Prague Bridges

Table of Contents

• Prague's 18 Bridges — A City Shaped by the Vltava
• Railway Bridge / Vyšehradský železniční most
• Palacký Bridge / Palackého most
• Jirásek Bridge / Jiráskův most
• Legion Bridge / Most Legií
• Charles Bridge / Karlův most
• Mánes Bridge / Mánesův most
• Čech Bridge / Čechův most
• Štefánik Bridge / Štefánikův most
• Hlávka Bridge / Hlávkův most
• Troja Bridge / Trojský most
• Libeň Bridge / Libeňský most
• Barikádníků Bridge / most Barikádníků
• Císařský Bridge / Císařský most
• Braník Bridge / Branický most
• Braník Railway Bridge / Branický železniční most
• Barrandov Bridge / Barrandovský most
• Most Závodu míru / Zbraslav Bridge

Eighteen bridges cross the main channel of the Vltava within Prague's city limits — but that number tells only part of the story. Count in the footbridges, valley viaducts and smaller stream crossings scattered across the city's 22 districts, and the total climbs above 300. Of the 18 Vltava crossings, fourteen carry road and tram traffic; the remaining four are reserved for pedestrians. Together they span eight centuries of architecture and politics — built by kings, renamed by occupiers, and in several cases demolished and rebuilt from scratch. No two look alike, and the easiest way to see them all in sequence is from the river itself.

Prague's Bridges — A City Shaped by the Vltava

For almost five centuries, Charles Bridge was the only way to cross the Vltava in Prague. That changed in 1841, and the seventeen bridges added since then have turned the riverfront into an open-air survey of European architectural history — Gothic stone, Art Nouveau ironwork, Historicist masonry, Functionalist concrete, communist-era Brutalism and 21st-century cable-stays, all within a few kilometres of each other. Čech Bridge stands out as the only large Art Nouveau bridge in the entire country; Barrandov Bridge, at the other end of the aesthetic spectrum, is the busiest road in the Czech Republic.

The guide below covers all 18 bridges over the main Vltava channel, each with its Czech and English name, historical and alternative names, year of construction, dimensions, architectural character and address — and a note on what each one looks like from the water, where the full sequence can be taken in on a single cruise.

You can browse Alle Travel's full catalogue of Prague river cruises to find tours that pass beneath the bridges covered in this guide.

Railway Bridge / Vyšehradský železniční most

Czech name: Vyšehradský železniční most | Alternative names: Vyšehrad Railway Bridge, South Railway Bridge

Named after the Vyšehrad rock — the ancient fortress rising on the promontory directly above the bridge on the right bank. Vyšehrad (from Czech: Vyšší Hrad, Upper Castle) is one of the oldest settled sites in Bohemia, a royal seat that predates Prague Castle as the centre of Přemyslid power. The bridge carries no independent name beyond its connection to the landmark above it.

The original structure at this location dates to 1901, making it the 4th oldest bridge in Prague by original construction date. The current bridge was completely reconstructed in 1960 to handle increased rail traffic on the Prague–Smíchov line. It is the 14th bridge from the north — the southernmost of Prague's central crossing points regularly visible on Vltava boat tours.

• Year of construction: 1901 (original); reconstructed 1960
• Order by age: 4th oldest by original construction date
• Order by position: 14th from the north (southernmost in central zone)
• Length: ~360 m
• Type: Railway bridge (freight and passenger rail)
• Architectural style: Functional steel — welded steel box girders, mid-20th-century infrastructure engineering
• Address: Vyšehradský železniční most, Praha 2 / Praha 5
• Nearest metro: Vyšehrad (line C)

Architecture & style: Functional steel railway construction typical of mid-20th-century Czech infrastructure engineering. The 1960 reconstruction used welded steel box girders — efficient and unadorned, with none of the decorative ambition of the 19th-century bridges. Its visual interest comes entirely from its dramatic natural setting rather than from the structure itself.

