Talk:Czech Republic/Archive 2005-2012

Hm, contrary to the opinion of the earlier editor I very much liked the Budweiser Budvar beer. I made the language more neutral; it may be a matter of taste. On the other hand I found Velkopopovicky Kozel to be the only Czech beer I actively disliked. -- (WT-en) Infrogmation 14:05, 2 Jun 2004 (EDT)

Didn't like Kozel??? How is it possible =), Although, I can second also liking Budvar. (WT-en) Aburda 05:09, 7 Jul 2005 (EDT)

Kozel is great, both svetly and dark beer

Budvar is to sweet for my taste

jvano

Train Schedule from main page

The below was removed from the main article because a schedule is not the best information to have in the article due to the fact that it may change. What would be better is to have a few paragraphs explaining the possibilities along major routes. -- (WT-en) Ilkirk 15:16, 4 Nov 2005 (EST)

selected trains

• R 600 Cesky Tesin (5:40) - Havirov - Ostrava-Kuncice - Ostrava-Vitkovice - Studenka - Suchdol nad Odrou - Hranice na Morave - Lipnik nad Becvou - Olomouc hl.n. - Zabreh na Morave - Ceska Trebova - Usti nad Orlici - Chocen - Pardubice hl.n. - Kolin(CZ) - Praha-Liben - Praha hl.n. - Praha-Smichov (11:17)
• R 601 Praha-Smichov (14:12) - Praha hl.n. - Praha-Liben - Kolin(CZ) - Pardubice hl.n. - Ceska Trebova - Zabreh na Morave - Olomouc hl.n. - Lipnik nad Becvou - Hranice na Morave - Suchdol nad Odrou - Studenka - Ostrava-Vitkovice - Ostrava-Kuncice - Havirov - Cesky Tesin (19:40)
• R 671 Cheb (12:42) - Sokolov - Karlovy Vary - Ostrov nad Ohri - Klasterec nad Ohri - Kadan - Chomutov - Chomutov mesto - Jirkov zast. - Most - Bilina - Duchcov - Teplice v Cechach - Usti nad Labem zapad - Usti nad Labem hl.n. - Lovosice - Roudnice nad Labem - Kralupy nad Vltavou - Praha-Holesovice - Praha hl.n. - Praha-Liben - Kolin(CZ) - Kutna Hora hl.n. - Caslav - Svetla nad Sazavou - Havlickuv Brod - Pribyslav - Zdar nad Sazavou - Tisnov - Kurim - Brno-Kralovo Pole - Brno hl.n. (21:40)
• R 1538 Cesky Tesin (17:19) - Havirov - Ostrava-Kuncice - Ostrava-Vitkovice - Studenka - Suchdol nad Odrou - Hranice na Morave - Lipnik nad Becvou - Prerov - Kojetin - Nezamyslice - Ivanovice na Hane - Vyskov na Morave - Brno hl.n. (20:29)
• R 1539 Brno hl.n. (13:42) - Vyskov na Morave - Nezamyslice - Kojetin - Prerov - Lipnik nad Becvou - Hranice na Morave - Suchdol nad Odrou - Studenka - Ostrava-Vitkovice - Ostrava-Kuncice - Havirov - Cesky Tesin (16:30)
• R 1540 Cesky Tesin (16:19) - Havirov - Ostrava-Kuncice - Ostrava-Vitkovice - Studenka - Suchdol nad Odrou - Hranice na Morave - Olomouc hl.n. - Zabreh na Morave - Ceska Trebova - Usti nad Orlici - Pardubice hl.n. - Kolin(CZ) - Praha-Liben - Praha hl.n. (21:34)
• R 1541 Praha hl.n. (12:46) - Praha-Liben - Kolin(CZ) - Pardubice hl.n. - Ceska Trebova - Zabreh na Morave - Olomouc hl.n. - Hranice na Morave - Suchdol nad Odrou - Studenka - Ostrava-Vitkovice - Ostrava-Kuncice - Havirov - Cesky Tesin (17:58)

A piece of advice about what is not so polite to say in the CR

Please don't use the term "Eastern Europe" or generally "East" for the Czech Republic. For first we are not (and with one, 40-years period exception, we've never been) an Eastern country. It is very arrogant and inpolite to say that to the Czechs. For second, don't say to people that everything is quite cheap here, they know it well too, that in the West everything is more expensive - you can present yourself as an "arrogant westerner" again.

