Pivo, Prague and Proud Czech Roots

The time has finally come. It’s time for us to travel to Prague and the Czech Republic!

Prague has been on my bucket list for years, in large part because my family has Czech ancestry on my dad’s side and it is a very proud ancestry. My dad grew up in a small town in Nebraska called, Wilber, Czech capital of the USA. Every August they host Czech Days, a weekend festival meant to bring the Czech heritage and traditions back for all to enjoy. I haven’t been in many years but grew up attending – it’s quite the event! If you ever find yourself in Nebraska in August – make a pit stop!

Because I grew up with Czech traditions – Prague was always on my list to visit – and I knew there were also a lot of great castles to see! 2026 was finally our year and leading up to the trip, we heard so many people tell us about how great it was – it helped get Bryan more excited for it as well.

The end of April we started our journey – from Denver through Frankfurt and then landing in Prague. We landed around midday and were able to catch an Uber from the airport to our hotel, Hotel Cube, located between Old Town and New Town. One thing we learned quickly about the Czech Republic, things are much less expensive than what we are used to in the States. Our 45-minute Uber only cost us around $27 – that probably would have been triple in the states!

Once arriving at our hotel, they welcomed us with our first pilsner of the trip, and we took a quick shower before heading out to explore.

About a year before our trip, one of my favorite shows, The Amazing Race, had a leg in and around Prague. One of the challenges took place at a beer hall called U Fleku. After seeing this on the race, I added it to our Google Maps and lucky for us – it was about a block away from our hotel! This was a natural place to go for our first stop – we wanted beer and something to eat. U Fleku is one of the oldest halls in Prague and has been brewing beer for over 500 years. When you walk in and sit down, it is quintessential Czech Republic – I could not have been happier. Staff are walking around with trays of beer – asking if you want light or dark. They tally what you order on a piece of paper next to you and don’t like taking no for an answer. Here Bryan and I also got an order of duck and dumplings to share. The weather was beautiful on the patio, and we had accordion music playing as well. I knew it was a great start to the trip when they played songs that I knew and could sing along to! (Roll out the Barrel for those of you that may know it.) Bryan wasn’t sure at this point if he should claim me. 😊

First live music of the trip!

After this stop, we were ready to do some more wandering around town. From here, we were about a 10-minute walk to the heart of Prague – and the photos most people are familiar with – Old Town Square.

Famous Old Town Square

When we travel, I like to do research ahead of time and use travel books to figure out where to go, what to do, etc. A lot of people are obsessed with Rick Steves. Personally, I don’t like his stuff. I think he puts too much of his own opinions into the book and not enough facts. (He didn’t even mention the city, Turin, former capital of Italy, in his book!) However, I do swear by his books when it comes to using them for free walking tours. He gave us the hint to tear out his walking tours, so you don’t have to carry the whole book and this is exactly what we do. It’s an easy way to see the town, make your own stops and learn about the city you’re in. Here were the first few highlights:

Jan Hus Memorial

Tyn Church

Astronomical Clock

After we watched the Astronomical Clock (honestly, the clock is amazing, but the show at the top of the hour is kind of underwhelming in our opinion), Bryan had to pee. We were in the middle of the square and any public restrooms required change – which we didn’t have yet. Luckily, in my research, I learned about a rooftop bar that had incredible views of the Old Town Square. I said – why don’t we go grab a drink there and you can use the restroom? Win win and we earned these incredible pictures! Sometimes you must be okay with the things you swear you didn’t want to do.

After our pivo (beer) break, we were ready to keep walking. We finished up our Old Town Walk (views of the Municipal House and
Powder Tower) headed back to the hotel and called it a night, so thankful this incredible trip had finally begun!