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Kozacka apartment

Location: Prague centre
Min stay: 1
Price CZK per night: 1000
Price CZK per month: 18000
Rooms: 1+kk
Beds: 3
Bathrooms: 1
Toilets: 1
FIXED INTERNET CONNECTION SPECIAL OFFER: 25 May - 5 June for only 800 CZK a night for the apartment.
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Na Kozacce apartment

Location: Prague centre
Min stay: 1
Price CZK per night: 1700
Price CZK per month: 25000
Rooms: 1+kk
Beds: 4
Bathrooms: 1
Toilets: 1
FIXED INTERNET CONNECTION
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Celetna apartment

Location:
Min stay: 1
Price CZK per night: 1800
Price CZK per month: 35000
Rooms: 2+kk
Beds: 6
Bathrooms: 1
Toilets: 1
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Redoubtable Prague Taxi service

Mon, 26 Mar 2007 20:55

The unpleasant reality is, that the first experience arriving to Prague is often nightmarish.As a tourist come with a lot of luggage, he takes a taxi :a normal, serious mean of transport in most European cities.Not so in Prague.Rude and dishonest taxi drivers currently overcharge passenger two or three times the normal rate.It concerns mainly foreign tourist, and the international reputation of Prague is spoiled then.

An international scandal and its effects

In November 2004, a taxi driver attempted to rook Comelie Sonntag-Wollgast, a German politician, who was visiting Prague. She complained afterwards officially at the Czech embassy in Berlin.Reacting at the international shame of the Czech republic, politicians promised wonders.Nowadays,the situation is not significantly better, because the running controls are not effective.Too few taxi drivers-robbers have been catched.

How come they dare to do these levities?

These dishonest drivers are not menaced by any penalty.This is their employer who would eventually pay for it.The worst thing that can happen to them is to be sacked, if the crime is proved.Unfortunately, it is proved rarely, because you need to put forward a cash receipt as a proof if you want to complain at the municipality, and the drivers who has overcharged the passenger will never write the right data at the cash receipt.

What is more, the taxi company is not interested in making these cases public, because it would spoil the name of the company.As a result, it is hard to point out a taxi company which you can rely on.

The only solution is to run frequent controls, when the controller pretend she is a foreigner.It should be a woman, because taxi drivers rather choose a defencless victime.The problem is there is few people speaking well a foreign language and being willing to do controls.

Slow, but hopeful emergence

The supreme court has ratified the decision to punish a keeper of a Prague taxi service, due to a taxi-meter out of action, overcharging and falsification of documentation.The penalty reached 250.000 czech crowns.This decision is important in making the common excuses of taxi drivers (taxi-meter out of action,then necessity to put out a standby documentation written by hand) illegal.
Found out by controls, the number of overcharging taxi drivers went down to 13,5 percent.

How to avoid being a victime of a taxi crime?

1)
Look attentively at the taxi.Has it a yellow roof lamp with the writing TAXI in black on both sides?Try to remember the company name, license number and rates who must be written on front doors.

2)
Just as you get into the car, ask about the price you will pay.

3)
A taxi parked at a tourist site might be waiting for a tourist in troubles who will not care about the money.Order a taxi by phone is the best way you can do.

4)
Look if the rate on the taxi-meter corresponds to the price list posted in the car.

5)
If you have the impression that something is wrong, ask the driver to stop, pay the amount of money he asks and get off.

6)
Request a printed cash receipt from the driver. If he refuses to give it to you, you dont have to pay.

7)
The Prague public transport works well so in the majority of cases it is possible to avoid using a taxi.