Particulars: From the water, the Railway Bridge creates one of the most dramatic panoramas on the entire river: the sheer Vyšehrad cliff rises above the bridge's arches, and the twin neo-Gothic spires of the Basilica of St. Peter and St. Paul are visible above the fortress wall. It is the most striking junction of railway infrastructure and medieval landscape anywhere on the Vltava.

Palacký Bridge / Palackého most

Czech name: Palackého most | Alternative names: Palacky Bridge

Named after František Palacký (1798–1876), Czech historian, politician and central figure of the Czech National Revival — referred to as the Otec národa, Father of the Nation. Palacký died in 1876, the year construction began; the bridge was named in his immediate memory and has carried this name since its inauguration, with no recorded renaming under Habsburg or Nazi administration.

Built between 1876 and 1878, Palacký Bridge is the 2nd oldest bridge in Prague in its original form. The bridge was originally decorated with four monumental sculptural groups by Josef Václav Myslbek — the same sculptor who created the St. Wenceslas monument on Václavské náměstí — depicting legendary Czech figures: Libuše and Přemysl, Lumír and Píseň, Záboj and Slavoj, and Ctirad and Šárka. All four groups were damaged during Allied bombing in February 1945 and subsequently relocated to Vyšehrad park, where they can be seen today.

• Year of construction: 1876–1878
• Order by age: 2nd oldest bridge in Prague (current structure)
• Order by position: 11th from the north
• Length: 251 m
• Width: 16 m
• Architectural style: Neo-Gothic / Historicist
• Address: Palackého most, Praha 2 / Praha 5
• Nearest metro: Palackého náměstí (line B)

Architecture & style: Neo-Gothic / Historicist. Stone-faced piers with pointed cutwaters, cast-iron railings with Gothic tracery motifs, and decorative lamp posts consistent with the civic architecture of the late Habsburg era. The bridge belongs to the same stylistic current as the National Theatre and the National Museum — a deliberate assertion of Czech cultural identity through monumental stone construction.

Particulars: Palacký Bridge connects Palackého náměstí in Nové Město (right bank) to Smíchov (left bank). From the river, it marks the transition between central Prague and the quieter residential south. Looking north, the full sequence of central bridges unfolds ahead; looking south, the Vyšehrad rock closes the panorama — a view that few visitors experience from land.

Jirásek Bridge / Jiráskův most

Czech name: Jiráskův most | Alternative names: Jirasek Bridge

Named after Alois Jirásek (1851–1930), Czech novelist and playwright and the most widely read author of Czech historical fiction. His novels depicting the Hussite period, the era of Habsburg oppression and Czech national legends were formative texts during the First Republic. The bridge was named shortly after his death in 1930.

Built between 1929 and 1933. Jirásek Bridge was the first bridge in Prague built entirely in reinforced concrete, without decorative stone facing — a deliberately Functionalist design that was architecturally progressive for its time. It is the 7th oldest bridge by current structure and the 12th from the north.

• Year of construction: 1929–1933
• Order by age: 7th oldest bridge (current structure)
• Order by position: 12th from the north
• Length: 310 m
• Width: 16 m
• Architectural style: Functionalist / Constructivist
• Address: Jiráskův most, Praha 2 / Praha 5
• Nearest metro: Karlovo náměstí (line B)

Architecture & style: Functionalist / Constructivist. Jirásek Bridge was the first bridge in Prague built entirely in exposed reinforced concrete, with no decorative stone facing, ornamental railings or figural sculpture. Its horizontal lines, flat parapet and absence of ornament were a deliberate architectural statement — a clean break from the historicist and Art Nouveau bridges that came before it. The structural logic is fully visible in the finished form.

Particulars: Jirásek Bridge connects Rašínovo nábřeží and Jiráskovo náměstí in Nové Město (right bank) to Smíchov (left bank). It sits directly beside the Dancing House (Tančící dům / Fred & Ginger), the deconstructivist building by Frank Gehry and Vlado Milunić completed in 1996. From the river, the spare concrete geometry of the bridge and the organic curves of the Dancing House appear side by side in a single frame — one of the most photographed architectural contrasts in Prague.

