New York is a city filled with glitz, glamour, and lots of independent bookstores. Why not top off your trip here with a tour of one, two, or a bunch of the city’s most beloved book nooks?

Here are a few ideas to get you started.

May days

Garth Hallberg, a writer at The Millions (themillions.com), a site that covers cultural trends, first posted his own self-created independent bookstore walking tour in 2007. The tour hit a high note, and this year, The Millions—in conjunction with many city bookshops—hosts another version, on Saturday May 2nd (rain date is May 3rd).

The tour will kick off at 11 AM at the Three Lives book shop in Waverly Place (corner of 10th Street). From here, it makes  stops at some of NYC’s most cherished indie spots, Housing Works in Soho, McNally Jackson (Soho), and Bluestockings (Lower Eastside), before crossing the Brooklyn Bridge to hit up Court Street Books in Cobble Hill, Brooklyn and wind up at Freebird Books & Goods. The tour comprises 4.5 miles and should take about 4 hours. RSVP to: themillionsbookstoretour@gmail.com

For more information, go here and scroll down to May 2nd’s events.

Mob hobnob

On May 9th, Freebird Books & Goods hosts a unique walking tour, this time a history of Crazy Joe Gallo (he’s an original Goodfella). The tour, led by author Tom Folsom, will weave its way from Carroll Gardens in Brooklyn to Red Hook’s warehouse district, Gallo’s old mob stomping ground. The best part? It’s free and open to the public.

The tour begins in front of Carroll Park (Subway: F train to Carroll Street). An RSVP is recommended (tel: 718-643-8484 or info@freebirdbooks.com).

Finally, consider generating your own walking tour. Or, check this one out, courtesy of Lucy Di Rosa from The Examiner.

Do you have a favorite New York City independent bookshop or bookseller? Tell us about it here.

Popularity: 8% [?]

by Nicky Gardner and Susanne Kries—

For chilling out in the middle of a long Europe trip, just take a boat.

The Baltic, Black Sea, North Sea, and the Mediterranean are all criss-crossed by regular scheduled routes, with ships varying from chic cruise ferries to humble boats that carry tourists, locals, livestock and the mail. A day or two on board a long distance ferry can be an economic and enjoyable way of recharging batteries in the middle of a long trip.

A Hurtigruten boat in northern Norway.

Ferries on the Adriatic

Many routes include extended stops where you can hop off the boat for a few hours and do some sightseeing.

Our favourite Adriatic ferry journey is the Monday evening departure from Rijeka (Croatia) with Jadrolinija that gets you into Bari in southern Italy 36 hours later - so after two nights aboard. On the Tuesday, the ship cruises gently through the islands off Croatia’s Dalmatian coast, with four ports of call along the way, among them a six-hour stop in Dubrovnik, where the boat arrives at 4pm. You can go ashore to explore the ancient Venetian port, have dinner, then reboard the ship for the final overnight leg on to Bari.

Viking Cruise to Iceland

Smyril Line offers many fine cruising opportunities, especially during the shoulder seasons (through mid-June and from late August). During this period, the company’s cruise ferry Norröna is less busy and operates to an unhurried schedule on its weekly journey from Denmark to Iceland. The trip includes a 9-hour stop along the way in the Faroe Islands. Departures are from Esbjerg on Saturdays.

Along Norway’s Coast

Truly dedicated mariners can spend almost an entire week afloat on the Hurtigruten service along the Norwegian coast. Services leave daily from Bergen and reach Kirkenes on Norway’s Barents Sea coast (way up above the Arctic Circle just a stone’s throw from the Russian border) six days later.

Along the way, the boat stops at over 30 ports, some no more than tiny harbours that rely on the daily boat for contact with the wider world. Several stops are two to four hours long, so there is lots of scope for sightseeing. The great thing about the Hurtigruten service is that you really can use it like a bus service, stopping off at an appealing small port before continuing a day or two later.

