Prague Underground Tour: Medieval Cellars and Dungeons

The Raised Street Level

Secondary sources say the city raised street level by roughly one storey after repeated Vltava floods, so the Romanesque ground floors of Old Town houses turned into cellars from the 13th century. Guides give different figures for how deep the raise went, so no single number should be trusted. What is agreed is the cause and the result: flood defence pushed the streets up, and the old ground floors went underground.

Around 70 houses in the Old Town were originally built below today's street level, according to the same travel guide source. Those houses are what the tours take you into. One practical detail from the same guide: underground temperatures stay around 10 to 12 degrees Celsius all year, so bring a layer even in summer.

Romanesque Houses Under the Old Town

The Old Town's stone houses from around 1200 survive as cellars. The archaeological atlas lists about fifty comparable stone houses around the Old Town Square from that period. You can see the pattern clearly at the House of the Lords of Kunštát and Poděbrady at Řetězová 3, whose ground floor has remained virtually unchanged since the turn of the 13th century. Its Romanesque cellar has a main hall with cross vaults on central pillars, side chambers and fireplace hoods.

King George of Poděbrady lived in that house, and later owners included the Hrzán, Šternberk and Waldstein families. The building was reconstructed over four years and finished in 2007 at a cost of 70 million crowns. Note for visitors: prague.eu lists the Romanesque cellars on Řetězová as open daily 14:00 to 23:00 for 30 CZK, but the space is now shared with a gallery and the U Kunštátů beer club, so it may operate as a venue rather than as a monument. Check on site before counting on a monument visit.

The same pattern lies under the Old Town Hall. The Hall was founded in 1338 with the approval of King John of Bohemia, and it is made up of a block of houses with Romanesque houses forming the base, whose remains lie in the basements. The core is the Gothic corner house of Wolflin of Kámen from the end of the 13th century. Prague.eu says the cellars keep the layout of the original merchants' houses, with Gothic ribbed vaults from the 13th and 14th centuries and a Romanesque ground floor from about 1200.

What Happened Down There

The cellars are history, and the history is heavy. After the Battle of White Mountain the Old Town Hall served as a prison for leading rebels, and 27 of them were beheaded on 21 June 1621 in front of the building. Twenty-seven crosses mark the pavement of Old Town Square for those men. In the 20th century the basement had a different role: it housed the Czech National Council during the 1945 Prague Uprising. On 7 May 1945 the Old Town Hall was shelled and set on fire, and the eastern and northern wings were destroyed.

The dungeon room shown on commercial tours fits this past. Resellers describe the dungeon stop as a torture-instrument dungeon, and secondary listings say the tours' three underground stops include that dungeon and an alchemists' laboratory. Be clear about what the 'Prague Dungeon' is: commercial tours of cellars and a mock dungeon sold by resellers, not a single official monument.

Prices, Lengths and Rules at a Glance

The table compares the three bookable Prague underground tours on price, duration, what is inside and the age rule, using the figures from each tour's own listing. Two of the tours cost the same $30.92 and share a ticket office, while the official city tour costs $28 and lasts longer. None of them includes hotel pickup.

The Official City Tour: Old Town Hall Underground

The Prague Medieval Underground of the Old Town Hall Guided Tour is run by Prague City Tourism, the operator that also sells Old Town Hall tickets directly. It costs $28, lasts 2 hours and is the only one of the three with a clear official status. Entry to two undergrounds is in the price: the medieval underground of the Old Town Hall, with its Romanesque and Gothic houses and the original street level, and the underground of the Angels College. Guides work in English, French or Italian, and the tour is history rather than ghost stories.

The listing states no meeting point, and says the meeting point may vary depending on the option booked. It is not suitable for wheelchair users or people with impairments of mobility. If you want the same cellars without a reseller, this is the one. Ratings sit at 4.5 from 326 reviews.

The Ghost Version with the Dungeon

The Prague Ghosts, Legends, Medieval Underground and Dungeon Tour is the underground tour with ghost stories attached. It costs $30.92, runs 70 to 85 minutes and takes up to 26 people in English or German with a costumed guide carrying a lantern. The route covers Old Town and former Jewish Ghetto lanes, gothic churches, an abandoned forgotten cemetery, the medieval underground, a hidden alchemy laboratory with the Golem story and the dungeon. All entry fees are included. The meeting point is the operator's ticket office inside the passage at Malé náměstí 459/11, about 20 metres to the right of the Black Angel Bar and 1 to 2 minutes from the Astronomical Clock.

The age rule is the strictest detail: children under 6 are not allowed, with bands for child 6 to 11, youth 12 to 17, adult 18 to 64 and senior 65 to 99. Wheelchairs and baby strollers are not possible because of walking and stairs. Hotel pickup, food, drinks and gratuities are not included. It is rated 4.8 from 3,185 reviews.

The History Version with the Dungeon

The Prague Old Town, Medieval Underground and Dungeon Historical Tour shares the same operator, ticket office and price of $30.92, but drops the ghost stories. It runs 90 minutes in groups of up to 25, in English or German, with no costume stated. The route goes through Old Town streets into 13th and 14th century medieval underground, a 12th century Romanesque palace underground and the dungeon. All entry fees are included. Hotel pickup is not included.

The age bands and the access rules match the ghost version: under 6 not allowed, and no wheelchairs or strollers because of walking and stairs. This is the most reviewed underground tour listing on the site's comparison, rated 4.7 from 5,848 reviews. If you want the cellars and the dungeon without legends and costumes, this is the version to book. Start times are not fixed in the listing, so check availability for the slot you want.

