St. Nicholas Church (Malá Strana)

The finest baroque church in the city, with a 70-metre dome

Area Malá Strana
Type Church
Time needed 45m

St. Nicholas Church (Malá Strana) — Photograph: A.Savin / FAL

St Nicholas stands in the middle of Malostranské náměstí, filling the square so completely that the buildings around it look like a frame. It was built for the Jesuits between the 1700s and the 1750s by Kryštof Dientzenhofer and his son Kilián Ignác, and its dome rises about 70 metres over the Lesser Town. People go for the interior, which is the most complete high baroque space in the city, and for the fact that the organ was played here by Mozart in 1787.

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Getting there

Trams 12, 15, 20, 22 and 23 all stop at Malostranské náměstí, which puts you at the church door. From the Old Town Square it is about twenty minutes on foot: across Charles Bridge, through the tower at the far end, then up Mostecká for two minutes until the square opens out. Metro line A (green) to Malostranská leaves you a flat five to seven minute walk along Letenská. There is no climb to reach the church itself, though the separate bell tower is all stairs.

What you see

You come in under the organ loft, and the first thing to do is turn round and look up at it rather than straight ahead. The nave ceiling carries an enormous fresco of the life of St Nicholas, painted so that the architecture in the picture continues the real architecture below it. Walk forward to the crossing and stand directly under the dome: the four colossal statues of church fathers are at the corners, and the dome fresco above shows the Holy Trinity. The side chapels hold dark baroque altar paintings and some very good wood sculpture, and the pulpit is worth a close look for the pink and white marbling. The bell tower is a separate ticket and a separate entrance from the square; its stair gives you the square from above and, near the top, rooms used as an observation post during the communist years.

What to pair it with

Charles Bridge and its Lesser Town tower are five minutes downhill. Wallenstein Garden and the Lesser Town lanes around Nerudova are both within a few minutes, and Nerudova is the obvious way to continue uphill to Prague Castle.

When to go

Mornings are quietest; the church fills from late morning once the tour groups cross the bridge. The dome fresco reads best in bright daylight, so a clear day matters more than the hour. There are classical concerts in the church most evenings in season, which is a different and much calmer way to see it, and the nave is cold enough in winter that you will want a coat on even inside. Check opening times before you go, as the church closes to visitors around services.

What is hard about it

There is an entry charge for the nave, which surprises people who assume a working church is free; the bell tower costs again on top. The interior is dim, and phone photographs of the ceiling almost never work. The dome is not open to visitors, so if you are expecting to climb inside it as you can in some Italian churches, you cannot. The bell tower stair is narrow, with no lift. In high season the square outside is noisy with trams and crowds, which takes some of the edge off the arrival.

Common questions

How long do you need at St Nicholas?

About forty-five minutes for the nave at an unhurried pace. Add half an hour if you climb the bell tower.

Is this the same St Nicholas as the one on the Old Town Square?

No. There are two baroque St Nicholas churches in Prague; this is the much larger Jesuit one in Malostranské náměstí, on the Castle side of the river.

Can you go up the dome or the tower?

Not the dome. The bell tower next to the church is open separately and is climbed on foot.