I think you will enjoy our country very much, especially if you would follow that advice :)

Finrod Felagund

Exactly! We are, and always have been, "Central Europe". If we are "Eartern Europe", then Austria and Hungary must be in Asia already, because they are even more to East than we are! :)

Rest assured that Wikivoyage has always (since we set up our regions) put Czechia in "Central Europe". - (WT-en) Todd VerBeek 09:01, 9 May 2007 (EDT)

Currency?

Now that the Czech Rep. is joining the EU, are there any plans to adopt the Euro? Under the Buy section the czech crown (Kc) is listed the legal currency. However, many hotel listings on the pages already, and a few hotel websites, give rates in Euro. Should we be converting these to Kc? My personal feeling is that we should be displaying prices in the currency travellers will be using to pay, regardless of how well known it is, but I don't know whether both are in use in CR at the moment. Any ideas/opinions? (WT-en) Thewayoftheduck 02:33, 20 July 2006 (EDT)

In '04 prices were in USD, Euro and Kc. According to the Czech Gov. website "Quite often you will be allowed to pay in euros instead of Czech crowns. The common European currency of the euro is expected to replace the Czech crown around the year 2010." -- (WT-en) Andrew

So what do you think? List the prices in whatever currency the hostel/bar etc is advertising in? (WT-en) Thewayoftheduck 03:10, 20 July 2006 (EDT)

I'd say use Euro and Kc. Hotels use Euro to get more money from tourists, but the smaller shops, restaurants, and bars are less likely to take Euros and will only accept Kc. When I left Prague to visit friends in Poland we had a stop over at some small Czech town and I had to bum Kc. to get a little bit of food. Using both Kc. and Euro provides the flexibilty some places offer, but also provides the essential information for places that do not accept Euros. -- Sapphire

Climate

I don't have any information myself, but if anyone could indicate what the climate is that would be great —The preceding comment was added by (WT-en) 220.233.68.6 (talk • contribs) 28 Aug 2006

The climate is temperate with four seasons - spring, summer, fall, winter. The winter is with snow and freezing, in the summer you can swim.--(WT-en) Juan 12:24, 22 December 2006 (EST)

Tipping

Thats new for me. I havent notice that we have rules for tipping in here?!--(WT-en) Juan 12:13, 22 December 2006 (EST) I lived in the CR for a few months and whenever i tried to tip the waitress or waiter gave me the money back. After a while I stopped trying to tip.

It is better to say how much are you willing to pay. For example if your bill is 156 Kč, say 170 and the waiter will accept. If you like to let him the whole amount you give him, say "To je v pořádku"

Beer again

I am German. But as many of my friends, I think that Czech beers ranks among the best in the world. One thing that impresses me is the variety of beers (for instance from 1,5% alcohol upwards) that taste well. I think the wide variety of high quality beers should be mentioned in the article. -- 195.37.61.178 08:12, 26 June 2007 (EDT)

Just a note - there is a beer paragraph in the Drink section. (WT-en) Jamboo 05:21, 20 March 2008 (EDT)

Cities

The cities list on this page is limited by policy to 9. Would someone familiar with the country please reduce the list, preserving a nice geographic spread and the most important cities (for travelers). --(WT-en) Peter ^Talk 01:14, 13 January 2008 (EST)

I think the following cities should be listed:

MUST HAVE BIG CITIES:

1) Praha (obvious, it is both the capital and the greatest attraction, UNESCO listed, important international airport)

2) Brno (the second largest city, it is the defacto capital of the Moravia region, not so many important attractions, but still one UNESCO listed, important international airport)

3) Olomouc (the second largest historic center, charming university town, UNESCO listed, IMHO the most beautiful city, great base to explore other points of interest in Moravia)

VERY IMPORTANT SMALLER CITIES WITH GREAT ATTRACTIONS:

4) Český Krumlov (very beautiful and popular destination, UNESCO listed)

5) Kutná Hora (the gothic cathedral, the famous bone chapel, UNESCO listed)

6) Karlovy Vary (the famous spa)

Oh, now we have only 3 places missing, what to add?

smaller UNESCO listed cities: Telč, Třebíč, Kroměříž... (and more)

the third largest, industrial city, with international airport: Ostrava (industrial monuments, nightlife)

the beer cities: Plzeň (Pilsen), České Budějovice (Budweiser)

other important regional cities worth visiting: Liberec, Opava (the only on this list from the Silesian region, + Ostrava is on Silesian-Moravian border)

So, one possibility would be: Praha, Brno, Olomouc, Český Krumlov, Kutná Hora, Karlovy Vary, Ostrava, Plzeň, Telč... (5 in Bohemia, 4 in Moravia)

The last three may be different... or we may even replace Kutná Hora, because while a popular destination, it is often visited as a daytrip from Prague...

