Traveling to Prague?

[lilchappy]

Well, I heard before I went that you have to check your bill carefully and make sure people are not trying to pull fast ones on you. So I thank everyone on the site who gave me that advice. Here are 4 scams that were tried on me...locals 0...lilchappy 4!!!

1. Cashed about 200 euro for 6000 krona at a legitimate change place at the train station. Then, went to buy food at a little stand. The total was 500 krona which is really cheap but I gave her a 2000 bill, and got 1000 back. Not sure about your math, but she must have skipped basic classes. I tried to tell her I need 500 more but she said she did not understand, and she was right. Then I said.."Poicia, Police, Polza?" Then she said...ohhh, 500 for you, sorry.

2. Went to buy a water at a little stand. I got it, took it, asked how much with my money out and he said, "185". 185 is 6 euro! You can get a steak for 6 euro in Prague. I said, no thanks buddy, then he lowered is price to about 50 krona.

3. Hostel tried to scam me but may had been a mistake. They didn't include my money I paid for my reservation on Hostelworld.com. After proving to them that they were wrong they gave me my money back that I had overpaid. THE CLOWN AND BARD! Really sketchy place

4. The worst one. I was eating with a girl from Australia. We had 4 beers, two salads, two pasta's. The bill said, 4 beers, two salads, two pastas..all correct...but also had 1 shot, one dessert cake, service charge for 3 people, 10% service for the band that was playing, 10% for the waiter, and a steak! I cleared it up besides the 10% for the band. They were pretty good.

So beware and ask for prices before you buy stuff. Vendors bargin only because they try to rip you off. Prague is so cheap anyways if you do get ripped off, you are only out about 5 euro anyways. Enjoy the travels!

cya...lilchappy
http://blogs.travelpunk.com/index.php?blogId=24

[mbo108]

Thanks for the updates, I'm going to Prague next summer and wil definitely have to remember these tips.

[omisan]

Prague is very sketchy like that. Always do your math, and when in doubt, ask for everything to be calculated on a strip of paper. Oftentimes they look legit by doing it on a calculator and showing you (sometimes they don't know the English for "six hundred fifty") but some vendors will try to get you, even then.

Even the guy at the British Airways desk at the Prague airport tried to jack me on the currency exchange rate when quoting me a price in crowns and then in pounds - I told him I'd pay in crowns.... lest I pay double!!

[SleepIsTheCousinOfDeath]

The only thing in Prague that got me and my girl was a bill issue at some sitdown restaurant. I got soup some goulash, and a beer, my girl got a beer and some chicken i think. But then they brought out some bread and a box of condiments. When the bill came we got charged some Tax shit, charged for the bread, charged for the condiments and something else. It wasn't very much all together but it was some fucking bullshit.

[bluepea]

I only made one purchase in Praque (bottle of water, cigarettes and a beer) and was too tired to try to calculate (just woke up from sleeping on a train floor - was thirsty) but I only converted 5 euro, so it couldn't have been too bad! I never got the chance to leave the train station though.

Something similar happened in Krakow though. We went and ate and the food price was really cheap. We got our bill and it seemed a little high. We just left though (we're such pacifists) and then looked over the bill and found they had charged about 3x as much for my husband's fish and I believe overcharged our drinks as well. We were stupid to just leave because that's why businesses continue to do it. Glad there are people like you who say something.

[freakypete]

A similar thing happened to us in prague. a restaurant on the other side of the river. when we ordered the waiter mumbles something to us quickly before he went off, no idea what he said. then i heard a different waiter telling the table next to us that theres a 20% service charge on top.

got the bill and just paid it (we were tired and it was the first day of our trip) but it was only afterwards that i realised that we had been well overcharged, but it was too late.

definitely check the bill before paying!