Legion Bridge / Most Legií

Czech name: Most Legií | Alternative names: Emperor Franz Joseph I Bridge (Císařský most Františka Josefa I.) — official name until 1918

Named after the Czechoslovak Legions (Československé legie) — the military formations that fought on the Eastern, Western and Italian fronts during World War I in order to secure Allied recognition of an independent Czechoslovak state. The bridge's original name honoured Emperor Franz Joseph I; it was renamed Most Legií at the founding of Czechoslovakia in 1918. During the Nazi occupation (1940–1945), the German administration reverted to an imperial-era designation in official documents, while Czechs continued using the established name in everyday speech.

Built between 1898 and 1901, making it the 3rd oldest bridge in Prague by current structure. Uniquely among central Prague bridges, it spans the Vltava in two sections, passing through Střelecký ostrov (Shooters' Island), which divides the river at this point. It is the 10th bridge from the north.

• Year of construction: 1898–1901
• Order by age: 3rd oldest bridge (current structure)
• Order by position: 10th from the north
• Length: 343 m
• Width: 16 m
• Architectural style: Late Historicist / Neo-Renaissance
• Address: Most Legií, Praha 1
• Nearest metro: Národní třída (line B)

Architecture & style: Late Historicist / Neo-Renaissance. Steel arch spans are combined with stone-clad pylons and decorative wrought-iron railings — typical of the grand civic engineering of the late Habsburg period. The stone detailing on the pylons carries Renaissance-inspired relief panels and lamp brackets — more restrained than Čech Bridge but in the same tradition of bridges conceived as urban monuments rather than purely functional crossings.

Particulars: Legion Bridge connects Smetanovo nábřeží (right bank, directly in front of the National Theatre) to Újezd in Malá Strana (left bank). It provides the closest river-level view of the National Theatre's iconic gilded roof. Střelecký ostrov — the island accessible from the bridge midpoint — hosts a popular seasonal beer garden in summer.

Charles Bridge / Karlův most

Czech name: Karlův most | Alternative names: Stone Bridge (Kamenný most), Prague Bridge (Pražský most) — both official names used before 1870

Named after Charles IV (Karel IV.), King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor, who commissioned the bridge in 1357. For over five centuries it was known simply as the Stone Bridge or the Prague Bridge — the name Karlův most became official only in 1870. The foundation stone was laid on 9 July 1357 at 5:31 AM, a date and time chosen by the king's court — the digits forming the palindrome 1-3-5-7-9-7-5-3-1, widely interpreted as an act of astrological symbolism.

Built between 1357 and 1402 under the direction of architect Petr Parléř, replacing the earlier Judith Bridge (Juditin most) destroyed by floods in 1342. Charles Bridge is the oldest surviving bridge in Prague — 1st by age — and the oldest stone bridge in Bohemia. It is lined with 30 Baroque statues and sculptural groups added between 1683 and 1714. The National Heritage Institute lists the bridge as a National Cultural Monument. The originals of most statues are held at the Lapidarium of the Museum of the City of Prague. It is the 9th bridge from the north.

• Year of construction: 1357–1402
• Order by age: 1st — oldest surviving bridge in Prague
• Order by position: 9th from the north
• Length: 515.8 m
• Width: 9.5 m
• Number of arches: 16
• Material: Sandstone
• Architect: Petr Parléř
• Architectural style: Gothic (structure and towers) + Baroque (statuary)
• Address: Karlův most, 110 00 Praha 1 — Staré Město (right bank) / Malá Strana (left bank)
• Nearest metro: Staroměstská (line A)

Architecture & style: Gothic (structure and towers) layered with Baroque (statuary). The bridge itself is pure High Gothic — the proportions, pointed cutwaters and sandstone construction all belong to Parléř's workshop, the same atelier responsible for St. Vitus Cathedral. The 30 Baroque statues added over the following century create an architectural palimpsest: two distinct periods occupying the same structure. The Gothic towers at both ends — the Old Town Bridge Tower and the twin Malá Strana towers — are among the finest examples of Gothic civic architecture in Central Europe.