And what about the "Other destinations" section? There are currently some cities listed there. Is it place for another 9 cities or should there be only non-city areas of interest?

(WT-en) Kyknos 20:14, 28 April 2009 (EDT)

I would put in my vote for both Ostrava and Pilsen. For the ninth, I don't have a strong preference, so I'll be happy to take the recommendation of Telč, although I suspect that Ceske Budejovice could also be a good option. --(WT-en) Peter ^Talk 22:14, 28 April 2009 (EDT)

Natural disasters

I removed the following warning:

Also be aware that during extreme weather such as high winds, earthquakes or excessive rain the panelaks do not do well. There are too many cases of Panelaks toppling over each other like dominos, flooding, etc. Use common sense and realize that these buildings were built cheaply to house as many people as possible, and now they are old and sometimes in disrepair.

As far as I know there have never been any panelaks toppling. Authorities care for the stability of buildings, just like everywhere in Europe. Also, for thousands of years there have never been any earthquakes in the Czech Republic.

There ARE earthquakes in Czech Republic, mainly in the westernmost part and around Ostrava [1] [2]

Actually earthqakes are everywhere around the world. The two mentioned regions are the most seismic active(and one just because of mining), but in general earthqakes strongrest than M4(can be felt, can cause minor damages) are extremely rare. Largest estimated possible eartquake is 5.5 - but no recorded in a history was stronger than 4.5. So death because of earthquake in Czech is about the same probbable as death due to being hit by meteorite.

Regions

Bohemia and Moravia are obvious, but the Czech Silesia is rather small (most of Silesia is in Poland), I think not so important for a traveler as the other two regions and what is worst, its boundary is not well defined (for example the important city of Ostrava is both in Moravia nad Silesia)... I think it may be better to join it with the Moravia region. But then we have only two regions... (WT-en) Kyknos 20:21, 28 April 2009 (EDT)

I think one possibility would be to use the "old" regions which perfectly fit the 7+-2 rule and are easily understood/remembered: Central, West, North, East and South Bohemia, and North and South Moravia. (North Moravia includes Czech Silesia) (WT-en) Kyknos 21:02, 28 April 2009 (EDT)

That sounds like a very ideal scheme. Could you provide a link to a map showing these boundaries? If you would, then I would be happy to draft a WT-style regions map for the article. --(WT-en) Peter ^Talk 22:16, 28 April 2009 (EDT)

[3] (WT-en) Kyknos 05:21, 29 April 2009 (EDT)

However note, that "new regions" may be more practical for two reasons - they are marked on many modern maps (or some travel books) and most importantly, Czech Railways use them extensively (for example, you can buy cheap tickets between capitals of these regions or you can buy regional tickets valid inside those new regions only). However the new regions break the 7+-2 rule (there are 13 of them).(WT-en) Kyknos 13:25, 4 May 2009 (EDT)

Hmm, after making the map, I noticed there is still a discussion going on. I think it's best to use the new regions, as well, the others are old and not used anymore anywhere. I also think the regions Bohemia and Moravia are more recognizable for the traveler (and Belgium also uses 2-3 regions, so it's not totally unworkable). On the other hand, I understand that Czech Silesia is a lot smaller than the other two regions, so I think we might as well put it together with Moravia. (WT-en) Globe-trotter 22:06, 14 September 2009 (EDT)

I think we should create a Moravia-Silesia region, I regularly see TV tourist commercials here for the "Moravian-Silesian Region", so it seems like the Czech tourist authorities also deal with it this way. (WT-en) Globe-trotter 11:35, 3 December 2009 (EST)

Proposal for regions of Czech Republic

After some research, I see tourist boards and other guides use the following:

• Central Bohemia
• South Bohemia
• West Bohemia
• North Bohemia
• East Bohemia
• North Moravia
• South Moravia

See the image for the regions. What do others think? I think it is better as its not just two regions, and we wouldnt need to subdivide after these regions. --(WT-en) globe-trotter 14:38, 26 May 2010 (EDT)

Opinions please? --(WT-en) globe-trotter 16:54, 8 June 2010 (EDT)