The Aegean, Baltic, North Sea or the Bay of Biscay

Longer crossings without en-route stops can fill useful gaps in itineraries, saving on accommodation costs while affording a pleasant spell afloat. Some of the longer Greek island routes are like a short cruise, and we are also fans of the Baltic routes from Sweden and Germany to Estonia and Finland.

P&O Ferries, the lineal descendant of the august Peninsular and Oriental Steam Navigation Company has some especially useful routes. They include a twice-weekly sailing from Portsmouth (England) to Bilbao (Spain), which affords two nights on board. And the company has daily overnight sailings from Hull (on England’s east coast) to Zeebrugge (Belgium) and Rotterdam (Holland). We used the later route a few weeks back, hopping on board the ship around 6 PM and disembarking 15 hours later on the Dutch coast - refreshed, relaxed and ready for our onward journey to Berlin by train.

We always say that if folk had any idea just how much fun such ferry trips can be, then the budget airlines would long since have succumbed to competition from Europe’s maritime highways.

About the authors: Susanne Kries and Nicky Gardner are regular contributors to EuroCheapo and together edit hidden europe magazine. The May / June issue of hidden europe is published next week, but Cheapos can already preview the contents of that upcoming issue.

Popularity: 12% [?]

Andorra La Vella's Old Town. Photos by Alex Robertson Textor.

By Alex Robertson Textor—

Andorra La Vella, the capital of Andorra, may be Western Europe’s most maligned capital. A huge duty-free shopping hub, it tends to be written off as an outdoor mall only good for short shopping adventures.

Its commercial bluster may indeed shock those emerging from a weeklong mountain journey through the Pyrenees. And in fact, some of its commercial business is a bit depressing. Shops selling discounted tobacco, perfume, and jewelry are everywhere. There are also sinister militia shops hawking surveillance devices, riot gear, bb guns, and odd objects expressly designed to hide things—like dummy soup cans that screw apart to reveal a hidden chamber. Are these things even legal?

Let’s table that question for a minute and fight the conventional wisdom regarding the Andorran capital by focusing on its downright interesting attributes.

Looking at Andorra

Andorra's pleasingly dated bar decor.

The language on the streets is the gorgeous hybrid tongue of Catalan. It’s framed dramatically by stunning jagged peaks that appear to sprout behind every building. It’s got a romantic if very tiny old town and loads of interesting, modern stone architecture. In many ways, it is reminiscent of a medium-sized Swiss city. This is the case even aesthetically, down to the faded, pleasingly dated store signage and bar interiors that pop up here and there.

Beyond shopping, true tourism draws in the capital itself are few. Just outside of Andorra La Vella in the town of Escaldes-Engordany is the enormous Caldea thermal baths complex. Our Cheapo tip: obtain a discounted nighttime admission for €25, a savings of €8 off the standard admission price.

One standout site in the city is the Casa de la Vall, the 16th-century stone house that serves as the seat of government. It’s delightful to consider that such a beautiful small house could serve as a national parliament.

Andorra's cute Casa de la Vall.

Andorra’s governmental balancing act

Andorra is, truth by told, a bit of an anomaly. It’s in charge of its own affairs but maintains some vestigial attachments to France and Spain. Officially, it is a co-principality, and its two “co-princes” are the French head of state and the Bishop of Urgell, who represents Spain.

(Lest you imagine that France and Spain run the show, know that executive power is the domain of the Andorran government, not the co-princes.) The postage system is operated by its two much larger neighbors, who dutifully produce Andorran stamps; defense, also, is delegated to the giants on either side.

Andorra is not a part of the European Union. It also remains outside of Schengen, the EU’s customs union that de facto blankets most of the other European microstates. On the main road through Andorra there are large mountainside immigration stations—a downright rarity in today’s Western Europe. (Many bus shuttles, however, including the one occupied by your loyal correspondent, are dismissed with a wave at the border crossings. What a disappointment!)

French and Spanish mailboxes side by side.

