Prague, TV tower
Prague TV Tower
Prague TV Tower(Žižkovská věž) is located at address Mahlerovy sady 1, 130 00 Prague 3, Height 216 meters. Costs TV tower Prague in the Žižkov area. How to get to Prague TV tower. Photo report about the visit Prague TV tower.
TV tower in Prague is the tallest building in the Czech Republic.Prague TV Tower is an honorary member of the World Federation of Tall Towers.
Many have argued and continue to argue to this day whether it was necessary to build this TV tower almost in the historical center of Prague? Interesting fact, it seemed to me that the Prague TV tower is not noticeable from other areas Prague, i.e. it is not visible unless you specifically look for it. By TV tower they crawl very cute babies, whom he invented David Cherny. They look great. Now these babies can be seen on Kampa Island. I still don’t understand, did they make spare kids or update the old ones?
Interesting facts about these babies.
In 2000 Prague TV tower finally said goodbye to its so-called communist past ( TV tower built in communist Czechoslovakia), because the “Babies” sculptures from the modern Czech sculptor David Černý were installed on it. However, these little ones crawling in different directions along TV tower little children can be observed over the next 11 years, looking as if they had always been there.
The most interesting thing is that when these kids were hanged Prague TV tower, then in the winter of 2001 they were removed from there, because they were afraid that when the snow began to fall, they would fall out of there along with the snow. And God forbid, on anyone’s head. I can’t imagine how they were removed/hung, they are huge and probably weigh about a ton. But within a few months, the people of Prague had already become attached to the babies, they began a campaign to get them back, and soon the babies returned.
By the way, David Cherny is such an interesting artist that he posted the following information on his website: “At the moment, the estimated period for babies to be in Prague TV tower– 10-20 years. That is, until they fall off on their own. Everyone hopes that doesn't happen, but who knows." With these words he spoke about these sculptures. All the crawling babies are without faces, this is not visible from the ground, but it is so, you can verify Kampe. At the time when Cerny was coming up with his children, there was an anti-abortion program in the Czech Republic, so David supported this program.
Before Prague TV tower we walked from the station náměstí Míru, there are stations that are located closer, but walking around Prague is a pleasure. The weather was good, the landmark was visible from afar.
Let's go inside TV towers, there is an elevator, we bought tickets for a small price, you can go up to the first level, there is restaurant, were not hungry, because... came to TV tower in the morning, and the prices seemed quite high.
Take it to the next level Prague TV tower, there is an observation deck (about 90 meters), the view is very beautiful, the only thing that spoiled it was the cloudy glass.
We admired the views, took pictures, went down and went on a walk. I like it, TV tower in Prague I really like it, there are never many people there. When we were there, we were the only ones there. I recommend.
Official site Prague TV tower http://www.praguerocket.com/
As promised earlier, today we will see the Žižkov TV Tower. A little information about this building:
- located in the Prague 3 area, also called Vinohrady.
- construction began in 1985, but ended only in 1992, project: Aulicki, Kozak and Boehm.
- the height of the tower is 216 meters and it is the tallest building in the Czech Republic.
- for visitors there is an observation deck at an altitude of 93 meters and a restaurant at an altitude of 66 meters, the passenger elevator moves at a speed of 4 m/sec.
- in addition to television and radio broadcasting equipment, the tower houses a meteorological station.
- the tower is decorated with sculptures by David Cherny. This is a very popular artist and sculptor, his works are often found in Prague, you have already seen some of them in previous posts about Prague, in particular, the inverted horse of St. Wenceslas and the Pissing Men. More of David Cherny's work can be viewed on his website.
View of the tower from the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart. The cathedral is also quite unusual in its architecture, built in 1932 by Josip Jože.
View from Ondrickova street.
The tower is interesting not only for its views, but also for its own sake. Here are the same sculptures by David Cherny depicting babies without faces. A couple of their brothers can be found near the Kampa Museum in Mala Strana.
Each weighs about 100 kg (they’re strong, you can’t say anything). There was a history with them: they were placed on the tower for a short period in 2000, in honor of Prague being declared a European City of Culture. Then they were removed, fearing that they would collapse due to the snow that accumulated in winter. However, the townspeople really liked them and collected signatures for their return. In 2001, the kids returned to their place.
