"Prague Romance", Accord Tour
This year my husband and I went on a sightseeing tour to Europe for the first time. Before going, I read a lot of reviews, so I decided to add my own. Maybe someone will come in handy =).
We bought the tour in advance, two months in advance - it's cheaper, and besides, we had good seats on the bus. We specially chose a tour with a departure from Lviv, so as not to shake the day on the bus from Kyiv to the border, but we bought through the Kiev company "Lilian-Express". They also made a passport (registration is not in Kyiv, and it was expensive to travel to their historical homeland). They were satisfied with the company: they made a passport in exactly a month, as promised; the manager told us everything about the tour in great detail, besides, we received a visa 4 days before departure - in my opinion, very good!
The tour is offered in two versions - Standard and Classic. Classic is more expensive, respectively, better hotels. We took the Standard and did not regret it - the hotels are already very good, but the bus brings them directly to the hotel and picks them up from there (Fewer people take the Classic, and it seems that you have to get from there yourself. I don’t know for sure - not a single person from our group took it) .
PREPARATION
While still in Kyiv, we decided not to go on most of the additional excursions, but to draw up our own program for Prague. To do this, we downloaded the Afisha guide - very sensible, I advise.
They took with them:
- I'm going on the first day of the tour. Didn't calculate. As it turned out, it was possible to take only breakfast, water and crispy cookies for the road. We stopped at gas stations several times a day, and there were small grocery stores; in addition, we were taken for lunch to a good cafe on the track.
- light clothing. I don’t advise taking a lot of it: firstly, there are more chances to forget something somewhere, and secondly, it’s inconvenient with large suitcases - we managed to live in 4 hotels in 9 days, but this is not the most intense tour! It is better to choose something universal, in which you can walk for a long time, go to a restaurant or theater, and go on an excursion to a church. I really needed a loose bright skirt to the knees.
- warm clothing. It came in handy - it rained for several days and the temperature was about 17 degrees.
- comfortable shoes: sneakers and slippers without heels. There are a lot of paving stones in Prague, and it is unrealistic to walk there in heels. By the way, wearing very open sandals is also unpleasant: at least, my foot slipped out of the shoe several times, and I hurt my heel on the sharp corner of the paving stones.
- a first aid kit. Thank God, it didn’t come in handy, but it’s better to take it - in the Czech Republic, almost all medicines can be bought only with a doctor’s prescription.
- a book and a couple of magazines, so as not to get bored at customs. Very useful!
- toothpaste, shampoo, etc. It is better to have your own shampoo - it was not available everywhere in hotels.
- CAMERA. And spare batteries. And more!! ! =)
I am copying the tour program from the Accord website. Further, by day, my comments.
SATURDAY. Lvov. Meeting of each tourist by a representative of the company "Accord Tour".
09.00 Departure from Lviv. Crossing borders. Hotel accommodation. Overnight at the hotel. "
Indeed, right next to the car we were met by a young man with a sign "Accord Tour", reminded us that at 8:30 we need to go to the bus, showed us the bus parking and the waiting room. It is better not to be late for the appointed time of collection - our group left even before the declared 9:00.
Our group leader was Lianna, a very nice girl and a good organizer. Thanks to the early departure, we quickly passed through customs in 2 hours and drove on. We spent the night in the city of Psherov, at the FIT hotel. We liked the hotel - very clean, tidy, the breakfast is just excellent.
SUNDAY. Breakfast. We begin our acquaintance with the Czech Republic from the ancient capital of Moravia - the city of Olomouc... "
From Psherov to Olomouc is very close. The city itself is really beautiful and interesting, but we were not very lucky with the guide - he did not speak Russian very well. But overall I still liked it.
"Free time. "
We had as much as 30 minutes of free time, so we can’t really count on it. If you want to take a picture / view / buy something, it is better to try to do it right during the tour. Moreover, the city center is not very big, and it is difficult to get lost there.
"Moving to Prague
19:00 Evening tour “Unfamiliar stars over Prague”… "
Prague is great! Especially evening.
We were checked into a hotel before the tour, and we had the opportunity to change clothes and relax a bit. The hotel is Residence Emmy, very good. The rooms are comfortable, have a separate bathroom, refrigerator, air conditioning, TV. There were soap, shampoo, and even a needle and thread and cotton swabs for the ears. You can get to the center by bus + metro, but not for long - about 20-25 minutes. Buses run according to the schedule, about once every 20 minutes from early morning until midnight. There are special night buses after midnight, but they run less frequently. The transport is very clean and not very crowded, so there were no problems with it.
On the very first day, everyone was given good maps of the central part of Prague, which turned out to be very useful - it is easy to get lost in Prague.
MONDAY. Breakfast. 09:00 Walking tour “Secrets that Prague told…”
The breakfast is delicious. Morning tour of the Castle is very interesting, we did not take extra. Instead, we climbed Petř í n, a lookout tower on a hill above Prague. The view is extraordinary, they say, only from there you can fully see the Cathedral of St. Vitus. Around the tower is a beautiful well-groomed park with a rose garden.
In addition, we walked around the Lesser Town - a very beautiful old district of Prague. We also had lunch at the U Schnellu restaurant - the place is not a cult, but very cozy. Dinner for two (two soups, two beers and one buttered cheese) - just under 400 crowns. We climbed the tower of the church of St. Mikulash, from there we looked at the city center.
