Prague Castle: the cathedral and the Golden Lane
St Vitus, the Old Royal Palace, the tiny houses of the Golden Lane, and the long view down. This is a Claude-drafted route awaiting the editor's walk.

1. First Courtyard & the gate
Come in past the wrestling-giant statues on the gate and the guards beneath them. The changing of the guard is on the hour; the full ceremony with the band is at noon. Go early if you want the courtyards before the crowd; the queue for security is real by mid-morning.

2. Katedrála sv. Víta (St Vitus Cathedral)
You round a corner and the whole west front is suddenly on top of you — there's no room to step back, which is the drama. Inside, find the Mucha window in the north aisle and the St Wenceslas chapel, walled in semi-precious stone. The nave is free; the far end and the crypt need the ticket.

3. Starý královský palác (Old Royal Palace)
The Vladislav Hall is the great surprise — a late-Gothic vault so wide they once held jousting tournaments indoors, riders coming up the Rider's Staircase. Out the far door is the window the 1618 defenestration was thrown from. History, and a balcony view.

4. Bazilika sv. Jiří (St George's Basilica)
The red baroque front hides the oldest thing on the hill — a Romanesque church from the 900s, all bare stone and round arches once you're inside. After the cathedral's height it feels like stepping back six hundred years, which it is.

5. Zlatá ulička (the Golden Lane)
A row of toy-sized cottages built into the castle wall, once home to guards and goldsmiths. Kafka wrote in number 22 for a winter. It's ticketed by day and free in the evening once the houses shut — quieter then, if you don't mind looking and not entering.

6. Old Castle Steps (Staré zámecké schody)
Leave by the eastern gate and take the old stairs down — the city opens out in front of you the whole way, red roofs and spires stacked to the river. The steps land you at *Malostranská* metro. Knees permitting, this is the only way to go down.

Prague Castle: the cathedral and the Golden Lane