Booking at the Malé Náměstí Ticket Office

Both Prague Tours options, the ghost version and the history version, start from the same office. Resellers place the Prague Underground Tours ticket office in the passage at Malé náměstí 459/11, about 20 metres right of the Black Angel bar, and 1 to 2 minutes from the Astronomical Clock. Start times are not fixed in the listings, so check availability for your date.

Every underground tour here offers free cancellation 24 hours ahead.

What You Actually See

A Prague underground tour is a guided walk through Gothic and Romanesque cellars beneath the Old Town. The Prague Old Town, Medieval Underground and Dungeon Historical Tour lasts 90 minutes and covers Old Town streets, a 13th and 14th century medieval underground, a 12th century Romanesque palace cellar and the dungeon, with all entry fees in the $30.92 price. Groups are capped at 25.

The Prague Ghosts, Legends, Medieval Underground and Dungeon Tour runs 70 to 85 minutes for the same $30.92 and adds a costumed lantern guide, an alchemy laboratory and ghost stories. It takes up to 26 people. The official city tour of the Old Town Hall underground lasts 2 hours, costs $28 and covers two undergrounds including the Angels College, told as plain history.

Underground temperatures stay around 10 to 12 degrees Celsius all year according to one guide, so bring a layer even in summer.

The Dungeon

The dungeon stop is the part people remember. Resellers describe it as a torture-instrument dungeon, one of three underground stops. One reseller source calls the Prague Dungeon a mock dungeon rather than a single official monument.

If you want the dungeon without the ghost framing, the historical version of the tour also includes one. If you want atmosphere, the lantern version at $30.92 has the costumed guide.

The Review Numbers

The historical version is the most reviewed listing on this site, with 5,848 reviews at 4.7. The ghost version holds 4.8 from 3,185 reviews. The official city tour has 326 reviews at 4.5.

Those are large samples for the Prague Tours listings, so the scores are meaningful.

Who It Does Not Suit

Both commercial tours refuse children under 6 and neither is possible for wheelchairs or baby strollers, because of walking and stairs. The official city tour is also not suitable for wheelchair users or people with mobility impairments. The historical interiors of the Old Town Hall have no barrier-free access.

If your group includes a toddler in a stroller, book an above-ground walk instead, such as the options on the Prague ghost tour page.

The Honest Verdict

Is the underground tour in Prague worth it? If you expect a real medieval prison, no. If you want to stand below street level in vaulted cellars from about 1200 and hear how the city was lifted out of the floods, 90 minutes for $30.92 is a fair price.

People who dislike confined, low-ceilinged or dim spaces should skip it. The rest of the review counts say most visitors are satisfied.

The Old Town Hall Cellars

How to visit Prague underground without a reseller: buy a basic Old Town Hall ticket and add a guided interior circuit. The basic ticket is 350 CZK, reduced 230 CZK for children 6 to 15 and seniors 65 plus, 280 CZK for youth 16 to 26 and 750 CZK for a family. The guided tour surcharge is 100 CZK for Circuit B, which covers only the Romanesque-Gothic underground, or 150 CZK for Circuit A, which adds the Gothic chapel and the state rooms.

The surcharge can only be paid at the Old Town Hall on the day and cannot be bought online. Groups must reserve by phone or email in advance. Guided start times change daily, so read them live on the official schedule. Opening hours are 10:00 to 19:00 from January to March and 9:00 to 20:00 from April to December. Prague City Tourism is the only official seller of these tickets, and tickets from other channels may not be valid.

The cellars keep the layout of the original merchants' houses, with Gothic ribbed vaults from the 13th and 14th centuries and a Romanesque ground floor from about 1200.

The Online Skip-the-Line Ticket

Note what the online skip-the-line ticket is: the official page says it is for the tower only and costs 450 CZK for adults. It does not include the underground. To go below, buy the basic ticket on site and pay the 100 CZK Circuit B surcharge at the desk the same day.

Vyšehrad Casemates and Gorlice

The Casemates to Gorlice tour is the other big underground visit. It starts at the Brick Gate at V Pevnosti 46/1, lasts 45 to 60 minutes, is guided in Czech and English and takes up to 30 people. Tickets cost 330 CZK for adults 16 to 64, 250 CZK for students and seniors and 165 CZK for children 6 to 15, with cheaper online prices of 295, 225 and 150 CZK. The ticket also includes the exhibition The Rise and Fall of Vyšehrad in the Gunpowder House.

Gorlice is described as the largest underground hall in historic Prague, created by mistake through an error by the fortification builder. It later served as a food warehouse and an underground factory and now holds six original Baroque statues from Charles Bridge. Vyšehrad itself is free to enter all year, so only the tour is paid.

A Romanesque Cellar on Řetězová

The House of the Lords of Kunštát and Poděbrady at Řetězová 3 has a Romanesque cellar with cross vaults on central pillars, and its ground floor has remained virtually unchanged since the turn of the 13th century. King George of Poděbrady lived there. Prague.eu listed the cellars as open daily 14:00 to 23:00 for 30 CZK, but the space now also holds a gallery and the U Kunštátů beer club, so it may function as a venue rather than a monument.

Check locally before you plan an evening around it.

Is the Prague Underground Free?

The sources read list no free underground monument in Prague. The closest you get free is Vyšehrad, where the fortress itself can be entered free all year and only the casemate tours are paid, starting at 165 CZK reduced. Free ghost and legends walks in the Old Town stay above ground.

Any page promising a Prague underground free visit is describing streets and exteriors, not the cellars.

Quick Price Table

The figures below come from the official Prague.eu and Vyšehrad pages and show the ways below street level without a commercial tour.

Ticket

The table sets each sight's official adult price beside a link to book the entry online. Reduced and family rates still apply at the gate where the site offers them, so check them before you pay.