Biking in Prague: How and Where to Start?
Fall is here and the cycling season may be ending, but we thought it’s never too late to learn how to start biking in Prague.
In fact the autumn offers lots of advantages for bikers: less sweating, you can warm up on your commute, soak up some sunshine and fight off winter doom and gloom. And thanks to trams, pedestrians, cobblestones and unclear bike trails, it’s also quite exciting and adventurous!
But how to start? What type of bike will suit you best? Where can you go to repair or pimp your old bike, build a new one, or try an electric bike? We tried a few options and here’s what we found:
1. REKOLA
Retro pink bike and scooter sharing for spontaneous city trips and commutes
„Unlock a bike – enjoy your ride – return anywhere you need.“ – rekola.cz
2. BAJKAZYL
Bike rental and service for beginners and connoisseurs, in a hip urban cultural setting
“I’m a passionate biker and the idea is to show people this perfect alternative form of transport. It’s fast, healthy, cheap and friendly to life in the inner city. I would like to help people think differently about biking in the city. My dream is to build a stronger community of city bike lovers, not only as advocates of alternative transport, but as advocates of daily adventure in cities. Life in the city can have too much routine — if you use a bike, you meet something new every day.” – Martin Kontra, co-owner
3. OKOLO
Affordable rental of all types of bikes in Prague’s city center
“We have the best prices and we try to give customers the best advice, either to discover Prague or the countryside. This is not just for business, but for the pleasure of making people happy.’ – Michal Hladík, co-owner
4. LEBIKES
Vintage bike artisan who will build, refurbish or service your bike with style
„I want to think of myself as an artisan. I do bikes that are beautiful and also functional by modern standards. It is ‚working fashion‘. I can remake vintage parts and make them look better than they did when they were new. No one else does that. I think I’m also the only in the Prague bike business who has a lathe. It’s better to recycle parts from many points of view: aesthetics, tradition and originality.“ – Vítek Hlousek, owner
5. FUNBIKES
Rebuilding, repairing and servicing of bikes, with a specialty for “fixies”
“People come here because they feel good here. We offer coffee or drinks [FH Prager], and we offer customization. Customers can build their bikes with us, so they know how to maintain it later.” – Honza Janda, Owner
6. EKOLO
Selling, servicing and renting of e-bikes
“If you adopt a new mindset that a bike is for transport, not just sport, an e-bike is a good solution. I personally use my e-bike to commute because it’s fast — even faster than a car. Finding parking and getting stuck in traffic drive me crazy.” – Jakub Ditrich, owner
Do you have any other recommendations? Let us know!