Christmas in the Czech Republic involves a combination of pagan and Christian traditions. Sometimes it is hard to distinguish between the two, but it doesn’t matter too much, for we love them all irrespectively. There used to be major celebrations of winter solstice already before the birth of Jesus Christ. Also known as midwinter, the winter solstice is the time when the days start to get longer and nights shorter. For our ancestors, this meant the warm and sunny days were approaching, when they would have plenty of food again. Of course, the ways of celebrating this event have significantly changed over time and some of the customs we perform today are just a couple of decades old. The traditions and cuisine also differ from region to region. The population of Moravia, the eastern part of the Czech Republic, is more religious than the rest of the country, which means they keep more of the Christian traditions than they do, for example, in Prague.
St. Nicholas Eve
On the 1st of December, children open a box with number 1 on a special chocolate calendar that has only 24 days – we call it the “advent calendar” and it is quite popular, sometimes even among adults. As opposed to an actual calendar, this one serves as a countdown to Christmas Eve.
However, before Christmas, there is St. Nicholas Eve, or as we would say Mikuláš. This involves a group of people dressed in the costumes of St. Nicholas and his train, who pass through houses with small children inside. Accompanied by an Angel and a Devil, St. Nicholas brings bags with treats, fruit, and other small presents for the children. To acquire the treats, the children have to do a little performance, such as sing a song, recite a poem or play some musical instrument. If they have misbehaved during the year, they get a piece of coal or potato instead. To make sure the Devil won’t put them inside his sandbag and bring them to hell, the children promise to behave better next year.
Advent and Christmas Carols
On each of the 4 Sundays preceding Christmas Eve, the so-called Advent Sundays, we light one candle placed on top of the Advent wreath. This is a special occasion when the whole family gathers around a table and sings Christmas carols in the candlelight.
From this day on, you will hear carols everywhere for the rest of the year. You might even know one of the Czech carols (or you might think it is Czech) – the one about our Good King Wenceslas. The protagonist of this song was a celebrated Czech duke, whose statue you can find in front of the National Museum in Wenceslas Square. While the lyrics were written by an Englishman in the 19th century, the melody is much older. It became popular when the daughter of our King Charles IV married into England in the 14th century and it subsequently spread through all countries of the British Commonwealth. The funny thing is that while the carol is nowadays quite famous all around the world, it is not so popular here in the Czech Republic.
Christmas Markets
The beginning of Advent is connected to the Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony in all cities, towns, and villages around the country. The tallest tree is always in the Old Town Square in Prague, among the stalls of the main Christmas Market. Apart from this one, there are a couple more markets around the city centre, which stay open until the 6th of January. The ones outside of the centre usually close down on Christmas Eve. If you would like to explore some of these markets and learn about Czech Christmas traditions firsthand, join our small-group Prague Christmas Market Tour with Czech Cookies & Traditions. If you are traveling with family or friends and want a more personal pace, choose our private Prague Christmas Markets Tour instead.
For practical market dates, locations, opening times, and tips on choosing the right square to visit, see our updated guide to Prague Christmas Markets 2026.
Czechs love to stroll around the markets and enjoy local goodies. The most popular include various kinds of sausages, roasted chestnuts, hot mead (or medovina, an alcoholic beverage made of honey, that has actually a longer-standing tradition in the country than beer), and especially mulled wine, or svařák. Many Czech families like to come to Prague for Christmas markets, so the city might get quite crowded in December. But don’t let that discourage you, there is always plenty of quiet places you can escape to.
Pro tip: you can also prepare mulled wine in the warmth of your home with our quick recipe.
Christmas Cookies
About 3-4 weeks before Christmas is the best time to start looking for a Christmas tree, packing presents, buying a mistletoe and a carp (we will get to these in a minute), and baking the traditional Christmas cookies.