Not fond of directional names when they can be avoided, but it does look like a pretty reasonable breakup. --(WT-en) Stefan (sertmann) ^talk 16:59, 8 June 2010 (EDT)

New regions of the Czech Republic

I have now implemented the regions, but I made one big change. I added the Highlands Region as it is both part of Moravia and of Bohemia (the western part is in South Bohemia and the eastern part in South Moravia, so including it in one of these would be wrong). First it was included in South Moravia, but it already had 12 cities, so making it a separate region has also been good for cutting that list. --(WT-en) globe-trotter 12:17, 13 August 2010 (EDT)

I would like to voice my opinion here. I'm from Czech Silesia and putting the towns of Czech Silesia (eg. Opava, Karviná or Český Těšín) to "North Moravia" region is highly offensive to great part of its inhabitants (it's the same situation, as Edinburgh being in "North England" region). Thought the Czech Silesia is relatively small region (cca 4,000 km² from 78,000 km² of whole area of Czech Republic), its population is above 1,000,000 people, which is roughly about 1/10 of all inhabitants of Czech Republic. --Silesianus (talk) 20:08, 13 November 2012 (UTC)

I'm against creating another region, I believe eight is already much for a country this size. Maybe, if this is really such an offence, we could rename "North Moravia" to "Moravia - Silesia" (something Globe-trotter already proposed)? Jjtk (talk) 10:11, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

I agree with Jjtk. Renaming to Moravia-Silesia would be the best option, and just so happens to fit in with the official govt name: w:Moravia-Silesia. JamesA ^>talk 10:25, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

Well, I think that we could accept the new region as soon as we have enough content for it. Presently, the Opava and Karviná articles are rather underdeveloped, whereas the article about Český Těšín does not even exist. Renaming to Moravia-Silesia is indeed the best solution, at least on the short time scale. --Atsirlin (talk) 10:39, 14 November 2012 (UTC)

I agree. --Silesianus (talk) 08:12, 15 November 2012 (UTC)

By boat

"Travelling by boat is an interesting way to get between Budapest and Prague, but be prepared to take some time because you have go through a large part of Europe, via Slovakia. The Vltava (Elbe) mouth opens into the North Sea, whilst the Danube mouth is in the Black Sea."

I have removed this paragraph as it is utter nonsense. If I understand it correctly, it describes a way via Vltava to Germany, North Sea, all around western Europe to Mediterranean, Black Sea and via Danube to Hungary :) May be a crazy itinerary, but certainly not a way to get around the Czech Republic (or central Europe) :) (WT-en) Kyknos 15:33, 4 May 2009 (EDT)

Contribution

Hello. I don't know if this is right place to write, but I accidetaly visited wikivoyage page of Czech Republic, my country. I would like to help in any way I could to improve this. I saw also a few nonsenses (from my point of view), but in general it's quite a well written. What is not so true ? Well, mostly about panelaks. I'm twenty now, but I have lived for 16 years in one and I can tell modern experience. It's not so bad as it sounds (smile). I'm from Pilsen, somehow overlooked city, but it's fourth biggest city, with a lot to offer. It's also in the western part of country, so it's very accesible from Western Europe. Well, I'll probably wait for someone to answer here. Or delete my post, but I would prefer first choice. I just want to help and I think I can. A little bit. User:(WT-en) Marty McFly 11:56, 7 July 2009 (EDT)

Actually, I removed the whole section "how they live," as it's not relevant to travel, and it violates Project:Country article template. But by all means, just plunge forward and start editing! --(WT-en) Peter ^Talk 10:43, 7 July 2009 (EDT)

Military adventures?

What about the Military Adventures section? For me it seems like nothing but an advertisement. Should I delete it? (WT-en) Robert-Antonio 10:00, 8 March 2011 (EST)

Driving

Driving: Driving is extremely dangerous, and it claims almost 118 annual fatalities per million inhabitants. Poorly repaired roads, the lack of safe infrastructure, Irregular place markings and a mixture of both late model to old model vehicles is all what makes driving a life threatening experience.

This is quite extreme description. Driving conditions are by no means perfect but at least by fatalities per 100000 residents, Czech Republis is better than e.g. USA (see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_traffic-related_death_rate). --78.45.77.101 15:52, 5 February 2012 (EST)

Second largest historical center

Hello, i've read that both Olomouc and Brno have the second largest historical centre. I guess one of them is wrong, I just wanted to tell you. Good job with the wiki :) --85.181.1.249 19:19, 18 March 2012 (EDT)