Money may be changed at the airport, train stations, in banks, in major hotels (but offering poor rates), and in the centre of Prague at numerous exchange offices. Usually Prague banks charge lower fees (commission around 2 per cent) for currency exchange than bureaux de change and hotels in the city. Before you hand over your money confirm the exchange rate and commission charges, as once the transaction is proceeding it is hard to negotiate a reversal of the transaction. If someone approaches you on the street and offers you a good exchange rate you might get counterfeit notes.

Prague has cash machines spread conveniently throughout the city. Some machines don't accept Diners and Amex cards. All machines accept UK and any other internationally-issued cards including MasterCard, Visa, Maestro, Cirrus and Visa Electron (and there are no reports of any kind of trouble obtaining cash).

We highly recommend Xchange on the corner of Kaprova and Maiselova Streets where you definitely get the best rate (near the Old Town Square just behind St. Nicholas Church).

Legal tenders - Crown (Kc = Koruna ceska = Czech crown; CZK)

Coins: CZK 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50

Banknotes: CZK 50, 100, 200, 500, 1000, 2000, 5000

Czech National Bank - official exchange rates.