At the time of Advent, people like to meet in the traditional Christmas markets, fighting against chilly weather, for example, with a classic mulled wine. But the most popular markets in Prague, such as those at the Old Town Square, the Square of Piece (Náměstí míru) or Jiří z Poděbrad’s square, tend to be really overcrowded. Luckily still exist markets in the metropolis where you can experience the real Christmas atmosphere and are not so full of people.
At the Republic Square (Náměstí Republiky), there are markets where you also need sharp elbows and strong nerves, but when you go a little further behind the shopping house Kotva, you will still be in the centre but with the feeling of a small town.
A few people who know each other, sometimes a random tourist who does not trust his eyes. “I’ve been to Prague several times, but I found this place by accident, and I’m excited. Not far from the astronomical clock and so few people … ” the Swedish tourist smiled. Several booths are offering fast-food snacks, for example, classic trdelník and other lashes.
The Best Welder
At one stand, there are more people than at the others. “There are quite a lot of people going here, sometimes there is a queue, but we can get rid of it quickly, it’s definitely not the same as close to here, on Staromák (Old Town Square), ” says salesman Josef Svoboda, who has been working here for seven years and therefore has regular customers. The reason is simple – he says he has the best welder.
This was immediately confirmed by the visitor standing near the counter. “We have been visiting this stand for four years. They have the best welder and in the summer the spritzer. There are more people on the weekends, but we do not have to push anywhere,” told a regular customer to Novinky.cz.
Pause in Working Hours
In Holešovice in Jankovcova Street, six stands are hidden between the high-glazed buildings full of offices. Only one offers the mulled wine. There’s a handful of people literally hanging out here. “There is a pleasant atmosphere, and there are no queues. People are coming after work from offices or families with their children when they go for a walk,” confirmed Veronika Dvořáková from the wine stand.
“I prefer to go to smaller markets because there’s always a lot of people at Staromák. There is almost nobody here. We came with colleagues to have a mulled wine during the working hours; we said that when it is Christmas, so we should make it nice,” laughed the mulled wine’s lover.
Year-Round Affair
There are only three stands in Letňany on Tupolevova Street. “These stands are here the whole year, we just change the assortment for Christmas, for example, instead of ice coffee, we sell the mulled wine,” Katerina Štolfová told Novinky, but she confirmed that people like to come back for the trdelník, of which they offer more species.
Similar small markets, where you do not have to worry about someone stepping on your feet or pouring the mulled wine all over you, are still behind the shopping house My or Strossmayer Square.
