Christmas markets will return to Prague for 2021 holiday season

Christmas markets will return to Prague for the 2021-22 holiday season after a year without them due to Covid-19 restrictions. According to Taiko, the company that organizes various Christmas markets in the Czech capital, an agreement has been reached with Prague City Hall for the upcoming holiday season.

Taiko runs the Christmas markets in Prague's Old Town Square, Náměstí Republiky, and Wenceslas Square, among other locations in the Czech capital.

"We are pleased to be able to again offer Prague residents and visitors to the metropolis traditional Advent celebrations in the center of Prague, thus contributing to the resurgence of tourism in the capital," Taiko Chair Libor Votruba told CTK.

While a Christmas tree stood in Prague's Old Town Square last year, both the lighting ceremony and the festive marketplace were cancelled due to the country's Covid-19 restrictions in place at the time.

Smaller Christmas marketplaces were organized elsewhere in Prague, and across the Czech Republic, though guests were prohibited from consuming food and drink at the locations due to the restrictions.

Traditional Easter markets at Prague's Old Town Square were also cancelled in both 2020 and 2021.

Taiko is now seeking a suitable tree to erect at the Old Town Square location.

"At the moment, we are choosing a suitable tree that will emphasize the atmosphere of Christmas in the heart of the metropolis the most," added Votruba.

The Christmas market in Prague's Old Town Square will open on Saturday, November 27 with a special tree-lighting ceremony. It will run through Thursday, January 6. Other locations in Prague operated by Taiko will also run from these dates.

The return of Christmas markets to Prague is a welcome sign of the upcoming holiday season.

Given rising Covid-19 rates in the Czech Republic and a new incoming Czech government, however, some may be waiting with fingers crossed over the next two months.