Czech Republic · Hlavní město Praha · Prague
Old Town, Prague — Area Guide & Where to Stay
Old Town, Staré Město, is Prague's medieval core in a bend of the Vltava, Old Town Square holding the Old Town Hall and the Church of Our Lady before Týn.
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Where to stay in Old Town
Where the beds are, and what that means for the visit.
Staying in Old Town drops a visitor straight into Prague's sightseeing core, a few steps from Old Town Square, the astronomical clock, and the Church of Our Lady before Týn. Grand hotels and small guesthouses fill converted burgher houses along the lanes. Almost everything is walkable.
The river crossings to Malá Strana take only minutes on foot. Nights turn loud around the square and calmer toward the Josefov edge, so light sleepers should choose a street back from the center.
Things to do in and around Prague
Ranked by global recognition; descriptions from Wikidata (CC0).
Museums & Galleries
3- Powder Tower Heritage
- Old Town Hall Heritage
- Queen Anne's Summer Palace Heritage
Churches & Religious Sites
8- Church of Our Lady before Týn Heritage
- St. Nicholas Church Heritage
- St. George's Basilica Heritage
- Ss. Cyril and Methodius Cathedral Heritage
- Strahov Monastery Heritage
Show 3 more →
- Church of Saint Nicholas Heritage
- Church of Our Lady of Victories Heritage
- Loreta Heritage
worth knowingacross 2 categories in and around Prague
About Old Town
What are the main landmarks in Old Town?
Old Town Square anchors the district. On one side stands the Old Town Hall, its tower carrying the astronomical clock that draws crowds on the hour; opposite rise the twin Gothic spires of the Church of Our Lady before Týn. At the eastern edge, the Powder Tower guards the old gate where the medieval road left the walled town.
North toward the river, the Jewish Museum in Prague marks the Josefov quarter. Across the Vltava, Prague Castle crowns the far bank.
What is the history of Old Town?
Old Town is Prague's oldest quarter. It grew in the Middle Ages around a market at a crossing of the Vltava, and merchants, kings, and pilgrims all passed through its gates on the road to the castle. The Old Town Hall was raised in the fourteenth century to govern the merchant town.
For centuries it stood as a separate town, alongside Josefov and the settlements across the river, before they were joined into one city of Prague.
Where is Old Town?
Old Town sits on the Vltava's right bank. The river curves around its western and northern sides, so water forms two of the district's edges before the ground turns inland. Josefov, the old Jewish quarter, lines the northern riverbank. New Town wraps the southern and eastern edges, where a medieval moat once ran and broad avenues now trace the line.
Malá Strana and Prague Castle rise across the water.
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More areas in Prague
Updated October 2026