CHRISTMAS IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC

Many cast itineraries are possible to be ridden by bike but within longer time. The Czech Republic has ideal conditions for active holidays combining architectural monuments, hiking and rest on the bank of rivers. During one - or two-week holidays you can combine several outdoor activities and under professional supervision try some adrenalin sports.

Christmas in Prague and surroundings

Christmas in Prague and the Christmas markets
Christmas events in Prague will run from 4th December 2004 until 6th January 2005. The opening ceremony will take place 4th December at 6pm with the lighting of the Christmas tree on the Old Town Square. Every day from 6 – 7pm and at weekends from 6 – 9pm there will be carol singing, advent songs and performances by junior ensembles from various parts of the city. In addition, medieval music ensembles will be performing and there will also be a concert by personalities from the world of Czech music featuring classic Czech Christmas carols and songs. A full programme of events to coincide with Saint Nicholas day 5th December will be appreciated by children most of all, as on the Old Town Square there will be a competition to find the best St Nicholas, demon or angel masque. It goes without saying that there will also be a New Year’s Eve celebration to see in 2005.

The National Theatreis holding a series of advent concerts in the run-up to Christmas. These are set to take place 28th November, 5th, 12th and 19th December from 2pm. The spirit of these concerts is meeting to listen to sacred and Christmas works by Czech artists. Among others, audiences will hear the well-known Christmas carols and the Czech Christmas Mass by Jakub Jan Ryba.

St Vitus’ Cathedral invites all to attend midnight mass (24. 12.). Further masses will take place on Christmas day (25. 12.) and St Stephen’s day (26. 12.) at 8am 9.30am and 11am. Further Christmas services will be taking place from Christmas Eve (24. 12.) until Twelfth Night (6. 1.) in all of Prague’s churches in which there are traditionally Nativity scenes reminding us of the birth of Jesus Christ. Every year one of the most popular is the life size Nativity scene in the Church of the Virgin Mary Queen of Angels on Loretánské Square or the gingerbread nativity scene in the Church of St Matthew in Dejvice.

Jakub Jan Ryba’s Czech Christmas Mass can also be heard in the Church of St Nicholas in Malá Strana on Christmas day (25. 12.) and St Stephen’s day (26. 12.) from 4pm. The fresh, merry melody of the Czech Christmas Mass combined with the atmosphere of the interior of the Church of St Nicholas, one of the most important baroque buildings in Europe, should be an unforgettable Christmas experience.

Just outside the capital there are a number of interesting open-air museums such as those in Kouøim and Pøerov nad Labem to name just two. At the open-air museum in Pøerov nad Labem fragrant with frankincense from 3rd – 30th December visitors will have the chance to see an exhibition entitled ‘A Folk Christmas in the Elbe Plane Region’. The end of the year at the Folk Architecture Museum in Kouøim will feature a full programme of events with something for everybody. 4th December you can meet Mysterious Advent Figures. 5th December you can experience St Nicholas day celebrations and the St Nicholas fair with gifts and processions with St Nicholas, angels and demons. 18th December visitors can take part in an event with the title ‘With a Carol to Bethlehem’ during which they will become acquainted with folk art and traditional customs and 19th December the programme is brought to a close with ‘We bring you Christmas Eve’ when in the various cottages and houses you will be able to watch as the inhabitants pluck feathers, spin yarn, bake traditional Christmas sweets, prepare Christmas fare, sing carols and generally create a traditional rural Christmas atmosphere.

Christmas at Czech castles and chateaux

Telc– Christmas markets and tours
The town of Telc, whose historical centre and chateau have been recognized by UNESCO as a world cultural heritage site will also come to life at Christmas. Christmas markets and Christmas tours of the grand renaissance interiors of the chateau are awaiting you. More information at www.zamek-telc.cz. From 27th until 31st December there will also be a folk festival taking place called ‘Christmas Holidays in Telè’. You can find more information at www.prazdninyvtelci.cz.

Krivoklat – Advent in Krivoklat
The weekends of the 4/5th and 11/12th December Køivoklát Castle is also planning to hold Christmas events (www.krivoklat.cz). Part of the programme will be St Nicholas celebrations with gifts (first of the weekends) and Advent theatre performances and concerts (both weekends), where you can once again hear Jakub Jan Ryba’s Czech Christmas Mass and the Køivoklát Fiddlers will also be performing a ‘Krivoklát Nativity Scene’. Every Sunday from 10.30am in the castle chapel there will be an advent service and a Christmas fair will run for all four days. Items on sale at the fair will include decorated kitchen implements, butter moulds, pottery products, replica gothic glassware, leather goods and various medieval weapons. Saturday 11th December the steam locomotive Albatros will pull a special train from Prague – Braník station to Krivoklát.

