St. Patrick’s Day falls on Friday, March 17th, a public holiday in Ireland and Northern Ireland in honor of Patrick of Ireland, Ireland’s first Christian missionary.
The originally ecclesiastical festival has now turned into a colorful folk festival, also celebrated by non-Irish people worldwide. In Prague, St. Patrick’s Day is also marked extensively by numerous expats and locals alike.
The St. Patrick’s Festival Prague started yesterday, Monday the 13th, and runs until Sunday the 19th of March at Rocky O’Reilly’s, Durty Nelly’s, McCarthy’s, and Caffrey’s.
It includes an extensive entertainment program, and this year, festival raffle tickets will be sold to raise money for the Irish Marie Keating Foundation, which provides support to cancer patients at every stage of their illness.
The James Joyce Irish Pub, a popular Irish pub with locals and expats alike in Prague’s Old Town, hosts the festivities starting on Friday from 11:00 am. Throughout the day, guests can enjoy delicious Guinness, lots of fun and entertainment, and live music later in the day.
On the other side of the Vltava, Prague’s Lesser Town, J.J. Murphy’s Irish Pub is the go-to spot to enjoy the Irish barley juice of Arthur Guinness, who founded the world-famous brewery in 1759.
For a night of fun and frolic, visit the Hop House of Prague’s Hilton Hotel on 17 and 18 March, and celebrate with traditional Irish music, dancing, and entertainment. A live band will play all your favorite Irish songs while you enjoy classic Irish dishes, and of course, a traditional Guinness is not to be missed.
The Czech-Irish Business and Cultural Association (CIBCA) hosts its ever-popular Saint Patrick’s Day Irish Festival on Saturday, March 18th, at the Grand Hotel Bohemia.
Other Irish pubs in Prague include:
