Kids in Prague

Aquapalace Praha, Pruhonice

Swimming Activities, Day Trips on 31 May 2009 by Darina

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We were absolutely thrilled to be visiting this shining new Aquapark, that is the biggest in Central Europe. You will find it on the edge of Prague in the big commercial zone of Pruhonice-Cestlice next to the D1 Brno freeway.

We went there with our boys on Monday morning right at the opening hour of 10:00 and we nearly had the place to ourselves. What luxury! The staff were very pleasant and forthcoming and gave us all the information we needed. We had been told that its a great idea to go there at this time until about 15:00. After that, the place starts filling up and changes into madness, this includes weekends. It might get better during vacation time, since many kids wont be in Prague and due to the high prices. Not everyone can afford to go there daily and for the whole day.

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There are 3 main inner parts: The Wave Palace, The Adventure Palace and The Relaxation Palace and a small outdoor area with garden beds and small pool. I cannot imagine getting a spot outside there if the Aquapark is full. The palaces are connected by artificial rivers that you can float down – there is 100 meters of fast moving current and 350 meters of slow moving current. So you can just float from one to another.

We settled in the kids area where we had a great time in a small pool with a slide inside the pool and an artificial beach area with waves that the kids loved. This whole area is nicely decorated with sea creature drawings and figures as well as a pirate ship. When the boys got blue lipped, we just jumped into the jacuzzi that was right next to the wave beach. I could just sit there forever, especially when my hubby discovered a Cocktail bar and delivered me a chilled Mochito… In general, the water in Aquapark is warm, perfect for small kids who just like to sit in the water. Compared to other pools and Aquaparks in Prague, I would say the water here is the warmest out of all of them.

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If you want a bit of peace, you can shift to the main pool area, however it’s no fun for kids. And who would pay 240 CZK for 2 hours just for swimming in an ordinary pool?
The third part is the part with toboggans and we couldn’t get Marcus (aged 2.5) out of there. There are 6 toboggan rides (the longest of those is 140 meters) and 3 slides. The slides were a bit rough, especially the landing, so i didnt allow Marcus there. For adrenalin lovers, there is the space bowl attraction - my husband refused to go. I tried it and it just took my breath away. Literally. When I was flushed down the main bowl, my heart stopped for a while and I started figuring out, how not to break my head on the edge of the small opening that leads to the pool. Guess I am getting old, since I had no problems with bungee-jumping 10 years ago and now I get swamped by some slide for kids.

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We didn’t make it to the sauna part as we had the kids with us. But if you want to relax (and hand your treasured children over to your husband) then you can try out a large variety of sauna procedures: Finnish and Roman saunas, Infrasauna, Bio sauna, Volcano, Kello sauna (loghouse) and EDR sauna (underground sauna) as well as the fitness centre.
Now back to our swimming experience. What we really appreciated were the infra red arm bracelets you get at the entrance. Anything you purchase goes on it, so there is no need to carry any cash around and you can safely store your valuables in small lockers behind the cashiers. Unfortunately they do not allow prams inside, so I had to leave it in the entrance area, looked after by the staff. That was a little complicated, because when we arrived, Nicolas (aged 1.5) was sleeping and I had to carry him all the way to the swimming area and let him sleep on the beach chair. So if you are expecting your child to fall asleep sometime during your stay, that might be a problem.

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The food is good, the restaurant is spacious and clean with cooked meals and a salad bar. The fruit salad looked a bit tired but the veggies were allright. It is a self-service restaurant with not only fried but also cooked meals suitable for children. I haven’t seen so many high-chairs in the one spot, except at IKEA, so I can say that they are ready for a bunch of children. One meal cost us 70-100 CZK. Drinks averaged 30 CZK.
After that, we had little energy left, but I still managed to storm the shops in the main hall selling swimming suits and toys. So if you forget anything you can buy swimming costumes as well as floating toys and rings for babies.
We had a great experience, the place is clean and well looked after and since our visit I’ve have little Marcus asking daily bogan? bogan? (toboggan). He just cannot forget. We believe that you also will have a great time too.

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Prices:
We went for 2 hours which is the minimum time you can purchase but it was just enough for the little ones. For every 15 min passed the 2 hours they charge 30 CZK per person. Which is good in case you decide to stay a bit longer, or if you are late you are not charged another hour extra. They have family packages, that might be advantageous. Lucky for us children shorter than 100 cm go for free so we payed for 2 adults only!

Aquapalace Pricelist Here.
Please note that weekends and public holidays are more expensive!!! aprox. 50-500 CZK more. For example, a family pass for the whole day is 2000 CZK instead of 1550 CZK

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OPEN: every day from 10.00 till 22:00

ADDRESS: Prazska Street, commercial zone: Cestlice-Pruhonice, next to KIKA furniture

DIRECTIONS: Take the D1 in the direction of Brno, and turn off at Exit No. 6, Aprox.: 20-25 min from central Prague. If going by public transport take buses No. 324, 325, 328, 363, 385 from Opatov metro station on the C line. We had no problems parking in the 4 story parking place. During evenings and weekends it might get really busy, however, there are many parking lots around since its right near the shopping area. NB: Aquapalace Praha is directly opposite the Dendrological Gardens Pruhonice.

FURTHER INFORMATION: see http://www.aquapalace.cz
We recommend that you view their website for more specific details on pricing for weekends and holidays.