Page 212 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Prague

210  TR A VELLERS ’ NEEDS

SHOPPING IN PRAGUE

With its wide, pedestrianized streets, classy city, and you can spend a whole day just
shopping malls, souvenir shops and antiques diving in and out of small speciality shops
bazars, Prague is established as one of Europe’s and large department stores. For a different
leading shopping destinations. Almost all shopping experience, the few traditional
of the major US and Western European markets in the city offer everything from
retailers have established outlets in the vegetables and fresh fruit to imported
city. The quality of goods manufactured in Russian caviar, toys, clothes, furniture,
the Czech Republic – from glass and china Czech crafts and electrical parts. Large
to hand-woven carpets and wooden toys – malls are dispersed further out on the
is always of a high standard. Most of Prague’s outskirts of Prague but are easily
best shopping areas are in the centre of the accessible by car or metro.

Opening Hours
Most of Prague’s shops open
from 10am to 6pm Monday
to Friday and from 9am to
1pm on Saturdays, although
supermarkets are open for
much longer, from 7am until
9 or 10pm.
Food stores open earlier
too, most of them at 7am –
reflecting the early working
day of many locals – and
close at around 9pm. Some
Vietnamese convenience
stores are open 24 hours
(you can find one at Národní
and two close to I.P. Pavlova
metro station). Department
stores and the big shopping An antiques shop on Bridge Street, in Prague’s Little Quarter
centres and malls are open
daily between 8am and 9pm, Havelská is open daily, while super markets such as Tesco,
with their supermarkets starting River Town market is open Billa and Albert can sometimes
an hour earlier and closing an Monday to Saturday. Opening be even better than in the
hour later. All are open on times for both are from 7am exchange offices. Smaller
Sundays, except on holidays. until the evening. shops appreciate it if you
Some Tesco super markets pay the exact amount and
(Skalka, Novodvorská Plaza How to Pay at times may refuse to accept
and Nový Smíchov) open at banknotes of Kč1,000 and
6 or 7am and close at midnight, Most staple goods, such as above. All major credit
while three others (at Avion food, are cheaper than com­ and charge cards are
Shopping Park, OC Letňany parable items in Western Europe widely accepted (see p230).
and NC Eden) are open round and the US, as long as they If you are a non­EU resident,
the clock. do not need to be imported. you can get the VAT back
In the centre, around Old However, with more and more on purchases exceeding
Town Square and Celetná and multinationals, such as Boss Kč2,000. To be able to do this,
Karlova streets, many shops and Pierre Cardin, moving into you must be sure, when you
rely almost entirely on tourists the city, prices are slowly starting make a purchase, to ask at the
for their trade, so have adapted to rise. cash till for a tax­free cheque.
their opening hours accordingly. The total price of goods When you go back to the
They are usually open daily should always include Value airport for your return flight,
from 10am until late evening. Added Tax (this is 20 per cent make your way to the special
Some close at 11pm. All the of the total price, depending desk at departures for reclaim­
shops are at their most crowded on what is being sold). Cash ing your VAT costs. Be prepared
on Sat urdays, and for stress­free payments can usually only be to show your items, receipts
shopping, it’s often better to made in Czech crowns (koruna), and cheques. Once that is
wander around them during though some shops now take done, the staff will refund
the week. Prague’s market in euros. The exchange rate in the VAT.

210-211_EW_Prague.indd 210 22/03/2017 12:30
Eyewitness Travel LAYERS PRINTED:
Practical template “UK” LAYER
(Source v1.1)
Date 13th August 2012
Size 125mm x 217mm