An autumn day, just before six in the evening in Prague. The area around the town hall on the Old Town Square looks as if people had gathered for a demonstration. However, appearances are deceiving: these are just thousands of tourists waiting under Prague's famous medieval astronomical clock for the clock to strike 6 p.m. The Old Town Astronomical Clock with figures of apostles and a crowing rooster begins a spectacle that most tourists from all over the world film with their mobile phones. – It's beautiful, worth the wait, a great experience – says George, a 40-year-old from Chicago, for whom the capital of the Czech Republic is one of five stops during his two-week trip around Europe.
There is a long queue of other tourists in front of the hall of the nearby Central City Library. Not because they are so interested in one of the largest libraries in the Czech Republic, which is used by thousands of Prague residents every day. They are attracted by the sculpture by Slovak artist Matej Kren, consisting of eight thousand books, which can be seen in the library hall. Inside the sculpture there are two mirrors that create the illusion of infinite space.
“The Endless Fountain”, as the sculpture is called, has been standing here since 1998 and for many years it did not attract much attention. But then she found Lonely Planet, and from there to other Prague travel guides and social media sites. Then tourist hell broke loose for library employees and visitors. – We don't know what to do. We are a public institution, we cannot charge entrance fees or restrict tourists in any way. But it's often unbearable, says the librarian to an elderly guest who has trouble getting through the crowds of tourists in front of the library building.
The end of alcohol tourism
These are just two of many examples of how the historical center of the Czech capital suffers from “overtourism”, i.e. too many tourists. Prague is one of the most visited cities in Europe; in many tourist guides it is advertised as Golden Prague and the most beautiful city in Europe. Now, however, the city authorities of Prague have decided to take action against at least one of the most annoying manifestations of mass tourism: evening bar tours, which have been organized for several years. Groups of visitors to Prague are taken to bars and pubs in the evenings and at night for a fixed price and can drink as much as they want. Currently, it is prohibited from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.
– I believe that we have finally made it easier for the residents of our city to sleep. Prague is a place for everyone who behaves decently and prudently, says Jiri Pospisil, former MEP and current councilor of Prague from the TOP 09 party, responsible for tourism, in an interview with DW.
Indeed, the ban on such bar tours introduced in mid-October pleases many residents of the center of Prague. – Especially in the summer, I often had to call the police at three in the morning because of these groups. When a group of 30 drunks sit under your windows in the middle of the street, it is unbearable, says Tomas Vich, an architect who lives on the second floor of a building behind the Church of Our Lady before Tyn, near the Old Town Square.
There are fewer and fewer residents in the center
Vich is not only concerned about noisy drinking at night. According to him, the second problem related to the overgrowth of tourism in the city is Airbnb. Apartments for rent via Internet has reached an alarming level in Prague, and the center of the capital is losing residents.
– The worst thing is not the stairs full of vomit of drunk tourists, but the fact that in the house where families with small children live, there are people walking around who you know nothing about – he says.
In the Czech Republic, tourists are accommodated in private rooms apartments it is illegal, but the state does not prosecute it. It also has other negative effects. – We realize that these landlords are worsening the housing situation in Prague – admits Jiri Pospisil. However, Prague has not yet decided to decisively fight against renting apartments to tourists.
Tourism is an important industry
Reason? The tourism sector is of great importance for the Czech economy, especially for Prague. According to the state agency CzechTourism, tourism revenues in 2023 amounted to approximately EUR 7 billion. Thanks to this and employment for approximately a quarter of a million employees, tourism is more important for the Czech Republic than, for example, agriculture.
Last year, 22 million foreign tourists stayed in the Czech Republic, including over 8 million in Prague alone. This year there will be even more of them than last year. Most tourists come from neighboring countries, and the number of foreign tourists is approaching pre-coronavirus levels.
Some experts do not want to talk about the overgrowth of tourism in general: they believe that it affects specific places, such as the historical center of Prague. – About 1.3 million people live in Prague, and about 8 million people visit this city every year. So the numbers are not that bad, Karel Vyrut, a well-known Czech tourism expert, recently said on Czech Radio. – The problem is rather the short-term rental of accommodation, which is not under control. Seven out of ten people who live in the Old Town are tourists.