Blossom on Petřín, Easter markets on the squares, gardens unlocking after winter and the first evening you can sit outside. Everything the city does between the March thaw and the end of May.
Spring is the season Prague is at its most generous. The blossom on Petřín arrives in the first half of April and lasts about ten days. The baroque gardens below the Castle — locked all winter — reopen. The Easter markets take over the same squares the Christmas ones left, and by the middle of May the beer gardens are full until dark.
It is also the season that changes fastest. March can still be winter; May can be twenty-two degrees and packed. This page sorts it out: what happens in each of the three months, the dates worth planning around, where the blossom and the gardens actually are, and what to do when spring turns out to be rain.
Spring, month by month
Three months that barely resemble each other. March is winter letting go, April is the blossom, May is the month everybody means when they say Prague in spring.
- Typical day
- 0–11°C
- Light until
- 18:00, then 19:30
- Crowds
- Light
- Typical day
- 4–15°C
- Light until
- 20:15
- Crowds
- Building
- Typical day
- 9–20°C
- Light until
- 21:00
- Crowds
- Heavy
Spring runs into summer without a clear line. If you are looking at early June, the beer gardens and river evenings have already started — see Summer in Prague.
The dates that shape the season
Easter dates are fixed for 2027; the festivals below follow their usual pattern, and the linked guides carry the confirmed dates each year. Anything already past drops off this list automatically.
Blossom, flowers and gardens
Where to see the blossom
Parks and walks
Easter in Prague
Easter is the spring version of the Christmas markets — the same squares, the same huts, different food and a great deal more paint. Good Friday and Easter Monday are both public holidays.
The traditions
Music, film and food
Spring is when the concert season peaks. Prague Spring runs from the middle of May, the film festival fills March, and the open-air food events start as soon as it is warm enough to stand outside.
Classical and concerts
Outside, and out of the city
Castles and chateaux reopen through April, the beer gardens fill as soon as the sun does, and the countryside around Prague is at its greenest before the summer dries it out.
Out of the city
Couples, photographs and long evenings
For couples
Spring with children
The first season of the year where a whole day outdoors works. Easter gives it a theme, and the zoo and gardens do the rest.
What you will look up anyway
Getting around
Dates and closures
Spring in Prague, answered
When exactly does the cherry blossom peak?
Usually somewhere in the first two weeks of April, and it lasts about ten days once it starts. A warm March can pull it into late March; a cold one pushes it towards mid-April. Nobody can promise a date more than a fortnight out — the blossom guide explains how to read the year.
Is April or May the better month?
May is warmer, longer and greener, and it has the Prague Spring festival. April is cheaper, quieter and has the blossom. If the flowers are the point, come in April; if the evenings are, come in May.
What happens over Easter?
Markets on both main squares from mid-March, then a four-day weekend. Good Friday and Easter Monday are public holidays — shops close, sights mostly stay open. Monday morning is pomlázkaaacute;zka day, which is worth reading about before it happens to you.
What is Witches’ Night?
Pálení čarodějnic, on 30 April: bonfires on hills and in gardens across the country to burn winter away. In Prague the biggest are on Petřín and in the outer parks. It is free, informal and very local.
Are the castles open yet?
Most Czech castles and chateaux reopen through April, some only at weekends until May. Always check the individual castle before travelling — the castle guides list opening seasons.
How bad are the crowds?
March is quiet, April is manageable, and May is one of the two busiest months of the year alongside September. In May, book restaurants and any Castle-area hotel weeks ahead, and start sightseeing before nine.
What if it rains for three days?
It might. The concert season is at its peak, the film festival runs in March, and the galleries and museums are at their emptiest of the year. A long lunch in a Czech pub also counts.
Every spring article
The archive holds everything published on the season, newest first. Easter has its own, deeper archive.
Weather figures on this page are typical values for Prague, not forecasts. Easter dates are fixed; festival dates follow recent seasons and are confirmed each year in the individual guides. Check those before booking anything around a date.
