Prague and Vienna in April

1. ) Yes you will be able to get around just fine. Just be sure to use the same safety precautions you would take traveling alone around Chicago.

2. ) I heard some good stuff about Miss Sophie's.
   Website: http://www.miss-sophies.com . You can also look up places using http://www.czechstay.com which usually give the hostel/hotel website so you can contact them direct and look at their reveiws on http://www.tripadvisor.com .

3. ) I would not bother with the Prague Card. Just buy the appropriete Prague Metro pass for the time you are there. Be sure to validate - as the inspectors are out in force.

4. ) Anyone can do Prague in 3-4 whole days. Vienna 2 whole days. Do not count travel days as they are partials used up for getting situated.

Pay close attention to Rick's advice for safety & money. I go to CZ every year with my Czech hubby to visit family and have seen it all.

But above all try to enjoy the differences there and have fun! Prague is a very beautiful city.

In Prague, I would recommend staying closer to the Old Town or Prague castle than the train station. Although I would not describe the area around the station as sleazy, some shady characters congregate here and there is much less of interest to a tourist.

I stayed at Pension u Medvidku, recommended in Rick's book. The price was mid-range, rather than budget, but definitely affordable. And it has a great beer hall restaurant on the first floor.

I visited both places this past Oct. I was also travelling alone (27 years old). I had no problems getting around or conversing with others and I don't speak any languages except English. I just learned a few pleasantries (thank you, hello, please, etc) and got around just fine.

I stayed in Guesthouse Lida which is not right in Prague, but is a very nice B&B. It ran about $50-$60/night. It was my splurge of the trip :) I was in Prague for 6 days with one day trip to Kutna Hora. I would say a minimum of 4 days in Prague would be ideal. Prague was the absolute highlight of my month long vacation across Europe. I bought the Prague card, I figure I broke out about even, so it's not really necessary. Just buy tickets as you go. Get a metro card and you should be good. (Just get some small bills/change to buy a ticket) The ATMs in Prague tend to spit out the highest bill possible - for example in U.S. terms it would give you one $100 bill instead of five $20 bills.

Vienna was very beautiful and I spent 3 days there. By the afternoon of the 2nd day I was bored though. It was at the tail end of my trip and I was "museum-ed" out - lol! So I basically just saw the sights. There is a fabulous Gelato place there (believe it is named in Rick's book-can't remember the name). Also visit the street market. It was very interesting to see all the different things they had for sale. I got a doner-kebab (sandwich) and a glass of wine, both were quite yummy.

Make sure to visit the Vienna Schoborn Zoo. It is great because you can get VERY close to the animals. You can even walk through a bat cave!

I stayed at Meininger Hostel in Vienna. It is a brand new facility (as of Oct 2007) and it was in a nice shopping area and very close to the metro.

Oh and on the subject of food - get a hot dog in Prague. It is very cute how they serve them. Basically they hollow out half of a baguette and put mustard, ketchup in the bread, then put the hot dog into it :) Also it's a cheap meal.