Shops & Services
Shops
Shops and services are mostly open from Mon to Fri from 8 or 9 a.m. to 5 or 6 p.m., bakeries from early morning (6 a.m.).
Food store chains (Billa, Albert, Lidl, Kaufland, Penny etc.) are open every day incl. weekends from 7 or 8 a.m. to 8 or 9 p.m.
Favourite supermarkets are Globus with their own meat butchery and bakery and Lidl with their thematic weeks, e.g. Spanish, Italian, Greek or Asian week.
If you love cooking and you need fresh and affordable herbs such as cilantro, parsley, or mint, I recommend a small veggie and fruit shop near the main square Zelenina ve Stejskalce.
Slunečnice is probably the best health food store in the town. Of course, you can get better prices while shopping online. Grizly is an online shop where you can buy healthy food at a great price. You can get a good deal on nuts and seeds especially. The only issue for some could be, that the shop is not available in English language.
If you are a fan of farmer's markets, you should not miss the one in Piaristické náměstí. It takes places every Thursday and Saturday morning throughout the whole year. You can buy local farmers' products, pastries, flowers or even artisanal products and decorations (e.g. Christmas wreath). Remember to bring your own bags or a basket and enjoy. Just a friendly warning, it could happen that some of the sellers are not farmers and they just resell fruits and vegetables from another place (a supermarket). So be aware and if you have doubts, ask them.
Another quite new farmer's market is Trhy v Žižkárně. It is smaller than the one in Piaristické náměstí but it has a potential. Usually it takes place every Sunday morning. Once a month there is a Street Food Market on Friday evenings too.
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Apart for the farmer's markets you can buy farmers' products in a small store close to the square called Obchod U Dobráka or e-shop scuk. There you register and choose a group based on your address. You choose the products (from vegetables to meat, milk, eggs etc.) online from various local farmers and then you pick your goodies in a pick-up point.
Concerning food and groceries delivery, I recommend iTesco or Košík for grocery online shopping and delivery and Foodora, Wolt and Sváča z kola for food delivery from restaurants, cafés, bistros or flower shops.
Large shopping centres are open all week from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. (for a list of local shopping centres, see section Leisure).
Czechia has several national holidays; on some of them stores can be open as usual, on some holidays they must restrict the opening hours or close entirely.
If you hold an internationally recognized credit card (Visa, Mastercard), you should have no problem with using it in shops and banks. The Czech Republic in general has dense network of ATMs and most shops (even small ones), restaurants and other various services are equipped with a payment terminal.
Handy fact: You do not need to buy bottled water because the tap water in the Czech Republic is drinkable. The tap water is periodically tested for nitrates and heavy metals. Moreover, tap water of majority of the regions is suitable even for babies. Just beware of dirty plumbing mainly in very old houses which can destroy the original water quality.
ISIC Benefits
ISIC is the only globally recognized proof of student status for high schools, colleges and universities and selected one-year post-secondary fields of study. If you hold a valid ISIC card, you may use many benefits and discounts on various services (food, books, clothes, electronics, travelling, leisure time activities and events, transport and more). Visit www.isic.cz/en/ to see what can you do with your card.
Bike Shops & Repairs
For bike shops (sale and repairs) communicating in English, see our Database of English-speaking contacts. The bike shops usually offer also bike equipment and accessories.
Car Sales & Services
If you are not sure how to proceed when buying a vehicle, the car shops usually tell you what you need to do and what is ahead (what to submit, MOT test etc.). Car shops in the CR are not more crooked than in other states, however certain caution is never misplaced. When buying a used car, do a little research on the internet to find out what signs to beware of and what to check during viewing a car before purchase.
Find the most convenient car shop & service for you in our Database of English-speaking contacts.
Domestic Services
Browse through our Database of English-speaking contacts for tips on key, moving or handyman's service.
Handymen in CB typically do not speak English. We recommend you to ask Czech speaking mentor or colleague for assistance at least with phone arrangement of the repairman's visit.
Do you have any useful tip, recommendation or experience, which you'd like to share to help others? Or any comment on information on this page? Let us know.
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