People often start with the honey-bread cookies called perníčky. It is basically the same dough as gingerbread cookies, but there’s no ginger. What are the essential ingredients? Cinnamon, coriander, clove, aniseed, cardamom, pepper, and honey! Once you have carved all sorts of shapes, you put them in the oven and the Christmas season may officially begin. The smell is simply magical! Then you just have to find a cool place to store the cookies for a few weeks. In case that Christmas has almost arrived and your cookies are still too hard to eat, you can add slices of apple in the box; it makes the cookies softer.
The rest of typical Czech Christmas treats include a lot of butter, crushed walnuts, vanilla, or chocolate. Some of them look like little pieces of art. The more types of Christmas cookies a woman bakes, the better housewife she is considered – at least that’s what Czech mums teach their daughters. I promised myself to add one type each year, but I am still on 5 types which is rather average. My aunt bakes up to 13 kinds and my mother is somewhere in between the two of us. I am always very strict with my family about eating the cookies too soon, so I hide them until Christmas really starts. Sometimes it is a real challenge with all the kids begging for cookies!
Pro tip: try making our favorite vanilla crescents at home with this easy recipe.
Vánočka and Mistletoe
A day or two before Christmas we usually bake vánočka – a loaf of sweet dough with raisins and almonds inside. It is simply D E L I C I O U S. The shape resembles a newborn Jesus in a baby wrapper. It is a symbol of fertility and new life. This tradition is, in fact, a couple of centuries old. To make a proper vánočka, you first need to split the dough into nine parts, then weave three separate braids, and attach all of them together. If it is too difficult to visualize, watch this video recipe.
Hanging a mistletoe above the dining table is one of those pre-Christian traditions that survived until today. Some cultures connect mistletoe with different traditions, but most people associate it with fertility. It was used by Celtic Druids in their rituals for the same reason. So don’t forget to hang a wad of mistletoe above your table and kiss all the members of the family underneath it!
What’s up with all the fish around?
About a week or two before Christmas, you can see stalls selling live carp all around the city. They are kept in large tanks full of water. People get to choose which one they want and whether they want it dead or alive (no kidding).
If you want it the traditional way, you will get a live one and put it inside your bathtub back at home. (It is an excellent excuse for kids not to wash for a day or two and they love it.) Some people also buy a live carp and give it freedom by releasing it into the river. It is supposed to bring good luck, but the sad fact is that it is not good for the carp itself. It is usually the children who persuade their parents not to kill the fish because, after two days spent in their bathroom, they consider it another member of the family.
If you are visiting Prague during Christmas week, you may also see fried carp with potato salad on the menu in traditional Czech restaurants. For Czechs, this is usually a family meal eaten at home on Christmas Eve, but some restaurants prepare it for visitors who want to try the tradition while they are in the city. If you are planning dinner on December 24, check opening hours carefully and book ahead — many places close early or run a special holiday menu. For practical restaurant tips, see our guide to Christmas Eve dining in Prague.
Christmas Dinner
As the evening is approaching and it is time to start frying the carp. The traditional cold potato salad should already be prepared in the fridge from the night before. While eating the fish, watch out for its sharp bones, you don’t want one stuck in your throat. If it happens, eat a piece of bread to release it. This is actually a popular topic in many Czech jokes and it makes the dinner even more exciting. People also like to place a carp scale underneath their plates. It is said to bring good luck and make you rich if you carry it in your purse afterwards.
Those who are not fond of fish or gave freedom to their carp usually eat chicken or pork schnitzel. But the potato salad is beloved by all, with every single household being in possession of the best recipe ever. The one thing they all agree on is the fact that you need to prepare it in advance. The main ingredients are boiled potatoes mixed with vegetables such as carrots, celery, bell peppers, and peas. Some people also add eggs and ham. All the ingredients are covered with mayonnaise, although some families use white yoghurt instead. In addition to that, I make my own dressing with water, white wine, sunflower oil, honey, vinegar, mustard, garlic, salt, and pepper. And I’m also pretty sure this recipe is the ONE. You can try an authentic potato salad in the Libeřské lahůdky deli in the Old Town.
Christmas Eve
Christmas takes a lot of preparation. Czech people are crazy about tidying up for this occasion. Christmas cleaning is actually a special term in our language. It involves cleaning everything you come across at your place, including windows, no matter the weather. Even if it is freezing outside, this just needs to get done. Your mother-in-law is going to visit and she WILL notice!
Christmas Eve is the most important day of the whole season for us. We start with breakfast, although some people choose to skip it, for the saying goes that if you fast until dinner, you will get to see the golden pig – a symbol of future wealth and prosperity. (Or you might also see it in the forest while stealing a Christmas tree, as the famous Czech commercial has it.) Either way, it is quite a challenge with all the goodies around. For those who are weak like me, there is a delicious breakfast in the form of homemade vánočka. Then we need to hurry up, bring the Christmas tree into the living room, take out all the decorations, and hang them on the tree. This is actually one of the traditions that don’t go that far back. The first Christmas tree in Prague was decorated in 1812 but it took a couple more years for this habit to spread around. And yes, there are still people who decorate the tree on Christmas Eve and not in early December.
Fairy Tales
Czechs love watching fairy tales or comedy films on TV and that is precisely what we do most of the time over the Christmas break. The most popular fairy tale for this season is definitely Tři oříšky pro Popelku, the Czech version of Cinderella. It was made in co-production with East Germany in 1973 and you can watch it on Christmas Eve each year. Apart from that, there is also always one brand new fairy tale on the Czech Television channel. In 2017, it was Anděl Páně 2 (The Angel of the Lord 2, check out the trailer here). The movie had actually been released the preceding year and in just one month it had become the most frequently visited movie in Czech cinemas for the last couple of years. This is how much we love fairy tales! There are always the most popular actors in our fairy tales and this was no exception.
Christmas lunch
The lunch menu differs from region to region. One possibility is the spiral-shaped vinná klobása (wine sausage) on a skewer. You can bread and deep-fry it, or dust with flour and fry in a pan. The healthiest version would be to roast in the oven. Whichever method you choose, wine sausages are super yummy, especially with boiled potatoes and mustard. Kuba would be another option for a Christmas lunch. It is a very simple meal of boiled and peeled barley, carrots, dark mushrooms, fried onions, marjoram, and garlic. We mix everything together and put it in the oven for about 40 minutes.
Afternoon activities to kill time
The afternoon is often dedicated to various kinds of traditions. My family’s favorite is making boats out of walnut shells. Each family member puts a candle inside the shell and places the boat into a water basin. Light the candles, switch off the lights, and see what happens. If the boats stick together, it means there are strong ties within your family circle. If your boat is going straight ahead to the other side, you know what you want in your life. In fact, this activity is open to various interpretations, but the worst thing that can happen is when the boat sinks… oh-oh!
We also cut an apple in half and see if there is a star. If so, good health is in store for us. A worm foretells complications, and guess what a cross means! Well, you should know that Czech traditions can be quite cruel in their forecastings…
Pouring of lead is another activity that requires some imagination. You will need a stove or a candle, a little pan (which you will NOT use for anything else ever again), and some lead. In order to melt it, you have to heat it to 327 °C (621° F). Once it melts, pour it into a bowl of cold water. Take it out and turn your imagination on full speed. Every shape has some kind of meaning. My daughter saw a bush in her lead, which implies a lot of money for the next year. Check out this short video clip from a popular Czech movie to get a better idea of what’s up with the lead. Just don’t forget to give your hands a good wash afterwards – lead is toxic!
If you are still single, you might be curious whether there is any marriage for you next year. Throw a shoe over your shoulder towards the main door and if the tip of the shoe is pointing towards the door, it means you will get married!
Who brings the Christmas presents?
