Do you want to leave a pleasant memory of your trip to the Czech Republic? We tell you what to bring from Prague. Prices for souvenirs and gifts. Tips and reviews of tourists, what is better to choose and where to buy it.
Look for interesting excursions in Prague on the websites Sputnik8 and Tripster. Individual and group, no crowds of tourists and in Russian.
Exchange rate: 1 Czech crown (CZK) ≈ 3 RUB.
Bohemian glass and Czech crystal
The Czech brand is crystal and glass products. If you have not decided what to bring from Prague, take a look at the shops Bohemia crystal... An amazing world of sophistication and perfection will open before you. It displays artwork made of crystal and elegant utilitarian objects - ashtrays, wine glasses, wine glasses, vases, plates, napkin holders and trays.
Price... Glass and crystal souvenirs are expensive. A small product costs from 100 CZK, a set of crystal dishes for 6 persons - from 1000 CZK.
Advice... Beautiful Czech crystal is sold in shops with a sign Moser.
Czech beer
What to bring from the Czech Republic as a gift for a connoisseur of alcohol? The most popular product in Prague is beer. Czechs have been brewing a foamy drink since the Middle Ages and have been very successful in this business. They carried the passion for beer through the centuries.
Live beer is sold in restaurants and drinking establishments. A mug of 0.5 l costs 25-50 CZK. This beer is very high quality and tasty, but not suitable for transportation. Tourists buy factory-made beer. In the Czech Republic, they do not like to add impurities to the drink, so it is rare to see beer flavored with cherries, bananas and other berries and fruits on sale.
What kind of beer to bring from the Czech Republic? Connoisseurs praise "Staropramen", "Gambrinus" and "Radegast"... Light lager beer popular "Pilsner Urquel" and dark "Velkopopovitsky Kozel"... The latter is made especially for ladies and leaves a pleasant coffee-chocolate aftertaste.
Price... Beer in 0.33 liter cans costs 10-35 CZK. Glass bottle 0.5 l - 15-30 CZK. Light is slightly cheaper than dark.
Advice... It is more convenient to take canned beer on the road. It weighs less and won't break on the way.
Beer cosmetics
There is a large selection of beer cosmetics in Prague. It is popular with both Czechs and tourists. The most demanded brands are Manufaktura, Botanicus and Aquila... There are skin care products for the face, body and hair, which are specially produced in the form of souvenir beer bottles.
What to bring from the Czech Republic as a gift for a woman? Use a beer-based shampoo, face mask, gel, hair balm, salt, or bubble bath. Original cosmetics can be tried in special beer spas. Here you are literally bathed in beer and then moisturized with beer ointments.
Price... A package, tube or jar costs from 35 to 200 CZK. Beer cosmetics are made more expensive according to special recipes and produced in small batches.
Advice... Good products are sold in Beer Shop chain stores. If you happen to be in Karlovy Vary, take a look at the store FAON.
Liqueur "Becherovka"
An original gift that can be brought from the Czech Republic to a lover of unusual alcohol is the delicious Becherovka liqueur. The drink has a strength of 38%. It is infused with medicinal herbs and is considered an excellent digestion aid. "Becherovka" is made in Karlovy Vary and sold all over the country. It is drunk neat and added to tea or coffee.
The Becherovka Museum is open in the homeland of the liqueur. Here tourists are told that the drink was invented in 1807 by the pharmacist Josef Becher. For the new liqueur, the pharmacist used the tincture of his English friend, the physician Christian Frobrig. Through various experiments, Becher managed to achieve that the liqueur acquired a pleasant herbal taste.
At first, the drink was sold as stomach drops, or bitters. In honor of the inventor of Frobrig drops, it was called "Carlsbad English Bitter". At the beginning of the 19th century, Becher's son Jan turned the drink into a popular liqueur. Today "Becherovka" is sold in 35 countries of the world.
Price... The bottle costs 135-140 CZK.
Advice... There are four types of Becherovka on sale. In addition to the original liquor, they sell citric drink with a strength of 20%, grade "Cordial" with linden blossom and white wine 35% alcohol and bitter liqueur KV 14 with a strength of 40%.
Other Czech spirits
Even if you are completely indifferent to alcohol, your friends may like spirits from the Czech Republic. What to bring home from Prague?
Pay attention to the delicious liquor "Fernet Stoke"... It is infused with chamomile, saffron and cardamom, tastes less bitter than Becherovka, and is easy to drink.