Particulars: Charles Bridge is the only bridge in Prague reserved exclusively for pedestrians. The statue of St. John of Nepomuk (Jan Nepomucký), installed in 1683, carries a bronze relief rubbed smooth by millions of hands — local tradition holds that touching it guarantees a return to Prague.

See Charles Bridge from the water — popular boat tours on Alle Travel

Every Prague river cruise passes directly beneath the 16 medieval sandstone arches of Charles Bridge — one of the defining moments of any Vltava journey. Cruises where you will see Charles Bridge up close:

• 1-Hour Cruise on the Devil's Channel
• 2-Hour Lunch Cruise on the Vltava River
• 3-Hour Evening Dinner Cruise

For the full selection of cruises and operators passing Charles Bridge, see the Charles Bridge boat tours overview on Alle Travel.

Mánes Bridge / Mánesův most

Czech name: Mánesův most | Alternative names: Manes Bridge (English spelling variant)

Named after Josef Mánes (1820–1871), one of the most celebrated Czech painters of the National Revival period, best known for his depictions of Czech folk life and for the hand-painted calendar ring on Prague's Astronomical Clock — one of the most reproduced works of Czech visual art. The bridge was named in his honour at its inauguration.

Built between 1911 and 1916 to a design by architect Antonín Balšánek. It is the 6th oldest bridge by current structure and the 8th from the north in the central sequence.

• Year of construction: 1911–1916
• Order by age: 6th oldest bridge (current structure)
• Order by position: 8th from the north
• Length: 186 m
• Width: 16 m
• Number of arches: 3
• Architectural style: Art Nouveau / Late Historicist
• Address: Mánesův most, Praha 1
• Nearest metro: Staroměstská (line A)

Architecture & style: Art Nouveau / Late Historicist. Stone-faced piers with Art Nouveau lamp posts and restrained decorative ironwork — more sober than Čech Bridge but belonging to the same broadly ornamental tradition. The overall composition is horizontal and elegant, designed to complement the Rudolfinum's Neo-Renaissance façade visible from the right bank approach.

Particulars: Mánes Bridge connects Malostranské nábřeží (Malá Strana, left bank) to nábřeží Jana Palacha in Staré Město (right bank), directly opposite the Rudolfinum concert hall — home of the Czech Philharmonic Orchestra. Looking south from the bridge centre, Charles Bridge and Prague Castle align on a single axis, creating one of the most photographed compositions in the city.

Čech Bridge / Čechův most

Czech name: Čechův most | Alternative names: Franz-Joseph Bridge (Františko-josefský most) — pre-1918 name; Mendelův most — under Nazi occupation, 1940–1945

Named after the Czech writer, journalist and poet Svatopluk Čech (1846–1908), a leading figure of Czech national literature. During the Nazi occupation (1940–1945), the bridge was renamed Mendelův most — after Gregor Mendel (1822–1884), the Moravian-born scientist of German descent and founder of modern genetics.

Built between 1905 and 1908 as part of the inner ring road expansion, carried out simultaneously with the large-scale demolition of a section of the former Jewish ghetto, now the Josefov district. It is the only bridge in Prague built in the Art Nouveau style. Its sides carry female figures holding torches; at both ends, four pillars are crowned with figures of genii (benevolent spirits) alongside six-headed hydra sculptures guarding the Prague coat of arms. It is the 5th oldest by current structure and the 7th from the north.

• Year of construction: 1905–1908
• Order by age: 5th oldest bridge (current structure)
• Order by position: 7th from the north
• Length: 169 m
• Width: 16 m
• Number of arches: 3
• Architect: Jan Koula, Jiří Soukup
• Architectural style: Art Nouveau — the only fully Art Nouveau bridge in Prague
• Address: Čechův most, Praha 1 / Praha 7
• Nearest metro: Staroměstská (line A)

Architecture & style: Art Nouveau — the only fully Art Nouveau bridge in Prague and one of the most ornate in Central Europe. Designed by Jan Koula and Jiří Soukup, the bridge uses cast-iron construction throughout, with organic ornamental motifs on every surface: curved lamp posts, figural sculpture in the round, relief panels and decorative pylons at both ends topped with allegorical groups. The visual programme references both the natural world (water, torchlight, mythical creatures) and civic pride (the Prague coat of arms), making the bridge a piece of public sculpture as much as infrastructure.

