In Prague with babies

We had a short holiday break in June and we went to Prague for 5 days, with our son.

We looked on Internet for tips on travelling to Prague and came prepared, but there are a few details we wanted to share with other travelers, as you cannot find them in any guide book.

To begin with, we followed our friends' advice and rented an apartment for our stay. This was definitely a better choice than a hotel room. I think all apartments have kettles and cooking plates but not all of them have washing machines. As our son is 16 months old and an explorer, he has the talent of getting himself dirty from head to toes by the end of the day. We didn't get an apartment with washing machine as we didn't think it would be so important at that time, but once we got to Prague we started looking for laundry service. Laundry service is not expensive; that is, once you found one.. there aren't many in the centre, and as the clothes were washed we were told that the dryer didn't work so we got back a bag of wet clothes which we hung all over the apartment to get them dry.

However Prague is a great place for children. The air is fresh, unlike in many other capitals, and there are so many parks. We used to hang out in Kampa, where you can sit on the grass and enjoy a quiet afternoon. We found the most beautiful terraces in Kampa, on old historical buildings with gardens, by the creek that gives to the river and separates Kampa from the rest of the city.

A small garden right in the centre is Francizskana Zahrada, behind Wenceslas Square. The entrance is small and a bit hidden from the main road so you can easily miss it. But there are others, like Petrin (close to Prague Castle) or the gardens of Vysehrad, where there is plenty of space for kids to explore.

Another detail to mention about Prague is how you can get around with strollers. The historical centre has cobblestone streets, which is very romantic but difficult when you are on wheels. We had a strong stroller with big wheels which we could use everywhere, but still we had to avoid the steps that lead to Prague castle or the steps at Vysehrad fortress (and there were many of them). There is also a little island in the middle of the river, (easily!!) accessed from Most Legii bridge, but only by a huge flight of steps, so we couldn't get down there.

So don't bring with you one of these light strollers with small wheels which are so handy in other cities, because here it can break easily.

Prague is built on hillside, most of it. The Old Town is flat, so this is the best place to stay with small kids. We visited Mala Strana quarter which is from Charles Bridge to Prague Castle, and found it very beautiful. We would have loved to stay there but pushing the stroller up the hill on those (beautiful) cobblestone streets is a business that I wouldn't want to do every day.

The accommodation itself very baby friendly; we booked it at K Apartments Prague. There was no charge for my son and we got baby cot and high chair free. I get this is normal but don't take it for granted, as there are some places that charge for babies or baby cots. We stayed at ground floor but even so there were a few steps at the entrance of the building. All Czech houses have them but we got used to it pretty fast.