With an 1,100-year-old-skyline, Prague has a particular majesty exuded in the spires, medieval streets, and looming castle. Gothic, Baroque, Renaissance, and Art Nouveau architecture demonstrate the full breadth of the city’s history. 

After landing at the airport, your Workation representative will meet you and take you to your pre-screened accommodations possessing all the amenities you need to succeed during your Workation in the Czech Republic. Prague has an exciting and beautiful atmosphere rising out of the Vltava River, where the beauty of the architecture reflects in the water. Take a walk on the riverbank and get familiar with the city’s beauty.   

Focus: Appreciate your new environment by observing your surroundings. Stay focused and in the present moment by looking at two to three details in your accommodations and looking at why they stand out to you.

Suggestion: You can enjoy a great introduction to Prague by visiting the Zizkov Television Tower for a panoramic view of the city at more than 708 feet tall.

Your first workday during your Czech Republic Workation will give you the chance to implement a ritual to help you kickstart your focus. The right ritual is a combination of routine and meaning. By implementing your ritual, you can ease into work and disconnect from your workday after you finish your projects.

After work, find a connectino to the culture and history of Prague by visiting a museum of your choice. It is fun to simply walk around and enjoy the ambiance of the Gothic architecture in the historic center but exploring the Museum of the Senses or Jewish Quarter with more intention can give you a better understanding of the history and heritage. 

Prague Castle is the largest ancient castle in the world and offers great vows over the river, the famous Charles Bridge, and the historic city center. In the Old Roayal Palace, you can view the intricate features dating back to teh 14th century or enjoy impressive halls where banquets, coronations, and markets took place before winding up the Riders’ Staircase where knights would enter on horseback. 

Focus: When exploring Prague Castle, pay attention to how your surroundings affect your thoughts, feelings, and sensations. Avoid judgment and instead become familiar with the feelings and opinions. 

Suggestion: Don’t miss the Basilica of St. George to enjoy Romanesque features and the 10th-century tomb of Vlatislav I.

You will have another opportunity to employ your ritual before work. It could be finding a cafe to enjoy a cup of Turkish coffee before starting work or be as simple as lighting a candle. The consistency is as important as the action. After work, you can explore more of Prague by visiting the National Library of the Czech Republic. 

The Baroque structure is connected to the larger Clementinum, a combination of buildings once part of a Jesuit college. The interior holds over 6 million books, covering every title ever published in the country. The Library Hall glows with gilded edges and artwork spanning the ceiling. You can also visit the famous Astronomical Tower standing more than 223 feet tall. 

Focus: Listen to the history of Prague through the lens of the National Library, which tells its own story. Can you create a story of your own story?

Suggestion: Prague has an incredible literary history and you can further explore the city’s Bohemian side by visiting the collection of independent and popular English-language bookstores, including those with buzzing cafes. 

By starting your workday with your ritual, you are reinforcing your ability to work from anywhere, essentially using the ritual like a switch to turn on and off your focused mind. After you complete your projects, you can once again join the thrill of the city, this time by tasting the exceptional food with a cooking class. 

A guided lesson gives you more information and ideas on the importance of food to Czech culture by engaging with the ingredients, seasonality, and aesthetic of every dish you make. The kitchen can fill with the aromas of sweet paprika and onions or garlic and roasting cabbage as you learn to make traditional potato pancakes or a fruit-filled dumpling. At the end, you can take the recipes home with you to create the dishes that will remind you of your Workation in Prague and the Czech Republic. 

Focus: Focus on the taste and layers of ingredients in your food. Pay attention to the textures and aromas. How do they intertwine? Can you taste each ingredient or tell what it is? Close your eyes and try again.

Suggestion: Your guide will most likely have a menu prepared but if you have dietary restrictions or wish to try something you know is local and possibly unusual, let the chef know in advance.

Start work early so you have plenty of time to disconnect and visit the town of Plzen. Whether you enjoy beer or just the beauty of a town away from the bustling streets of Prague, you Plzen is a great escape into the charismatic town square and even underground tunnels dating back to the 13th century. 

