Free walking tour in Prague: To take or not to take?

Free walking tour – the 3 magic words that make you want to grasp one right after finishing all your other important bookings for a trip. That was also what I exactly did when I travelled to Prague.

Free walking tour in Prague: A brutally honest review

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I spent 3 days in Prague and had my second day a free walking tour from this operator.

10 o’clock in the morning we met at Old Town Square. There were some groups there waiting for other group members and there were different groups in different languages.

Mine was the English one, including me – a Vietnamese traveller living in Norway, 2 students from Turkey, a couple from Brazil, a Canadian couple, an Estonian girl and an Aussie guy. Plus the guide.

We started at around quarter past, starting from the Astrological Clock, Týn Church, strolling around the old town.

At 12 pm we had lunch at an obvious-tourist-trap restaurant in the Old Town, then went down to Josefov (the Jewish Quarter), went round and round (sorry, it was almost 6 months ago). After walking for about 4 hours on cobbled streets, we stopped near the castle.

And I am so sorry to say that it was the most boring day I’ve ever spent in Czech!

Why?

The guide was very nice and friendly. But he speaks English very fast. By “fast” I mean ridiculously fast, with a strong Eastern European accent, which made it difficult for me – a non-native speaker – to follow.

And as you can imagine, there were many people there at the same time, a lot of tourists travelling in groups, and hundreds of tour guides using loudspeakers while explaining things! I totally failed to listen to him, let alone understand what he said.

Now comes the most interesting part: the tip!

I understand that even they claim it “free walking tour”, it’s nice of us to give the guide some tip, at least enough for a typical lunch. But as tip is something people do willingly, I personally don’t think it’s a good idea to ask for a certain amount of money that you wish.

Sadly he did.

The Brazilian couple started first, giving him 100 CZK. He looked at them, hesitated a little bit, and said: “Thank you, it’s very nice of you, but since you are a couple, I expect you to give me 200 CZK!”

I was speechless. I planned to give him 100CZK, but then I didn’t want to.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not any desperately frugal traveller or whatever. And I don’t mean to be rude, but just to make it clear: 100 CZK cost me a bottle of water in Norway, or almost 4€, which actually was not a big deal. The thing that mattered was not the money then.

He turned to me, with a nice smile on his face and was ready to get the tip. I chose to shake his hand instead, said thank for the tour, and wished him the best.

There were an awkward pause and a strange look in his eyes, but that was all I could do and actually already did in this situation.

The tour was nice, anyway, and it helped me feel the city a little bit more than just follow my own plan and information I downloaded.

I would recommend taking a free walking tour in Prague if you:

• have no idea what to do in Prague at all. Then you’ll see the city and know what you want to do later.
• have a short stay in Prague, maybe less than 48 hours.
• want to enjoy a walking tour and make new friends.
• want to feel the city before exploring it by yourself (like my husband).

About the tip, well, it’s a matter of personal ethics, I think.

But at least after reading this article, you know what to expect when taking a free walking tour in Prague!

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As of June 2020

After this tour in Prague, I did take another one in Amsterdam in November 2017 and ended up realising tip is a real thing in this industry. In fact, it’s the guides’ main income!

I’m not against free walking tour (which turns out to… NOT be free), but for me now, there are many factors that may effect my choice of tour.

I will consider a tour wasted, even if it costs me peanuts if I cannot learn anything from it or enjoy the tour itself and the whole thing is just a waste of time and energy. Sadly, I have such experiences.

Anyway, in case you’re planning for your trip to Prague and have read this post and thought about what you should do instead, here are some alternatives:

• 4-Hour Guided City Tour with Tram Ticket – this tour has the same traces with mine but faster since they use the tram to move between places (mine was 100% walking).
• Small-Group Segway Tour with Included Taxi Transport – segway is everywhere in Prague. I’ll give it a try next time.
• Prague Castle: Small-Group Tour with Local Guide & Admission – highly recommend since you’ll learn a lot more than just go with a guidebook yourself.
• Ghosts and Legends 1.5-Hour Walking Tour – I didn’t try this last time I was in Prague, but I’ve had it on my checklist now.
• Medieval Dinner with Unlimited Drinks – you must be really hungry after having hunted some ghosts? Well, come and have some 3 or 5-course medieval dinner with unlimited drinks. You’ll be entertained by a special medieval performance includes swordsmen, jugglers, and belly dancers, all accompanied by music.

I hope you’ll make the most of your time in Prague!