With neither an airport nor a railway network, Andorra certainly sits off the beaten path. Unlike the other Western European microstates, it isn’t quick to get to by road, either. Andorra is a three to three-and-a-half hour bus journey from both Barcelona and Toulouse.

By way of contrast, Monaco is smack dab in the middle of the Côte d’Azur, Liechtenstein is as close as an hour and a quarter from Zurich, San Marino is a stone’s throw from Rimini, and the Vatican is encircled by Rome. Andorra’s sheer distance makes actually touching down on the ground feel a little bit more like an accomplishment.

Andorra La Vella Hotel Tip

Budget bed fans should check out the clean, quiet, and very affordable Hotel Sant Jordi in Andorra La Vella, where double rooms booked online can be nabbed for as little as €40.

About the author: Alex Robertson Textor is Editor-at-Large at EuroCheapo. He writes travel stories for the New York Post, New York Times, and Rough Guides, among other publications, and he also maintains Spendthrift Shoestring, a blog on budget travel and culture.

Popularity: 7% [?]

Prepared for rain at Versailles. Photos by Theadora Brack.

By Theadora Brack in Paris—

Sometimes in Paris, a little rain must fall.  No matter when you’re visiting the City of Light—and light sprinkles, don’t forget to pack a parapluie. The weather here can change at the drop of a Schiaparelli hat. While showers don’t typically last long,  I recommend toting a compact “parapluie” (umbrella).

Make it rain

Soon it's gonna rain.

“Never carry an umbrella in Paris! There’s a law,” says moon-eyed Audrey Hepburn to Humphrey Bogart in Billy Wilder’s 1954 classic, “Sabrina.”

Well, Sabrina, that’s not quite true. In fact, it was the French who invented the folding parapluie (literally, “rain protector”).

Though umbrellas have been around since the time of the pharaohs, they originally served as protection from sun, not rain (”umbrella,” after all, means “little shadow”). The folding waterproof umbrella didn’t make its splashy debut until 1709. Jean Marius, a master purse maker (”maitre boursier,” who also happened to invent the portable harpsichord), came up with a design that was water-resistant, lightweight, and practically overnight, terribly chic.

Made in France

It’s probably no surprise that it was “Sun King” Louis XIV who issued one of the first Royal Patents for the parapluie—as protection for his wigs, according to palace gossip at Versailles.

Marius quickly launched history’s first publicity campaign for a fashion accessory, landing product endorsements from other notable bigwigs, including Ben Franklin (who even hated hair pieces). Soon it became one of the most highly sought-after French souvenirs.

But what would an 18th-century Cheapo do?

Those early parapluies were indeed stylish and sturdy, but hideously expensive. Ah, but rest assured, the Cheapos-of-the-day weren’t left empty-handed. Like today’s Vélib’ Bike Program, umbrellas could be rented by the hour at tourist hot spots and bridge crossings throughout Paris.

Catherine Deneuve in "Les Parapluies de Cherbourg."

Don’t leave home without it

And you won’t either, dear Cheapo, if you pay attention to some famous Paris films before you pack.

For example, in “The Last Time I Saw Paris,” heroine Helen (Elizabeth Taylor) loses her umbrella not once, but twice, before finally succumbing to pneumonia. Not you!

Les parapluies also loom large in “Les Parapluies de Cherbourg,” where Catherine Deneuve really knows how to sell an umbrella. They’re even featured in “Le fabuleux destin d’Amélie Poulain.”

By the way, bringing a “little shade” with you can be a lifesaver on those hot summer days, too.

Shopping Tip

If you forgot to pack an umbrella, you can pick up a relatively cheap (and pretty) one at Monoprix. Selling everything from groceries and wine for your picnic, to sunglasses, band-aids, and cute skirts, it’s one-stop shopping for all your strolling needs.

If your umbrella goes bust

Thierry Millet, umbrella doctor.

Umbrella broken? Don’t throw it out! Instead, stop by PEP’S (223, rue Saint-Martin, Passage de l’Ancre in the Marais), one of the last surviving umbrella repair shops in Paris.