As one of the longest tunnel networks in Central Europe, the system provided storage, water transportation, and acted as a space for sewage before becoming an added feature of the brewing history. In the Pilsner Urquell Brewery, you can find a history of beer with operations dating back to the mid-19th century. The old cellar may still hold the smell of yeast and a glass of unpasteurized nectar can taste like sweet water with elements of flowers and honey. Once you taste the beer, you can enjoy the crisp soft flavor with touches of malt.

Focus: As you settle into your work schedule and ritual, create milestones for yourself and track your progress. This can help keep you motivated.

Suggestion: If you’re interested in history, Plzen is considered Bohemia’s second-city, after Prague and its underground tunnels offer a sense of archeology, discovery, and interesting perspective.

Brno is the capital of Moravia and has an exciting atmosphere combining the antique architecture and student population. After work, your Workation representative will meet you at your accommodation and take you to your new home in Brno, where you can find modern amenities to help you settle in.

Take your time familiarizing yourself with the city. Cafes erupt with conversation, restaurants fill with the smells of onion and beer, cocktail bars sing with live music while the historic churches add to the skyline with impressive spires and sloped rooftops. Walk down the cobblestone streets and alleyways to find a great view of Spilberk Castle as it dangles over the top of the city as a former powerhouse telling its own haunted history.

Focus: Brno is the Czech Republic’s coffee capital and you can easily find the smell of local coffee as you explore the city. Pay attention to what you smell and try to find where it’s coming from. Is it roasted beans, notes of chocolate, caramel? 

Suggestion: You can get a good sense of the city by walking around Zelny trh Square, where boutique shops and galleries can introduce you to the spirit of Brno.

With a full day to explore Brno, you can enjoy the fantastic diversity ranging from medieval architecture to modernist art theory with tangible artifacts. You can start at the Old Town Hall and find the turrets texturing the skyline. The history of the building starts around the 13th century and acted as a defensive stalwart against an invasion of Swedish forces. 

Away from the long arm of history can take you to the more contemporary aesthetic of Villa Tugendhat, which was designed in the 1920s. Considered a masterwork of functionalism, the elegant floor-to-ceiling windows and open floor plan showcase the onyx, chrome and eboy features combining practicality and style. 

Focus: As you tour the city, what catches your eye? How does it capture your attention and keep it? Why?

Suggestion: If you enjoy the architecture of the modernist movement, you can also visit Stiassni Villa and Low-Beer Villa.

With another full day to explore, you can head outside of Brno to enjoy the famous wine villages of Moravia or tour the charismatic old city of Znojmo. The streets wind and weave along the edges of the Dyje River, overlooking the sloping forest with red-roofed medieval buildings and an opulent Baroque chateau. 

The city’s underground tunnels are a labyrinth offering a less traditional way to explore the stories of fairy tales, alchemists, and medieval life. Many of the tunnels remain in use as wine cellars, representing the city’s connection to the greater wine region. The tunnels can be much colder than above ground and incredibly atmospheric, making them a great place to indulge in the many sordid histories of the prison cells. 

Focus: When touring the tunnels, close your eyes and listen. Does it sound different than when being above ground? What can you hear and what direction is it coming from? 

Suggestion: For a combination of history and flavor, you can visit Louka Monastery for a wine tasting.

You will return to work Monday and implement your ritual to help you get right back into your projects. You will find the consistent application and meaning behind your actions even makes it easy to return from the weekend to get your work done. After you’ve completed your projects for the day, you can visit the famous Church of St. James. 

The 14th-century structure houses important artifacts including a Gothic crucifix and 16th-century reliefs. The church’s main draw is the ossuary, where the bones of nearly 50,000 people have been used to decorate the holy space, their remains acting as part of a chandelier or garland. Many of the people interned in the ossuary were victims of war or plague. 

Focus: Before you visit the ossuary, listen to the history of the church. What details stand out to you and why? How do you connect them to the ossuary? 

Suggestion: If you prefer views to bones, tour Veveri Castle for a great panorama over the city and countryside. 