Particulars: Čech Bridge connects Nábřeží Edvarda Beneše on the Letná embankment (left bank) to Pařížská Street — Prague's premier luxury shopping boulevard — on the right bank. Its detailed ironwork, decorative lamp posts and figural sculptures make it a landmark in its own right, not merely a crossing point.

See Čech Bridge from the water — boat tours on Alle Travel

• 2-Hour Daytime Sightseeing Cruise
• 1 or 2-Hour Sightseeing Cruise – Day or Evening
• 1-Hour Cruise on the Devil's Channel

Štefánik Bridge / Štefánikův most

Czech name: Štefánikův most | Alternative names: Stefanik Bridge (without diacritics); original 1868 structure known as Franz-Joseph Bridge

Named after Milan Rastislav Štefánik (1880–1919), Slovak astronomer, aviator, diplomat and general — one of the three founding fathers of Czechoslovakia, alongside Tomáš Masaryk and Edvard Beneš. Štefánik died in a plane crash near Bratislava on 4 May 1919, just months after the founding of the new republic. The bridge was named as a memorial tribute to one of the country's most prominent national heroes.

The original bridge at this location was completed in 1868 — Prague's first permanent iron bridge, built during the reign of Emperor Franz Joseph I. The current structure was completely rebuilt between 1949 and 1951 following wartime damage. By original site date (1868), it is technically the oldest bridge location in Prague after Charles Bridge, though the current structure dates only to 1951. It is the 6th from the north.

• Year of construction: 1868 (original); rebuilt 1949–1951 (current structure)
• Order by age: Oldest site after Charles Bridge (1868); current structure 8th (1951)
• Order by position: 6th from the north
• Length: 257.6 m
• Width: 18 m (widest central bridge)
• Architectural style: Functionalist (current 1951 structure)
• Address: Štefánikův most, Praha 1 / Praha 7
• Nearest metro: Staroměstská (line A)

Architecture & style: Functionalist (current 1951 structure). The post-war reconstruction made no concession to ornament — wide carriageway, plain concrete parapets, utilitarian lamp standards. The bridge's main architectural interest is its scale: at 18 metres wide, it functions more as a linear urban plaza than a conventional bridge crossing, with generous pedestrian pavements on both sides of road and tram lanes.

Particulars: Štefánik Bridge carries both road traffic and one of Prague's busiest tram corridors. It connects the Old Town embankment toward nám. Jana Palacha (right bank) to the Letná embankment (left bank). The sightline south from the bridge centre takes in the Rudolfinum, the Old Town roofline and an unobstructed view toward Charles Bridge — a popular early-morning photography position before the embankment fills with foot traffic.

See Štefánik Bridge from the water — boat tours on Alle Travel

• 1 or 2-Hour Sightseeing Cruise – Day or Evening
• Tiki Boat – The Floating Bar

Hlávka Bridge / Hlávkův most

Czech name: Hlávkův most | Alternative names: Hlavka Bridge (without diacritics)

Named after Josef Hlávka (1831–1908), Czech architect, builder and philanthropist — the founder and first president of the Czech Academy of Sciences and Arts (Česká akademie věd a umění). Hlávka devoted much of his considerable fortune to funding Czech cultural, scientific and social institutions at a time when Czech public life was constrained under Habsburg rule. The bridge was named in his honour shortly after his death.

Built between 1909 and 1912. The bridge spans the main Vltava channel and a side arm across three sections, with two lateral pedestrian walkways featuring decorative ironwork lamp posts. It is the 6th oldest by current structure and the 6th bridge from the north.

