Between Epiphany and Shrove Tuesday, the Czech Republic holds several thousand balls. It is not a museum tradition kept alive for tourists — village fire brigades, university faculties and secondary-school year groups all hold one, and the season is a fixed part of the winter. In Prague it fills the grandest rooms in the city.
The Big Ones in 2027
| 22–23 January | Austrian Ball, Žofín Palace — the Viennese-style evening usually called the peak of the Prague season. 25th edition. |
| 6 February | Czech Ball, Municipal House — the flagship Czech one, in the art nouveau rooms on Náměstí Republiky. |
| 13 February | Czech-Slovak Ball — the joint evening, and the last big weekend before Lent. |
The season closes with Masopust; Shrove Tuesday falls on 9 February 2027, though the larger balls run past it.
How a Czech Ball Works
- It starts early and ends late. Doors around 19:00, opening ceremony by 20:00, and the good ones run until three or four in the morning.
- There is a programme. A polonaise or a dance-school opening, then a live band — usually a big band alternating with something modern — and a půlnoční překvapení, the midnight surprise, which can be anything from a tango troupe to a fire show.
- There is a tombola. Raffle tickets are part of the evening and the prizes are taken seriously.
- You book a table, not a seat. Tickets and table reservations are separate at most balls, and tables go first.
What to Wear and What It Costs
Long dress or black tie at Žofín and the Municipal House; dark suit and cocktail dress is acceptable at almost everything else. Nobody will turn you away for a lounge suit, but you will notice.
Entry runs roughly 800–2,500 CZK per person for the big balls, plus the table. Smaller neighbourhood and faculty balls start around 300 CZK and are, honestly, more fun.
Tickets go on sale in November and December through the venues’ own sites — zofin.cz and obecnidum.cz for the two above.
