Prague

The School
The City
Things to do
Food and Drink
Useful Links
Visas, Work Permits and Insurance
Getting to Prague

Our school in Prague

The school is located in the heart of Prague old town in the gound floor of a newly refurbished listed building, which was once a convent! Konvitska is a small street situated 3 minutes walk from the old town square and about 5 from the Charles Bridge. The nearest Metro stations are Starometska or Mustek and numerous trams run close by. Excellent, bars, pubs and restaurants are very close at hand, as well as some of the most stunning streets and squares of Prague's old town. The school is fully equipped with computers, photocopier, video and reference library. For those trainees who have their own laptops, the centre offers a simple free hook-up to our network. With no configuration required, you can plug in your laptop and have access to our internal network and to the internet. There are 2 large classrooms, a resource centre, small kitchen area for making coffee, reception area and office.The building is set back from the street with a leafy courtyard and a peaceful atmosphere. In short the perfect location and setting for your course.

The City

Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic, is situated on the River Vltava in the very heart of Europe. It is an incredibly beautiful city with a wealth of architecture, ranging from Gothic churches and Baroque palaces to Art Nouveau cafés and Cubist villas. Prague, which has survived wars and revolutions almost unscathed, has a medieval centre of winding cobblestone streets through which you can wander and discover palaces, churches, museums, bridges, squares and backstreet pubs. The Czechs are very friendly and hospitable people, if a little reserved. Czech, however, is not an easy language, a simple survival vocabulary of everyday Czech will get the learner through most situations and your effort to communicate in the local language will be greatly appreciated. Being located in Central Europe winters can be cold and the summers hot. Advice on what clothes you should bring for the duration of the course can be obtained from the centre.

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Things to do

There is a wide variety of cultural and sporting attractions in Prague all of which is available on a limited budget. The city is famous for its music and art. Concert halls stand cheek by jowl with jazz clubs, art galleries with museums and theatres with cinemas. Ice-hockey and football are the most popular sports across the countryThe beer is world famous and world class. Travelling within the republic is inexpensive and easily managed. The rolling countryside of Bohemia is studded with well-preserved medieval towns, and there are a number of fascinating places to visit within easy reach of the capital including the medieval towns of Kutná Hora, Tábor, Karlštejn and Ceský Krumlov. Also the unspoilt countryside provides for quality skiing in the winter and walking in the spring and summer.

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Food and Drink

Eating out can be managed at quite reasonable prices (even in the centre). Pubs are the best bet for affordable food, which, if a little unadventurous being of the meat and dumplings type, is good, filling and cheap. An increasing number of restaurants have vegetarian meals on the menu, and there are a number of restaurants which cater solely for vegetarians. Czech beer is definitely a star attraction, and for some locals accompanies all three meals of the day. Pace yourself!!

Useful Links

For more information about living and working in the Czech Republic try these links:
The Prague Post
Lonely Planet - Prague
AllPraha Guide
Visit Prague Guide
Prague Castle
Czech News
Prague Information Service
Radio Prague

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Visas/Work permits/Health insurance for Prague

Visas/Work permits
European Union and US citizens do not need a visa to enter the country. If asked the purpose of your visit, you should state, “tourism”. US citizens should make a trip accross the border and back after 1 month (Dresden in Germany for example is only a few hours away). This enables you to renew and get another month. EU citizens are allowed 3 months as tourists.Those wishing to remain in Prague to seek work will need to apply for a working visa. Bring your passport and birth certificate. Leave copies of these documents with your family in case of loss.

Health Insurance
EU citizens are covered and do not need separate medical insurance for up to three months.

US citizens will need to be insured.You are required to be covered for overseas medical insurance. You have several options. First, check with any insurance policy you already have and see if they have an overseas provision, or rider that you can purchase. Your family might also have a general policy that provides this. There are also companies that specialize in overseas policies, for both short-term and longer stays. The rates are reasonable and the service might actually be better than an add-on to an existing policy. You can find these on the web under "overseas insurance" or "travelers insurance." We are told that Patriot is a popular company to use. Once you are employed and your work/residency papers processed, you will automatically receive full medical coverage by the Czech government.

Citizens of other countries may need a visa to enter the country. Please consult your local Czech consulate or embassy or try www.embassyworld.com/embassy/czech_republic1

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Getting to Prague

Try the following for cheap airfares to Prague.

From the U.S. : Airfare Hotline of America - DiscountAirfare.com

From the U.K. : Easyjet.com or bmibaby.com are good discount airlines.

Find discounted airfares from any country ...
www.sta-travel.com
www.travelocity.com

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