• Year of construction: 1909–1912
• Order by age: 6th oldest bridge (current structure, shared with Mánesův most)
• Order by position: 6th from the north
• Length: 335 m
• Width: 16 m
• Architectural style: Late Historicist, transitional toward Art Nouveau
• Address: Hlávkův most, Praha 1 / Praha 7
• Nearest metro: Florenc (lines B and C)

Architecture & style: Late Historicist, transitional toward Art Nouveau. Stone-faced piers carry two separate lateral pedestrian walkways with decorative ironwork lamp posts — a detail that gives the bridge a more refined street character than its Functionalist successors. The overall composition sits midway between the full ornamental richness of Čech Bridge and the plain utility of the post-war structures: restrained but not indifferent to appearance.

Particulars: Hlávka Bridge connects Nábřeží Ludvíka Svobody in Nové Město (right bank, near Florenc) to Nábřeží kapitána Jaroše in Holešovice (left bank). From the river, it offers the last clear sightline back toward the Old Town skyline before the panorama shifts northward toward the industrial and residential districts of Holešovice.

Troja Bridge / Trojský most

Czech name: Trojský most | Alternative names: Troja Footbridge; predecessor: Troja Iron Bridge (1928, demolished)

Named after the Troja district on the right bank — a residential and historic neighbourhood on the northern edge of the city, best known for Troja Palace (Trojský zámek), a Baroque summer residence built for the Sternberg family in the 1680s, and for Prague Zoo (Zoologická zahrada Praha), one of the most visited attractions in the Czech Republic.

The current Trojský most is a modern cable-stayed pedestrian and cycling bridge completed in 2014, designed by structural engineer Jiří Straský. It replaced an earlier iron bridge dating from 1928. It is the 2nd bridge from the north in Prague's central bridge sequence.

• Year of construction: 2014 (current structure); predecessor 1928
• Order by age: Newest bridge in Prague's central zone
• Order by position: 2nd from the north
• Length: ~200 m
• Type: Pedestrian and cycling bridge
• Architectural style: Contemporary cable-stayed / post-tensioned concrete
• Architect / Engineer: Jiří Straský
• Address: Trojský most, Praha 7 / Praha 8 (Troja)
• Nearest transport: Tram stop Trojský most; bus to Prague Zoo

Architecture & style: Contemporary cable-stayed / post-tensioned design. The bridge is built in high-strength concrete with slender cable stays fanning from a single asymmetric pylon — a structural form that achieves visual lightness with minimal material. Its engineering logic is fully expressed in the finished form, making it one of the most architecturally coherent modern bridges in the city. The contrast with the masonry and ironwork of the central historic bridges is stark and deliberate.

Particulars: Troja Bridge marks the northern limit of the standard Vltava cruise zone. It connects Stromovka park (left bank) to the Troja embankment (right bank). From the water below, the bridge's cable stays form a geometric frame above the river, with Troja Palace visible on the tree-covered hillside behind. Longer boat tour routes pass beneath the bridge before turning south back toward the city centre.

Libeň Bridge / Libeňský most

Czech name: Libeňský most | Alternative names: Liben Bridge (without diacritics)

Named after the Libeň district on the right bank — historically an independent town incorporated into Prague in 1901, with a strong working-class and industrial identity. Built between 1924 and 1928, designed by architects František Mencl and Pavel Janák.

• Year of construction: 1924–1928
• Order by position: 4th from the north
• Length: ~384 m
• Width: 26 m
• Architectural style: Rondocubist / Art Deco
• Address: Libeňský most, Praha 7 / Praha 8 (Libeň)

Architecture & style: Rondocubist / Art Deco — distinctive stone pylons with geometric relief decoration, an approach associated with the Czech national style of the early First Republic period. One of the wider bridges in Prague, giving it an unusually broad, plaza-like presence above the river.

Barikádníků Bridge / most Barikádníků

Czech name: most Barikádníků | Alternative names: Bridge of the Barricade Fighters

Named to commemorate the participants in the Prague Uprising of 5–8 May 1945, when Prague citizens built street barricades in the final days of the Nazi occupation — at a cost of several thousand lives. The name was adopted by the post-war Czechoslovak government as a permanent memorial to the uprising.