The combination of open space, historical architecture, and Baroque charm make Olomouch a fantastic place to continue your Czech Republic Workation. 

After you complete your workday, your Workation representative will take you from Brno to Olomouc where you can relax in the comforts and modern amenities of your pre-evaluated accommodations. Practically unknown to North Americans, the city rings with riches, including the energetic atmosphere of the central square. 

Baroque churches, Gothic streets, and a collection of museums, as well as microbreweries, give Olomouc a feeling unlike anywhere else in the Czech Republic. Once you arrive, you can spend time around the Holy Trinity Column where the baroque feature stands nearly 115 feet tall crowning a small but highly detailed chapel. 

Focus: Focus on the details of your new accommodation and pay attention to what stands to you. Close your eyes and try to remember what you saw and where everything is placed.

Suggestion: If you decide to visit the Holy Trinity Column, pay attention to the impressive reliefs depicting biblical events. 

After work, tour the variety of churches and monasteries around Olomouc. You can visit with a guide for more information on the architecture, history, and important connections to the city’s heritage. St. Wenceslas’s Cathedral is a giant feature standing more than 328 feet tall, making it the fourth-tallest building in the entire country. 

The outside was refurbished in the 19th century but the interior remains impressively medieval. You can hear the unique stories connected to the church including that of the murder of King Eenceslas III in the 14th century. In St Michael’s Church, you can find an aging green dome and bountiful baroque interior that includes a distinctive painting of a pregnant mary. 

Focus: Listen to the stories of St Wenceslas Cathedral. Which ones stand out to you and why? How do they connect to you? 

Suggestion: If you have time, you can visit the Archbishop’s Palace, a 17th-century building that acted as a former residence of the archbishop, as well as the place Franz Josef I was crowned in the mid-19th century. 

After work you can head to the medieval ruins of Helfstyn Castle. The structure strikes a commanding presence and acts as an easy day trip from Olomouc. As a fortress, the strong walls and elevated position have helped repeal the Swedes and Danes, as well as Turks while positioned on a plateau over the River Becva. 

Foundations began in the 14th century and now contain elements of Gothic and Renaissance styles. You can smell the grass and trees from teh surrounding countryside, and hints of cut stone from the conservation work. The sounds of clinking metal echoes from the working blacksmith shop and offers a unique collection of handmade crafts. 

Focus: Find the best view from the top of the castle and enjoy the panorama. Set the timer on your phone for five minutes. Stay and watch without looking at your phone until the timer goes off.

Suggestion: When you get back to Olomouc, you can enjoy the nightly atmosphere and enjoy some kolaches, typical pastries stuffed with poppy seed, apricot, or cheese.

You can celebrate your final full day in the Czech Republic with a visit to the famous medieval Bouzov Castle after work. The grounds have acted as the set for cinematic fairytales with a settlement dating to the late 15th century.

You can step into the past in the fully furnished apartments and galleries, as well as a dressed Neo-Gothic chapel. The Gothic altar adds to the atmosphere, heightened by the tombstones from the 14th to the 16th centuries. 

Walk along the fortifications and climb to the top of the watch tower for an extensive view. You can also act like a kid in the dungeon as you visit the life-size dragons and knights for an exciting immersion into a storybook. 

Focus: Explore the storybook in the dungeon before trying to tell your own story. 

Suggestion: If you enjoy medieval weaponry, don’t miss the armory exhibit.

A historic university, the spiritual traditions connected to the churches, and the scenery from the surrounding Moravian countryside make Olomouc an unforgettable place to spend time during your Czech Republic Workation. 

You can enjoy your morning with one more walk through the city or take your time in your accommodations before meeting your Workation representative and heading to the airport. You can always add another stop in the Czech Republic or extend your Workation in another country now that you have established your working ritual. 

Focus: There are plenty of cafes in Olomouc. Sit in one on your final morning and absorb the atmosphere. Make a top five list of the things you did. When you get to the airport, look at them again, do you feel the same an hour later, a day later, a week later? 

Suggestion: The closest airport to Olomouc is Ostrava, where you can find a connection back to your preferred airport home.