Capital : Prague

Major Airports : 40+ paved

Approx Population : 10 million +

Major Languages : Czech

Climate Guide : Temperate with colder and humid European winters and cool summers. Rain and cloud not uncommon

Areas Featured : Prague

Part of Czechoslovakia, until separation from Slovakia, the Czech Republic is a land with a rich and ancient culturural heritage. It was the birthplace of composers .......... Dvorak and of writers ............. Kafka. Her architectual treasures span the centuries with fine examples of Baroque, Art Nouveau and Cubist buildings.

Czechoslovakia came under Soviet domination after the Second World War and remained so, for over 40 years, despite Alexander Dubcek's ill-fated attempt in 1968, known as the 'Prague Spring', to introduce a more liberal style of government. It was not until 1989 when Vaclav Havel became Czechoslovakia's first post-communist president after the 'Velvet Revolution' that Czechoslovakia gained independence again. In 1993 the Czech Republic, also encompassing Bohemia and Moravia, came into being as she separated from Slovakia as a result of what became known as the 'Velvet Divorce'. In 2004 the country was accepted as a member of the EU.

The Czech Republic, an area of approximately 79,000 square kilometres to the south-east of Germany in Central Europe, is a mainly Christian country with a population of just over 10 million people. The landlocked state shares borders with Austria, Slovakia, Germany and Poland. Her currency is the koruna and she exports manufactured goods, machinery, cars and beer. Prague, on the river Vlatava, is the capital city.

Vaclav Havel was succeeded, as President, in 2003 by Vaclav Klaus, of the conservative Civic Democratic Party. Jiri Paroubek, a member of the centre-left Social-Democratic Party has been the Prime Minister since early 2005.

For tourists wanting to visit castles and chateaux then the Czech Republic must be the place to visit! It has over 2000 such monuments, with more to be found in the square mile than any other European country. Many belong to the State but some are still in private hands although a number of these are also open to the public. Many are filled with unimaginable art treasures .......... paintings, sculptures, porcelain, glass and furnishings.