Can anyone tell me what they basically symbolize, why they have something like a barcode instead of faces? I scoured the net and still couldn't find the answer.
There are many of them here.
Naked babies.
Here's a bigger one. What is this thing he has instead of a face?
The butts are dry and without any diapers.
And here is the entrance to the tower: no hassles like we have in Ostankino - I came, I saw, I visited!
At the top there is a photo chronicle of construction, and you can also find images of various television towers and skyscrapers from around the world. No photographs of Ostankino, like other Moscow towers, have been seen.
There are also paid telescopes and special podiums on the observation deck from which you can look and film over the heads of other visitors.
Alas, like all television towers and most public observation platforms around the world, everything here is glazed, and this glass is far from ideal. So I apologize in advance for the poor quality, glare and other delights.
Neighborhood.
Olshanka Avenue with the hotel of the same name in the foreground and the building of the O2 telecommunications company.
This building is closer. From a distance it can be mistaken for an air traffic control tower. Nearby is the Žižkovsky train station, as I understand it, a freight train station (Nákladové nádraží Žižkov).
Libeň area.
View towards the historical center of Prague and the Main Station, from which you can go to any city in Europe, including Moscow (we came to it and left it back).
Hradcany.
Church of St. Prokop.
Frantisek Skrop Square (the composer is Czech).
Church of St. Ludmila.
National Museum.
Some kind of high-rise.
Masaryk station.
The historical center again.
Petřín Hill.
In the next episode, we’ll take a break from the city views and look at the animals: Prague has a very enchanting zoo, considered one of the best in the world. That's where we'll go.
In previous episodes.
Žižkov TV Tower is one of the recognizable symbols of Prague. Built in 1985-1992, the Žižkov TV Tower is the tallest building in the Czech Republic, with a height of 216 meters. At an altitude of 66 meters there is a restaurant, at 93 meters there is an observation deck from where an excellent panorama of Prague opens. The tower is also an active television center.
The Prague Television Tower is a member of the World Federation of High-Rise Towers and is the 25th tallest tower. For comparison, the Russian Ostankino Tower is third on this list.
Observation deck in the Prague TV tower, tickets in 2020
An entrance ticket to the observation deck of the Žižkov TV Tower costs 250 CZK for an adult (about 10 euros), 160 CZK for a child from 3 to 14 years old (6.5 EUR), 180 CZK (7 EUR) for schoolchildren and students from 14 to 26 years. A family ticket, which includes 2 adults and 3 children, costs CZK 590 (EUR 30).
At the foot of the TV tower, in the TowerParkPraha park, there is another restaurant - Miminoo, you can reserve a table by phone +420 210 320 140 . .
In addition, there is a luxurious six-star(!) hotel in the TV tower One room, which has only one number. From every point in the room, even from the bathroom, there is a stunning panoramic view of Prague below. Spending one night here costs from 575 euros, on other days the price reaches 850 euros. Despite the high price, the hotel is popular among newlyweds and couples in love. .
History of the Žižkov TV Tower
The Prague Television Tower was built in 1985-1992 according to the design of the architect Vaclav Aulicki. The architecture of the tower consists of three high concrete pillars, on which cubes-observation platforms seem to hang: in the three lower ones there is a restaurant, in the next - three observation platforms with a 360-degree view. At the last level there is relay equipment - the TV tower is operational. Opponents of the tower are dissatisfied, firstly, with its appearance, which does not suit the surrounding area at all, and secondly, with the fact that an old Jewish cemetery was partially destroyed for its construction.
The tower received its name from the Zizkov district in which it is located. It has been recognized many times as both an architectural monument, a cultural heritage and one of the main attractions of Prague, and as the ugliest building in the city, or even one of the ugliest buildings in the world, which spoils the panorama of the Czech capital with its appearance. There is still no consensus on this matter among tourists and the residents of Prague themselves - some people like the tower, but others don’t at all.
From 2000 to this day, the tower has been decorated with the sculptural composition “Babies” by the famous Polish postmodernist sculptor David Czerny (or Cerny, Czech: David Černý), who became famous for his provocative, even scandalous, but at the same time ironic works. Babies have no faces - this is how the artist expressed his protest against abortion. The babies not only decorate the tower's trunk, but also balance the structure - each of them weighs more than half a ton, and the sculptor personally chose where to place each sculpture.
