What to see in Prague in 1 day

Prague Castle, the world's largest fortified complex according to Guinness World Records, is the day's first stop: inside are St. Vitus Cathedral, with its Gothic spires visible from much of the city, and Golden Lane, a row of small colorful houses once inhabited by court craftsmen and alchemists.

Descending from the castle hill, you pass through Malá Strana, the Little Town quarter with its cobbled streets and Baroque palaces, before reaching the Charles Bridge, built in the 1300s and flanked by thirty statues of saints, among the city's most photographed places.

Across the Vltava River lies the Old Town, where Old Town Square stands with the Astronomical Clock, operating since 1410 and still drawing crowds at each hour, and the Church of Týn, recognizable by its two pointed Gothic towers.

For lunch, the streets around the square have numerous taverns serving Bohemian cuisine like goulash or knedlíky, the bread dumplings typical of the region.

In the afternoon, visit the Jewish Quarter (Josefov), with the Old-New Synagogue, among Europe's oldest still in use, and the ancient Jewish cemetery with its gravestones stacked one upon another over centuries of burials.

Wenceslas Square, the great avenue of the New Town, has been the stage for the country's major historical events, from the Velvet Revolution of 1989 to the 1968 protests, and is today one of the capital's most animated commercial thoroughfares.

The narrow streets of the Old Town, once the evening lights come on, remain the perfect spot for dinner at restaurants overlooking the main square.

From the Castle to the Charles Bridge all the way to the Old Town, Prague in a day already puts together the medieval soul and the modern one, with the afternoon choice between Jewish Quarter and Wenceslas Square completing the picture.

The Vyšehrad quarter, with its fortress on the Moldava, and Kampa Island await semmai a second day. Crossing the Charles Bridge with the Castle behind remains nonetheless one of the moments that best tells Prague.