• Year of construction: Early 1950s
• Order by position: 5th from the north
• Architectural style: Socialist Functionalism — sober and utilitarian
• Address: most Barikádníků, Praha 7 / Praha 8

Architecture & style: Socialist Functionalism — sober and utilitarian, with no decorative ambition, consistent with the infrastructure priorities of the early communist era. Carries both road and tram traffic between Holešovice (left bank) and Libeň (right bank).

Císařský Bridge / Císařský most

Czech name: Císařský most | Alternative names: Imperial Bridge, Cisarsky Bridge (without diacritics)

Císařský translates as Imperial — the name connects the bridge to Císařský ostrov (Imperial Island), the large natural island in the northern Vltava around which the river splits into two channels. The island is today a protected nature reserve.

• Year of construction: 19th century (various structures); modernised 20th century
• Order by position: 1st from the north (northernmost crossing in Prague's central area)
• Architectural style: Mixed — older masonry elements with 20th-century concrete repairs
• Address: Císařský most, Praha 8 / Praha 7 (near Troja and Císařský ostrov)

Particulars: The northernmost crossing point in Prague's central area, visible on the longest northbound Vltava cruises heading toward Prague Zoo and Troja Palace.

Braník Bridge / Branický most

Czech name: Branický most | Alternative names: Branik Bridge (without diacritics)

Named after the Braník district in southern Prague — known historically for its stone quarries and for the Braník Brewery (Pivovar Braník), whose riverside buildings are visible from the water.

• Year of construction: 1926–1928
• Order by position: 15th from the north
• Length: ~185 m
• Architectural style: Constructivist reinforced concrete arch
• Address: Branický most, Praha 4 (Braník) / Praha 5 (Hodkovičky)

Architecture & style: Constructivist reinforced concrete arch — clean structural form with minimal ornament, part of the same broad rationalist movement as Jirásek Bridge. Connects Braník (right bank) to Hodkovičky and Hlubočepy (left bank). Visible on longer southbound Vltava cruises heading toward Vyšehrad and beyond.

Braník Railway Bridge / Branický železniční most

Czech name: Branický železniční most | Alternative names: Branik Railway Bridge

Named after the Braník district, in the same way as the adjacent road bridge. Carries freight and passenger rail lines in the southern zone of Prague.

• Order by position: 16th from the north
• Architectural style: Functional steel industrial construction — riveted steel truss
• Address: Branický železniční most, Praha 4 / Praha 5

Architecture & style: Riveted steel truss — a form common to railway bridges of the early 20th century across Central Europe. Functional infrastructure visible on extended southbound cruise routes.

Barrandov Bridge / Barrandovský most

Czech name: Barrandovský most | Alternative names: Most Antonína Zápotockého — official name 1981–1990; Bridge of the Intelligentsia (Most inteligence) — informal historical nickname

Named after the Barrandov district and the adjacent Barrandov rock (Barrandovská skála) on the left bank. The district itself takes its name from Joachim Barrande (1799–1883), a French geologist who spent much of his career in Bohemia studying Silurian fossils in the cliffs along this section of the Vltava. The bridge was built under the name Most Antonína Zápotockého — honouring the second Czechoslovak communist president — and was renamed Barrandovský most in 1990 following the Velvet Revolution.

The informal nickname "Bridge of the Intelligentsia" (Most inteligence) dates from the construction period: after the communist takeover in 1948, thousands of Czech intellectuals — doctors, lawyers, teachers, writers and actors — were stripped of their professions for political reasons and assigned to manual labour. A significant number worked on the bridge's approach roads and foundations, giving rise to the name that older Praguers still use today.

Construction began in 1978 following the selection of a diagonal crossing design in August 1976 from 13 competing proposals, some of which included tunnels beneath the Barrandov terraces. The southern half opened on 20 September 1983; the northern half followed in 1988. A major reconstruction was carried out between 2022 and 2024 — completed a year ahead of schedule at a final cost of 1.14 billion CZK, nearly double the original estimate of 594.5 million CZK.

