Localada’s free Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock audio guide is part of the Prague audio guide: the story of Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock, practical visiting tips and a route map, narrated in 15 languages. It opens in your browser, with no app download and no tour group.
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Opens the Prague guide in Localada, where Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock is one of the stops. A free account takes a few seconds.
Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock: key facts
- Time to allow: 1–1.5 hours
- Hours: 09:00–21:00 (open daily)
- Address: Staroměstské náměstí 1, 110 00 Prague 1
- Nearest transport: Staroměstská station · 5 min walk (A · 17 · 18)
- Localada perk: 5% OFF – Tower entry and the clock mechanism — book below
- The hourly show lasts about forty-five seconds; the crowd gathers ten minutes early
- The tower ticket includes the lift and the medieval chapel
- The square is closed to traffic
The story of Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock
The story everyone repeats is that the councillors blinded the clockmaker so he could never build another one, and that he took his revenge by reaching into the mechanism and stopping it for a century.
It is a good story and it is not true. It was written down four hundred years after the clock was built, by a chronicler with a gift for drama.
The clock was made in 1410 by a royal clockmaker and a professor of mathematics. It has been repaired, rebuilt, ignored, restarted and repaired again ever since. The apostles who parade at the top of the hour are Victorian additions.
The dial is not telling you the time in any way you would recognise. It shows the sun's position, the moon's phase, the old Bohemian hours counted from sunset, and where the sun sits in the zodiac. Reading it takes practice.
In May 1945 the town hall next to it burned; the clock's wooden figures went with it and were carved again from photographs.
Look down at the paving in front of the hall: twenty-seven crosses mark where twenty-seven leaders of a failed rebellion were executed in 1621.
A square that keeps its worst days in the paving and its best legend in a book that made it up.
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Tips for visiting Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock
- Watch the show from the far side of the square, not from directly under it
- The tower view is the one that shows the square's shape
- The twenty-seven crosses are on the ground by the town hall's eastern wall
- Cafés on the square charge for the location; the streets behind are cheaper
- Come back after eleven at night — the square empties and the buildings do the talking
5% off Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock tickets and tours
Book through Localada and GetYourGuide takes 5% off at checkout, on experiences worldwide. No code needed.
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More audio guides in Prague
- Prague Castle & St Vitus Cathedral · 3 hours
- Charles Bridge & the Old Town Bridge Tower · 1 hour
- Josefov — the Jewish Quarter · 2–2.5 hours
All stops in the Prague audio guide →
Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock audio guide: frequently asked questions
Is the Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock audio guide free?
Yes. The Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock audio guide is part of Localada’s free Prague guide: create a free account and open it in your browser, no app download needed. Tickets for Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock are bought separately; booking through Localada’s GetYourGuide links gives 5% off.
How long should I spend at Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock?
Allow 1–1.5 hours for Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock.
What are the opening hours of Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock?
09:00–21:00 (open daily). Hours can change on public and religious holidays, so check on the day.
Can I get a discount on Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock tickets?
Yes. Book Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock tickets and tours through Localada’s GetYourGuide links and GetYourGuide applies 5% off at checkout.
Which languages is the Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock audio guide available in?
Narration and text are available in 15 languages: English, Turkish, German, French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Dutch, Polish, Russian, Arabic, Persian, Chinese, Japanese and Korean.
Listen to the Old Town Square & the Astronomical Clock audio guide, free →