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In the Czech capital, Pivovarský Dům, a brewpub right in the center of Prague with a microbrewery on its premises, as well as its sister establishment, Pivovarský Klub, a restaurant that offers hundreds of beer varieties, were among the first to promote small, regional beers. With the current renaissance of microbrews in full swing, Pivovarský Klub continues to showcase the best of what the Czech Republic’s small brewers have to offer. Pivovarský Klub’s Aleš Dočkal talks about how he got his start in the hospitality business, the beer industry and

In a lovely corner of Prague just south of the busy square Karlovo Náměstí is one of the city centre’s special secrets. The Charles University Botanical Gardens are not the biggest in the city but they have the distinction of a perfect location: crammed into a normal city block between the old town and the hill of Vyšehrad are the enormous greenhouses that with the surrounding eight acres host some 5,000 types of plants from all over the world and provide a peaceful oasis for Prague denizens.

In today's edition of Spotlight we visit the famous Průhonice Park - a gorgeous destination for tourists that is not at all out of reach, a mere fifteen minute bus ride from Prague. If you love long romantic walks, soft landscapes full of leafy forests, quiet streams, and virgin meadows, Průhonice is a must.

In this edition of Spotlight we visit Veltrusy Chateau, a gorgeous summer estate found north of the Czech capital. Founded in the 1700s by Czech nobleman Václav Antonín Chotek, Veltrusy is far from an obvious destination, but is well-worth a day-trip. The castle grounds boast a 300 hectare park along the Vltava River, with numerous paths leading among ancient trees to pavilions, a bridge or two and various monuments. Then of course, there is the chateau itself, highly valued as a gem of Baroque architecture.

With the arrival of spring in the Czech Republic the tourist season is beginning to slowly re-awaken and with it a favourite Czech pastime - visiting the country's many castles and chateaux with family and friends. In that spirit today we visit the royal castle of Krivoklat - a most remarkable site with a history that stretches back to the 12th century. Found on a promontory of rolling hills overlooking deep woodlands, Krivoklat was a favourite of King Wenceslas IV. He used it primarily for leisure and sport, preferring it to his father's more

In recent years, beers from smaller breweries have grown in popularity in the Czech Republic – a trend that is finally being reflected in Prague’s pubs, where for a long time, the big brands enjoyed a virtual monopoly. Fortunately, it is becoming easier to find microbrews on offer in the capital. One pub that pours beers from all over the Czech Republic and is a bit of a living museum is the aptly named Prague Beer Museum, located right in the center of Prague.

In the jumble of alleyways that is Prague’s Old Town, if you look carefully, you’ll make out the form of the ancient fortress of Ungelt, built over with baroque and renaissance facades, but still standing after 1000 years. This is the customs house of Ungelt, where foreign merchants came to store their wares, and a reminder that Prague has always been a cosmopolitan, multinational city ever since its earliest days.

In today’s Spotlight Radio Prague visits an early Baroque palace known as Michnův palác in the historic quarter of Malá strana. Built in the 16th century, it first belonged to the Micha family before it became munitions factory in the mid-1700s. In the early 20th century, after the founding of Czechoslovakia, it was sold to the patriotic Sokol sport and gymnastics organisation, which renovated it and named it Tyršův dům (or Tyrs’ House) after its main founder.

Deep beneath the city of Prague is another city altogether, one that most people are completely unaware of, and that they’ll hopefully never see. It is a system of hundreds upon hundreds of concrete bunkers with their own electricity, water and ventilation systems awaiting the day that you might hear the air-raid sirens wailing.

One of the most beautiful towns in Moravia and historically an important location in the Czech Republic is Znojmo - a town whose foundations date back to the 11th century. For centuries Znojmo guarded the regions of southern Moravia, part of an elaborate chain of defending castles along the Dyje River and the border with Austrian lands, developing from a promontory fort to medieval stronghold and local seat of administration for the Přemyslids - the first line of Czech kings. By the mid 1200s Znojmo was dominant, complementing neighbouring castles