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Money, Costs and Budget in Prague | |
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Czech currency is called Koruna (Kc or CZK). Bank notes are in denominations of 20, 50,100, 200, 500, 1000, 2000 and 5000 CZK. Coins are of 10, 20 and 50 CZK. Koruna is then divided into 100 halers (h). Coins are of 10, 20 and 50h. The Czech crown has been fully convertible since 1991. Prague expects to use the Euro currency in 5 to 7 years.
Is Prague expensive? Except accommodation prices and city centre restaurants and other tourist attractions Prague is still quite cheap compared to other EU countries. the cheapest you could still enjoy Prague can be on a daily budget can be as low as 700 CZK if you stay at hostels, eat takeaways and use public transport. If you stay in private accommodation, eat at restaurants but control your budget you can get by on 2500 CZK a day. On the other hand if you stay at top hotels, eat in luxury restaurants and use cabs you could easily spend 10.000 CZK a day. Please do not expect Prague to be extremely cheap and remember that only some products are much cheaper here (like beer and food in supermarkets) but in general, Prague is getting more expensive every year. One reason for this is that the Czech Republic joined the EU and now everything tends to be more expensive then before. Attractive hotels range between 3500 CZK to 6000 CZK for a double room. Dinner for two with some drinks at fancier restaurant can cost around 2000 CZK. Hotels in Prague suburbs can cost as low as 700 CZK for a single room. Staying in a hostel dormitory room for one costs 400 CZK. A beer in a pub outside the centre will cost around 25 CZK and a special lunch can cost between 60 to 100 CZK. A pack of cigarettes costs 60 CZK, a 0.5 L bottle of water 15 CZK, a loaf of bread 15CZK, a litre of petrol costs around 25CZK, a cup of coffee in city cafeteria is 45 CZK. Cinema tickets cost up to 200 CZK. The average monthly salary inPrague is about 26.000 CZK to 30.000 CZK (around 1300 US$ or £650). This is not enough to live comfortably in the city centre but if you live in suburbs you can live quite well. The minimum wage in the Czech Republic is around 5000 CZK, but if you earn this in Prague you would be not able to survive. If you are living in some villages in a poorer region you can spend as little as 5 times less compared to living in the capital. If you want to lower your expenses, you should avoid city centre hotels, restaurants, night clubs and shops. Or ask locals where they’re going out. Visiting galleries and museums is not expensive.
Money TIPS
Don't carry large
amount of cash
When you're going
to a place, where you know you can pay with a credit
card, take one and limit the cash.
Try not to show
how much money you have in your wallet.
Never leave your
wallet lying free on a table or anywhere else. Best
to keep it is in a closed pocket. Those secret
pockets like I have seen once (in underpants or a
bra) are maybe a little exaggerated.
If you know a
little Czech don't worry to ask more times when you
don't understand the exact sum at the counter. And
if you don't, try to pretend you do.
If you go through
or to an especially dangerous place divide your
money into two halves and store them in two
different places. Then if you are mugged there is a
chance that the second half will pass unnoticed.
Despite of all
these frightening advises the crime in Prague is no
worse than in any other big city. For instance the
editor of this article is living downtown his whole
life and it never occurred to him that he would have
to face any criminals. But still the pick-pocketing
exists and is advised to be aware of it..
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Prague Economy Prague is the wealthiest city in Central and Eastern Europe, and wealthier than many in Western Europe, with a per-capita GDP (PPP) of EUR 32,357, which is at 153% of the EU average. The GDP per capita of Prague is more than double that of the Czech Republic as a whole. Trading partners of Czech Republic are mainly Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Russia and Italy. Major industries are machinery, transport, steel, vehicles, ceramics and beer.
The export and import
of valid Czech currency is permitted without
authorization from the Czech National Bank to the amount
of CZK 350.000,- there are no restrictions on export and
import of foreign currency..
The Czech Republic becomes more westernized
everyday, but still offers glimpses of what was once a
truly distinct eastern Europe. This westernization comes
with perks (everyone speaks English) and downfalls
(insane inflation), but overall there is much charm to
be found if one ventures even romotely off the beaten
path. For the beer afficionado, however, things are
changing for the worse all too rapidly. Small breweries
are going out of business and even the mightly Pilsner
Urquell has undergone vast changes that most view as for
the worse. Still, there is no place better to drink a
pilsner and there are some great beers to be found by
the astute hunter. There are some sights to see along
the way as well. But get there soon before it becomes
just one more stop on the European itinerary of the
college sophomore crowd.
Banking in Prague Banks in Prague can be found by visiting the website of the Czech National Bank, while popular local bank is Ceska Sporitelna (which has an "Expat Center" at Rytyrska 29) and
Komerční banka |
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