The faceless babies are removed from the tower for maintenance from time to time, so sometimes they may not be found. Once they wanted to remove them completely, but the residents of Prague loved them so much, largely due to the fact that thanks to them the building, reminiscent of socialist times, turned into a modern one, that in the end they left the little ones, only by improving the fastenings.
How to get to Žižkov TV Tower in Prague
There is no metro or public transport stops directly next to the tower, so be prepared to walk a bit.
The easiest way is to take the metro on the green line to the Jiřího z Poděbrad station, from which it takes 5 minutes to walk to the Žiřího TV Tower.
You can take tram routes 11, 13 to the stop of the same name Jiřího z Poděbrad, from there it is also only a 5-minute walk.
Alternatively, you can take a taxi: either the regular services, the Uber app, which is quite common in Europe, or the Prague taxi app Modry Andel.
Video about Žižkov TV Tower in Prague
Updated 02/12/2020 Views 497 Comments 0
One of the attractions of Prague is the television tower, which I call “Tiwi Tower”, because the Czech version of the pronunciation (Žižkov something like that) has not yet caught on with me. Looking ahead, I immediately recommend this area for you to stay in case you are not delighted with the tourist center of Prague. This area is quite convenient, quiet, calm, and prices in cafes and restaurants are lower. But getting from here is not so difficult. The same place is only 10 minutes away by tram. There is also a metro in this area. Now let's return to the TV tower in Prague.
For all its strangeness, the tower is the best viewpoint of the city, from where you can view all corners of Prague with comfort and a camera. 360 degree view. Although it should be noted that the central part is quite far from here and you can recognize the main attractions only by silhouettes.
Not the most popular attraction, so there are no crowds, which is great. The observation deck is equipped with telescopes and hanging chairs in the “Men in Black” style, which, coupled with the small number of visitors, makes the observation deck a very cozy and interesting place to visit.
I traditionally came before sunset to take photos of day and night Prague at once. So there is a problem with night photos: the light from the interior illumination (blue and red) is reflected in the glass and all this is visible in the photo. Plus the glass is cloudy and dirty. But during the day it doesn't really bother me.
In the evening, the outside of the tower begins to shine “with all the colors of the rainbow” - lights like the Czech flag come on. If there are clouds in the sky, it looks like “fire”. It's like being in a science fiction movie.
At the top of the tower there is a restaurant called "Clouds" and your seat (i.e. window size) will depend on the amount of your order. The drinks (bar) have smaller windows and a worse view. A full meal will have a tall window and an excellent panoramic view. On the day I arrived (Friday) in the afternoon, there were no seats in the restaurant. They said that we had to book in advance. Please take this into account. Therefore, I limited myself to only the observation deck. But according to reviews, the restaurant is overpriced and the quality is average. So I wasn't upset.
The restaurant downstairs on the ground “Mimino” is also, according to reviews, not ice. So it’s better to come here only to the observation deck.
Žižkov TV Tower in Prague - Czech Republic flag Historical reference
The Žižkov TV Tower is considered the tallest building in Prague, in particular and in the entire Czech Republic - globally. It was designed in 1985 - it was from there that this “unprecedented” futurism of the era of socialist realism came to us, which was brought to life already in 1992. And against the backdrop of the beautiful city, this tower does not look “at all”.
In 2000, as an experiment and to “decorate” the tower, ten sculptures of crawling, faceless, black babies were placed on it. On all the main resources dedicated to Prague, you can see in the photo the tower with babies. But they are no longer in my photographs - they were removed in 2017 for reconstruction and never returned. The tower isn't one of the most amazing buildings anyway, and these babies are just like fragments of the horror game "Silent Hill", although I probably would have liked it.
By the way, the building occupies some top rating among the ugly buildings in the world, which somehow inexplicably made it a source of pride for the Czech Republic (but this is not accurate). The height is 260 meters and the tower is visible from almost all areas of Prague. There is even a joke that the best views of Prague are from the Žižkov Tower because you cannot see the Žižkov Tower from it.