A great solution is to buy "Slivovitsa"... Czech fruit brandy is made from ripe plums. It has an amazing taste and aroma.
A good gift that you can bring from Prague is absinthe made in the Czech Republic. Green liqueur is infused with wormwood, red - with pomegranate fruits, and black - with wormwood and black acacia. All of them have a strength of 70% and higher. Good Czech absinthes are La Grenouille, St. Antoine, L'Ancienne, Cami Toulouse Lautrec.
Connoisseurs of good wines will be delighted if you manage to bring a bottle of Moravian wine from Prague. Not sure what to choose? Take a look at any of the Prague wine bars and try it!
Price... A bottle of ordinary Moravian wine starts at 35 CZK. Plain plum brandy - 150-400 CZK, plum brandy in a gift box aged 5-6 years - 700-1000 CZK.
Advice... Buy absinthe in Prague restaurants "Absintarium", Green Devil's Absinth Bar & Shop and Absinthe time... These are shops-bars where they offer a large selection of original absinthes and any of them can be tasted.
Hermelin cheese
Czechs love cheese. They eat wine and beer. The cheeses are baked and used in traditional Czech cuisine. If you have not decided what to bring from Prague, pay attention to hermelin. Blue cheese is very reminiscent of Camembert.
Hermeline is sold in packages that depict a royal robe with a portrait of a smiling king. The fact is that the word "hermelin" is translated as "ermine". Previously, cheese was considered royal, and only wealthy Czechs could afford it. Today, a delicious delicacy is sold in all food stores in the country.
Price... A package of cheese weighing 80-150 g costs 20-25 CZK.
Advice... If you want to bring different cheeses from Prague, buy Vltavin, Gerarnont, Plesnivec and Niva... Large selection of cheeses in supermarkets Tesco and Albert.
Czech waffles
What to bring from the Czech Republic as a gift for sweet lovers? As a pleasant souvenir for a sweet tooth, tourists bring delicious and light waffles. In Czech, they are called payments. Popular "Karlovy Vary Payments" began to do back in the 18th century. Today, thin round waffles have different fillings. They contain white and milk chocolate, lemon, nut, almond, nougat and coconut.
Price... Depending on the size and filling, waffles cost from 20 to 40 CZK.
Advice... In chain supermarkets, the prices for payment are slightly lower.
What else can you bring from Prague
- Czech garnet jewelry - from 250 to 3000 CZK.
- Czech puppet puppets made of wood and plaster - 250-600 CZK.
- The pencils Koh-i-Noor- 20-40 CZK for a simple pencil and 200-300 CZK for a set of 10 pencils.
- Wooden toys from the Detoa company - from 300-700 CZK.
- Figurines, toys and images of the cartoon character, the Czech mole Kroteka - from 20 CZK.
- Tablecloths and napkins - from 100 CZK.
- Czech ceramics - from 50 CZK.
- Prague porcelain houses - 50-60 CZK.
- Mineral water Mattoni and Kyselka - 15 CZK.
What to bring from Prague: souvenirs and gifts
What cannot be exported from the Czech Republic
It is forbidden to export historical and cultural values from the Czech Republic. If you want to bring crystal and Czech glass from Prague, take a certificate from the seller. Such foresight will save you from possible problems with customs.
The export of ammunition and any type of weapon is prohibited from the Czech Republic. Alcoholic drinks are allowed to be exported in any quantity, but only 3 liters of strong alcohol will be allowed to be imported to Russia duty-free.
Travel Tips
- You can save money when buying delicious souvenirs. Promotions are regularly held in grocery stores in Prague.Information about discounts, including in English, is posted on the street.
- Buy Czech beer in supermarkets and brewery museums. There is a large selection and low prices. If there is a sign on the bottle České pivo, it means that the company has passed a strict audit, and the products are of high quality.
- According to tourists, good prices for "Becherovka" in the duty-free shop at the airport. It is also convenient to buy a drink at the Becherovka store, which is located next to the factory in Karlovy Vary. All four types of liquor and souvenir bottles of various sizes are exhibited here.
- We recommend taking Koh-i-Noor pencils in company stores. They are in Prague, Karlovy Vary and the city of Cesky Krumlov. One of the largest pencil stores is located in the center of the historical district of Prague - Malá Strana.
- To avoid counterfeiting, buy jewelry with Czech pomegranates in the Český granát chain stores. Be sure to ask the seller for a factory certificate for the product.