• Year of construction: 1978–1988 (south section opened 1983, north 1988)
• Order by age: 9th oldest bridge in Prague (current structure)
• Order by position: 15th from the north
• Length: 352 m
• Width: 40–55 m (widest bridge in Prague)
• Deck height above water: 15 m
• Span arrangement: 34 + 61 + 71 + 72 + 66 + 45 m (6 spans)
• Construction method: Pre-stressed concrete continuous beam, cast on falsework
• Engineer: Jiří Hejnice, Pavel Tripal
• Architect: Karel Filsak
• Sculptor: Josef Klimeš (monumental concrete sculptures, 1989–1990)
• Architectural style: Brutalism
• Daily traffic: ~142,000 vehicles (2023) — busiest road in the Czech Republic
• Address: Barrandovský most, Praha 4 (Braník) / Praha 5 (Hlubočepy–Barrandov)

Particulars: Barrandov Bridge is the most heavily trafficked road in the entire Czech Republic. Before the completion of the Prague southern ring road in 2010, it carried virtually all east–west transit traffic through the city, including connections from motorway D1 (Brno) and D5 (Pilsen). On the northern side, the bridge is integrated into the Barrandov rock face — a protected natural monument (přírodní památka Barrandovské skály) — giving the left bank approach an unexpectedly dramatic geological backdrop. From the river, the bridge reads as a massive concrete shelf suspended above the water, flanked by the Barrandov cliffs on one side and the industrial embankment of Braník on the other. It is visible on longer southbound Vltava cruises heading toward Vyšehrad and beyond.

Most Závodu míru / Zbraslav Bridge

Czech name: Most Závodu míru | Alternative names: Zbraslavský most — informal name used by locals, and the official name of the original 1896 iron bridge it replaced

The official name — Peace Race Bridge — commemorates the international cycling race Závod míru, which crossed the newly opened structure in 1964. Locals have always called it Zbraslavský most, as they did its iron predecessor built on the same site in 1896. That earlier bridge charged a toll until 1934 and was demolished when the current structure opened. The current bridge was designed by engineer Vladimír Tvrzník and was the first arch bridge in the world built using self-supporting welded reinforcement — without traditional falsework.

• Year of construction: 1961–1964; predecessor iron bridge 1896
• Order by position: 18th from the north — southernmost bridge in Prague
• Length: 200 m | Width: 12.5 m
• Main span: 75 m (single central arch)
• Engineer: Vladimír Tvrzník
• Architectural style: Structural Modernism — reinforced concrete arch
• Address: Most Závodu míru, Praha 16 (Zbraslav)
• Nearest transport: Bus to Zbraslav; railway station Praha-Zbraslav

Architecture & style: A single reinforced concrete arch with a 75-metre main span and three supporting pillars on each bank. Unornamented and structurally honest — its significance is engineering rather than aesthetic.

Particulars: Located at the confluence of the Vltava and Berounka rivers, 13 km south of the city centre. The Zbraslav Monastery (Zbraslavský klášter), now housing the National Gallery's collection of Asian and ancient art, is visible from the riverside. Specialist extended Vltava cruises reach Zbraslav, though it lies outside the standard boat-tour zone.

See the Main Prague Bridges from the Water — Alle Travel

All of the central Prague bridges — from the Railway Bridge and Palacký Bridge in the south to Čech Bridge, Štefánik Bridge and Hlávka Bridge in the north — are visible from the river on a standard Vltava cruise. Most one-hour and two-hour cruises cover the central section between Čech Bridge and Palacký Bridge, passing beneath Charles Bridge. Longer routes extend further north toward Troja or south toward Vyšehrad, adding more bridges to the view. On Alle Travel you will find cruises from multiple Prague operators, at different durations and price points. Browse all Prague river cruises on Alle Travel →

For a complete overview of all boats and steamers available for Prague river cruises, visit the Prague Boats Fleet for River Cruises page on Alle Travel.