Christmas in historical towns

Cesky Krumlov – Advent and Christmas in Cesky Krumlov
Advent and Christmas in the pearl of South Bohemia Ceský Krumlov, a town recognized by UNESCO as a world cultural heritage site has a lot to offer visitors this Christmas. 5th December St Nicholas will be on the square handing out presents. On the 18th you will have another opportunity to hear Jakub Jan Ryba’s Christmas Mass and on the 19th there will be carol singing there too. 23rd December you will see a live Nativity scene on the square and on Christmas day you will be able to take part in the Bears’ Christmas (http://www.ckrumlov.cz/cz1250/zamek/1nadvori/i_moslav.htm), when you can take the bears from the castle moat presents and sing them carols. On the 26th you can taste some real Czech Christmas food in selected restaurant to celebrate St Stephen’s day. More information is available at www.ckrumlov.cz.

Pribram – Christmas at the Museum of Mining and gifts in the historical underground Prokop gallery
At the Príbram Museum of Mining (www.muzeum-pribram.cz, www.pribram-city.cz), at the exhibition in Brezove Hory near Pribram, from 6th – 10th and 13th – 17th December visitors will have the chance to see demonstrations of Christmas traditions, examples of work by carvers of wooden Nativity scenes, the making of Christmas decorations, lead pouring, traditional food preparation and carol singing. Children will be spellbound by the presents in the historical underground Prokop gallery, part of the former mine, followed by a ride on the underground mine train.

Olomouc – Christmas in Olomouc
The magnificent historical town of Olomouc in Moravia will also be celebrating Christmas with a superb programme of cultural events. From 1st until 23rd December a large number of performances will be taking place, especially of a musical kind. There will be a lot to choose from; Christmas and folk music to spiritual, gospel, swing, rock, pop, folk, country newgrass and Dixieland.

A Traditional Christmas

Straznice – Village Museum of South-East Moravia
South Moravia is also a place rich in tradition. Some of these traditions can be seen at the open-air museum in Straznice as part of the programme in the run-up to Chrisrmas called ‘Let us rejoice, let us be merry’ set to take place from 4th – 8th December. Visitors will be able to take a look around traditional houses decorated for Advent and Christmas, sing carols with a shepherd and carol singers and meet St Nicholas, the demons, the Three Wise Men and other mysterious characters. You will also have the chance to make and bake your own Christmas cookies and decorate gingerbread. On Saturday and Sunday afternoons the programme will consist of Christmas songs and carols.

Roznov pod Radhostem – Wallach Region Open-air Museum
The Wallach Region Open-air Museum (www.vmp.cz), the oldest and most extensive museum of its kind in Central Europe is putting on a lavish programme of events called Christmas in the Wallach Region. Visitors will have the chance to see an evening show with St. Nicholas handing out gifts (5.12.), a Christmas market (11.12.) and a Village Christmas (6 -14.12.) where you will be able to see village women at work baking gingerbread and young girls making Christmas decorations. You can also have your future read according to the shapes molten lead makes when poured into water or by nutshells floating in water

Hlinsko – Open-air Museum of Folk Architecture Veselý kopec
The Open-air Museum of Folk Architecture Veselý kopec (www.hlinsko.cz) is preparing to hold an exhibition entitled Christmas at Veselý kopec set to run from 27th November until 5th December. The programme will acquaint visitors with folk customs, presents, decorations and Christmas sweets in all the museum buildings. On the 5th from 9am until 3pm the traditional Christmas fair will take place. From 11th December until 2nd January in all the timber cottages in Hlinsko there will be an exhibition of Christmas Nativity scenes. This will be an opportunity to see folk Nativity scenes as well as a unique mechanical version by R. Frinta.

Nativity scenes

Karlstejn – Museum of Nativity scenes in Karlstejn
The largest moving puppet Nativity scene in the Czech Republic can be found at the Museum of Nativity scenes in Karlstejn. There are 40 puppets in an area of 80 m2, some of them representing the most important Czech rulers going to bow before the baby Jesus. From the museum it is only a stone’s throw to the most popular Czech castle, Karlstejn, which welcomes visitors even during the winter months.

Pribram – Nativity scenes from the Pribram region
A unique exhibition of Nativity scenes from a region with a tradition of Nativity scene carving – the mining region of Pribram - can be seen in the František Drtikol Gallery, Ernestinum chateau in Pribram from 10. 12. 2004 - 9. 1. 2005 (open 9am until 5pm). The exhibition is accompanied by a series of interesting events such as demonstrations by Nativity scene carvers and performances of Christmas carols by amateur folklore ensembles from the Pribram area.

New Year’s Eve

Karlovy Vary – New Year’s Eve
A great New Year’s Eve programme is waiting for you in the famous West Bohemian spa town of Karlovy Vary. 29th December the Grandhotel Pupp (www.pupp.cz) will host the opening ball of the 2005 season and on the last evening of the year a New Year gala show is planned with an exciting programme and a huge firework display.