By the way, keep in mind that all kinds of observation towers, museums and similar tourist attractions in Prague are much more expensive than in Ukraine. Petř í n = 100 kroons (4 Euros) per person, tower = 70 kroons (about 3 Euros), etc. But I'll tell you right now - it's worth it.
On Tuesday we went to the Prague Aviation Museum (Letecke Museum Kbely). It is located quite far from the center, so it will not work to go there in passing. But, if you are interested in aviation, you must definitely go - the museum is very large, interesting, there is a Phantom, a Messerschmidt, a lot of old Czech biplanes. You can take pictures of everything, they also sell a lot of themed souvenirs - T-shirts-caps with airplanes, all sorts of stripes, etc. , and quite inexpensively. The museum is open from 9 or 10 to 18 all days except Mondays. It is located near the Letnany metro station, from there a bus runs to it
Then we returned to the center, wandered around the Old Town. We went to the Museum of Communism (address - Na Prikope 10) - interesting, but IMHO a little expensive: the entrance ticket is 180 crowns. The most interesting thing here is a documentary film about the communists in the Czech Republic and the Velvet Revolution. The rest is old books, toys, posters, which, to be honest, are full in Kyiv on Petrovka and in grandmothers' country attics. We sat in the Novomestsky brewery - it’s cozy, the beer is not bad, although I personally liked the black Velikopopovitsky Kozel and light Budvar more. Two beers and one large portion of meat with dumplings cost 280 crowns. We visited the island of Kampa. It's definitely worth going there - it's very beautiful and there are very few people. For me, probably, it is the streets of Kampa, and even the Royal Gardens in the Castle, that are now most associated with Prague.
In the evening we went to the Krzhizhikov fountain. The spectacle is very beautiful, I recommend!
On Wednesday, we went to the Castle again, this time without a guide, to take more pictures, and also climbed Vysehrad, to the oldest part of Prague. And many, many wandered the streets of Prague - an exciting experience : -).
We had dinner at the restaurant U Kroka (Vratislavova 12/28) near Vysehrad. At 370 crowns we ate our fill, and it was here that they drank the Black Goat - an extraordinary beer!
THURSDAY. Breakfast. Check out from the hotel. We invite you to the picturesque and majestic South Bohemia... Visiting the castle Hluboka nad Vltava (entrance ticket is paid additionally). "
Going to the Deep is definitely worth it!! ! The castle is very impressive - luxurious rooms, a huge library with old books, a wonderful collection of weapons... We only regretted that after the tour there was little free time. There is a beautiful park around the castle, souvenirs are sold nearby. By the way, we bought most of the souvenirs here - the choice is very good, and the prices are much lower than in Prague.
"Then the way lies in the heart of South Bohemia - Cesky Krumlov…"
In Krumlov we had the best guide - Dagmara (or Dasha, as she introduces herself in Russian). This is really a guide from God, she tells very vividly and interestingly. Krumlov is a unique town, the whole center reminds one of Zlata street.
"For all those who wish, evening relaxation „Over a glass of good Moravian wine. . . ” (20€). Evening walk through the mysterious Krumlov. . . "
This is the only extra. excursion we went on. The wine is delicious and so is the dinner. The only moment: first there is a wine tasting, and then, when the wine is already drunk, the food is delivered. So, firstly, you should have a light snack before the tasting, and secondly, you need to be ready to pay extra for juice / wine / beer for dinner. Well, or take your time with the tasting, and leave the wine in the glass .
The evening tour is just wonderful, especially for those who love fairy tales and legends.
"Accommodation in a hotel. Overnight in a hotel. . . "
We were settled in the Vltava hotel before the tour. We did not really like the hotel itself - the only one on this tour. The room is a little chilly (it was raining that day), there was no heater or warm blanket; in the tap above the washbasin, the water flowed in a very thin stream, and only cold (although the pressure in the shower stall was higher and it was hot); in addition, there was no dryer for towels and linen. We dried everything on the back of a chair, and in the morning we found that burgundy streaks remained from the paint : -(. For breakfast, the whole group was raised by 7 o’clock - they don’t want to prolong breakfast, it’s inconvenient for them. In addition, baking and cheese for everyone was not enough, and the juice was very diluted with water.
FRIDAY. Breakfast. Free time in Cesky Krumlov. . . "
We decided to stay in Krumlov and did not regret it at all. Right in the center of the town rises an incredibly beautiful castle, older than in Gluboka. A couple of bears live in the moat in front of the castle ^_^. In addition, almost every house has souvenir shops, pastry shops and galleries.
SATURDAY. Breakfast. Check out from the hotel. Departure to Poland.
Tour of Krakow. . .
The journey from Krumlov to Krakow is long, and we were in Krakow around 18:00. But thanks to good organization, we managed to see Wawel (unfortunately, only from the outside), and the city center, and have dinner, and even buy dragons - the dragon is considered a symbol of the city, and everywhere they sell a lot of toys, magnets and other souvenirs in the form of a dragon.
Krakow itself did not impress me very much - too noisy and fussy. But perhaps this is because we got there on a holiday.
SUNDAY. Breakfast. Moving through the territory of Poland. Arrival in Lviv approximately 15.00. . . "
We left very early again and cleared customs quite easily - many thanks to Lianna! We ended up in Lviv around 14, slightly tired, but satisfied and full of impressions.
For two of us we took about 900 Euros, half (about 450 Euros) we brought back, especially without denying ourselves anything. They ate two or three times a day (I just forgot a good half of the names... ), they brought souvenirs for themselves and their loved ones. Although, of course, in Prague you can spend much more.