Weekend expedition will reveal Prague's highest point at new, secret location

When stopped on the street, most people can’t name the highest point in Prague. A Facebook group is organizing a three-hour expedition, which will be filmed for a documentary, to the mysterious place on July 23. The organizers are keeping tight-lipped, leaving everyone guessing until the destination is reached.

A playful video surfaced on Facebook at the beginning of July, showing a curious man with a microphone asking passersby about the city's highest point. Answers ranging from the Petřín Tower to the Žižkov TV Tower and Bílá hora poured in. Someone even answered Sněžka, which is the highest point in Czechia but is not located in Prague.

But the organizers say none of these are right. “Friends! We are glad that you actively participated in the debate. But if you want to know the correct answer (hint: you won't find it in the comments), you'll have to set out to mark the new highest point of Prague with us,” the organizers said on Facebook.

The organizers hint that a change near the former highest point has led them to choose a new, slightly different one that they are keeping secret for now.

According to a survey by the city, the highest point has long been thought to be a slope called Teleček on the city’s western border, but the peak of that hill is actually outside of Prague near the town of Rudná. The Prague side of this hill reaches 399 meters, while Petřín Hill is a mere 327 meters.

"In this age of obsession with measurement and documentation, we often overlook the true essence of things lurking beneath the surface. And it is precisely the highest point of Prague that embodies these paradoxes and the tragicomedy of our modern times," the organizers said in a description of their event.

The Facebook page for Umění pro město (Art for the City) says the walk will be filmed as part of a documentary by Vladimír Turner about exploring urban themes through artistic happenings in public spaces. They added that the walk will culminate in the ceremonial marking of the new highest point of Prague. The environmental group Arnika is also promoting the event.

Curiosity builds as the organizers maintain an air of secrecy about the walk's exact route and the unfolding of the entire event. "We encourage anyone interested to join us and discover the wonders firsthand. In brief, this is an engaging event with cultural flair, thoughtfully designed to be unpretentious," the organizers told news site Metro.cz.

In 2020, the Honest Guide channel on YouTube created a similar event, placing four concrete pole markers to show the city’s furthest points to the north, south, east, and west. This was during the pandemic, and it was intended to give people destinations they could explore on their own while observing social distancing. Reporter Janek Rubeš, cameraman Honza Mikulka, and director of Prague Institute of Planning and Development director Ondřej Boháč were behind that project.