Santa is a bit lazy to come all the way here, so we have Ježíšek (Baby Jesus) instead. In the 1950s, the Czechoslovak communist leaders were unsuccessfully trying to convince people that Baby Jesus had grown up and turned into Grandpa Frost (the Russian Santa Claus). They wanted to get rid of all Christmas traditions with religious bases and replace them with something more eastern. Stalin, their living icon, had his birthday on the 21st of December, so why not go in this direction. In 1949, Stalin’s face was staring at people from the front page of all magazines. There was even a birthday-gift collection for him in many factories. The communists were striving for a pro-eastern revolution of Christmas for years, but eventually, they had to give up. That’s how we kept our Ježíšek.
And what does this Ježíšek look like? Well, that depends. If you ask 10 children this same question, you will get 10 different answers. Everybody has their own Ježíšek in mind, for no one has ever seen him in person. What a sneaky gift messenger that is!
The critical part of the day comes right after dinner. While one parent takes the children into their room to wait for Ježíšek, the other needs to arrange all the presents under the Christmas tree. Top-level coordination is required for this mission! Once the jingle bell announces Ježíšek’s arrival, the children rush out to catch him in the act of bringing presents. But Ježíšek is already gone and what remains is to discover all the new toys and play with them alongside the fairy tales on TV. A lot of Czechs finish the day with Midnight Mass. For most of them, Christmas is the only time of the year they go to church.
Activities for the rest of the season
The 25 and 26 December are usually spent visiting other family members, going for walks, or exploring the Christmas markets. Most people take a vacation until 2 January, so that they can enjoy some winter sports as well. The highest mountain in the Czech Republic is in the north, about 2 hours from Prague. You can rent skis, snowboards, or cross-country skis in all local resorts for very reasonable prices. An alternative for those who stay in the city is ice skating. This sport is quite popular here and you will find opportunities to try it all over the city, even in the very city centre. One of these is traditionally in Ovocný Trh, next to the Estates Theatre. If the weather allows, you can enjoy ice skating all the way until February.
Christmas is also the time when beautiful nativity scenes take over the city, not only in churches. There is a couple of exhibitions dedicated to these in Prague, for example in the Charles Bridge Museum. You can find nativity scenes of all ages and materials. The most beautiful one in Prague is located in the Church of Our Lady of the Angels, a part of the Capuchin Monastery just a few minutes from the Prague Castle. The life-sized figures were made by one of the Capuchin brothers in the 18th century. The monastery itself was exposed to serious danger many times throughout its history, so it is a real miracle it survived all those different wars and alternating regimes.
New Year’s Eve
There is not much difference between New Year’s Eve here and anywhere else – lots of parties with good food, alcohol, and fireworks all around. And a great hangover for the next day, of course! What we usually prepare for parties throughout the year are open-faced sandwiches. You can try these in many of Prague’s bakeries and cafés, such as Sisters, Ovocný Světozor, or Špejle.
For lunch, people often eat green lentils. They look like tiny coins and thus form another Czech tradition for hoarding money. Don’t forget to hide one dried lentil inside your purse to secure great wealth for the next year!
For more tips on what to do for New Year’s Eve in Prague, check out our dedicated article with local tips.
The Three Wise Men
The 2nd of January is the day when everybody needs to go back to school or work. But the Christmas season is not over until the Three Wise Men Day on the 6th of January. Children from the neighborhood dress up as the biblical Magi and sing Christmas carols house to house. They finish the performance by wishing good luck and long life, for which they are rewarded with treats. As a sign of appreciation, they write “K + M + B 2024” (the initial letters of the wise men’s names) with chalk above the door. If nothing else, it gives everyone a good excuse not to wash the door for some time, until the inscription is washed off by the rain.
The 6th of January is also the day to remove all Christmas decorations and the Christmas tree. For the next few days, you will come across spruces lying next to garbage cans all over the city. This is the last Christmas thrill and from then on, you might start looking forward to the next year’s season.
