel guests. Return visitors.
Malá Strana (the Lesser Town) and Hradčany (the Castle District) occupy the left bank of the Vltava below and around Prague Castle. This is arguably the most beautiful part of the city — baroque palaces, cobblestone lanes, terrace gardens, and the kind of preserved historic atmosphere that most European cities lost a century ago. It is quieter than Old Town, more residential in character, and noticeably less crowded even in peak season.
The trade-off is access. Many streets in Malá Strana and Hradčany are restricted or pedestrianised, and the narrow lanes are not straightforward to navigate with luggage. A private transfer with a driver who knows the current access arrangements is significantly more practical than any other option for arrivals in this part of the city.
Hotels in this area: The Augustine Hotel on Letenská — a 13th-century monastery complex converted into a Luxury Collection hotel — is the defining address in Malá Strana. The Golden Well Hotel on Úvoz, the Aria Hotel on Tržiště, and numerous boutique properties are also concentrated here.
Airport transfer time: approximately 30–40 minutes depending on your exact address. Book your Malá Strana transfer →
Vinohrady — Prague 2
Who it suits: Return visitors. Longer stays. Those who want to experience Prague as a city rather than as a tourist site.
Vinohrady is consistently ranked among the most desirable residential neighbourhoods in Prague, and it is easy to understand why. Tree-lined avenues, art nouveau apartment buildings, a concentration of excellent independent restaurants and wine bars, and a genuinely mixed community of Prague residents and long-stay visitors make it one of the most pleasant places to spend time in the city. It is also extremely well connected — the metro puts Old Town and Wenceslas Square five minutes away.
For visitors who have already seen the main sights and want their second Prague trip to feel like living in the city rather than visiting it, Vinohrady is consistently the right answer.
Airport transfer time: approximately 30–35 minutes. Book your Vinohrady transfer →
Žižkov — Prague 3
Who it suits: Budget-conscious visitors. Those interested in a more local, less polished Prague experience. Creative and nightlife-focused travellers.
Žižkov is Vinohrady’s less refined neighbour — historically a working-class district with a strong independent identity, a dense network of pubs and bars, and the Žižkov Television Tower (one of the more extraordinary pieces of brutalist architecture in the country, with giant crawling baby sculptures along its exterior). It is also significantly more affordable than the historic centre and Vinohrady.
The neighbourhood has changed considerably over the past decade and continues to evolve. A growing number of good restaurants and café spaces have opened alongside the traditional pubs. It remains rougher around the edges than most Prague neighbourhoods aimed at visitors, which is part of its appeal for the right kind of traveller.
Airport transfer time: approximately 30–35 minutes. Book your Žižkov transfer →
Smíchov & Andel — Prague 5
Who it suits: Business travellers on extended stays. Visitors who want easy transport connections without tourist-area pricing. Younger travellers.
Smíchov sits on the right bank of the Vltava south of Malá Strana, directly accessible from the Old Town via the Jiráskův Bridge. It has transformed significantly over the past fifteen years from a heavy-industrial area into one of Prague’s most interesting mixed-use neighbourhoods — the Andel transport hub, a growing food and café scene, and the kind of local everyday life that the historic centre has largely traded away for tourism infrastructure.
Mosaic House Hotel on Odbojářů is the standout boutique property in this part of the city — a 1930s art deco building converted into a sustainably-focused design hotel that attracts a very different guest profile from the Old Town luxury options.
Airport transfer time: approximately 20–25 minutes — one of the shorter airport runs in the city, with direct road access via the Smíchovská estakáda. Book your Smíchov transfer →
Karlín — Prague 8
Who it suits: Business travellers. Longer stays. Design-conscious visitors looking for a neighbourhood that feels genuinely current.
Karlín is Prague’s most dramatically transformed neighbourhood — almost entirely reconstructed after devastating floods in 2002 and now one of the most architecturally interesting and culinarily rich districts in the city. The Hilton Prague anchors the area and is one of the most complete business hotels in the city. The streets around Náměstí Jiřího z Poděbrad have some of the best restaurant and café concentration anywhere in Prague.
Airport transfer time: approximately 25–30 minutes. Book your Karlín transfer →
Pankrác — Prague 4
Who it suits: Conference delegates. Business travellers attending events at the Corinthia.
Pankrác is Prague’s modern high-rise district — the city’s closest equivalent to a central business district, perched on the plateau south of the river with views over the Nusle Valley. It is not a leisure destination, but it is exactly the right base for anyone attending a conference or congress at the Corinthia Hotel Prague, whose congress centre is one of the largest in Central Europe.
Airport transfer time: approximately 25–35 minutes via the D0 ring road. Book your Pankrác transfer →
Getting from Prague Airport to Any Neighbourhood
Václav Havel Airport (PRG) is approximately 17 kilometres northwest of the city centre. Every neighbourhood in Prague is reachable by private transfer in 20–45 minutes depending on traffic and destination.
A pre-booked Prague airport transfer collects you from the arrivals hall — your name on a board, your luggage handled, your driver monitoring your flight in real time so delays are absorbed automatically. The price is fixed at booking for every neighbourhood across the city.
For families, the V-Class handles up to six passengers and all luggage together. For groups, the Minivan XL takes up to eight. For executives and solo travellers, the Sedan or Luxury Sedan is the efficient choice.
Book your Prague airport transfer: pragueairportchauffeur.com/book
+420 731 931 858 | info@pragueairportchauffeur.com