This atelier is worth a visit even if your umbrella is in fine working condition. Repairing up to 10,000 umbrellas a year, PEP’S won’t stick it to you. An average repair costs just 10 to 15 euros, less than an umbrella. Good for the planet and your pocketbook.

“Petit ou grand, we’ll fix it. We’re not snobs,” said the resident “docteur des parapluies,” Thierry Millet, with a wink. “Elegant women always have beautiful umbrellas.”

About the author and photographer: Theadora Brack is a writer working in Paris. Her fiction has appeared in more than 30 literary publications, including 3AM International, The Smoking Poet, Beloit Fiction Journal, Mid-American Review, and the Haight-Ashbury Literary Journal.

Popularity: 8% [?]

A peaceful scene in the Villa Borghese. Photos by Sav D'Souza.

By Sav D’Souza in Rome—

Rome, like most European destinations, has some delightful parks. Whether you plan to relax after a day on the town, or spend a free afternoon strolling through gardens, sitting by a lake, or picnicking on a park bench,  here are my top parco picks for Rome.

Villa Doria Pamphilj
Via San Pancrazio & Via Aurelia Antica in Monteverde
(Various buses are available, Tram 8, or walk up from Trastevere)

Enter through San Pancrazio Gate and into Rome’s largest landscaped—and public—park, the Villa Doria Pamphilj. Named after two noble Italian families, this marvel sits West of the Tiber and just South of Vatican City in residential Monteverde.

At the park’s center is the Villa Vecchia, here since the 1600s. The park itself offers a host of lovely gardens, intricate statues, a grotto, and fountains. A curvy bridge links up the gardens making this an especially popular destination for jogging and walking dogs.

Napoleon's bust in the Villa Borghese.

Villa Borghese
Via Veneto
(Metro line A to Flaminio)

A sprawling area of land full of everything from quiet, lush green spaces to famous statues and fountains, the Villa Borghese is perhaps Rome’s most well-known park.  The oasis, completed around 1620, is an ideal venue for taking in some rays.

When you’re done sun bathing, you must check out the Borghese Gallery, considered one of the world’s top private art collections. (Keep in mind you need to reserve a ticket before you gallery-gaze. Adult tickets, to the museum and gallery, are €13.50 plus a €2 booking fee. EU citizens, children, and seniors receive a discount.)

Tip: Check out the carriage racing, every May at the Piazza di Siena.

Gianicolo Park
Trastevere (Walk up Via Garibaldi)

The Gianicolo, in picturesque Trastevere, is at the top of Janiculum Hill and offers unbeatable panoramic views of Rome’s sprawl. It’s a bit of a trek up, but if you can make it, pleasant scenery and unique photo-ops await you. Pack a picnic and make a day of it. For more info, grab a map at the Rome Tourism Office. The walk up to Janiculum Hill and its accompanying park are also clearly marked on most any tourist map of Rome.

Pincio Gardens
Piazzale Napoleone I and Viale dell’Obelisco
(Metro line A to Flaminio)

The Pincio gardens overlook the neoclassical Piazza del Popolo. Although Pincio is slightly wild and unkempt, I still love it for its vivid colors, towering trees, and foliage-filled gardens.  The Pincio remains a local and tourist favorite for sunset watching and afternoon reading—and is considered one of the prettiest places in the Eternal City.

Do you have a favorite park in Rome? Or, know of a secret garden somewhere off the beaten path? Share it in the comment section below.

About the author: Sav D’Souza is a freelance journalist currently based in Rome. He has worked as a journalist in Hawaii, Prague, and London and contributed features to the Guardian, Daily Telegraph, SA Sports Illustrated, Prague Post and CNBC Europe. He is a demon pool player, enjoys a round of golf, playing poker, and the occasional gin and tonic.

Popularity: 8% [?]

By Bill Sinclair in Barcelona—

Barcelona is a treasure trove of art and architecture—and free champagne.  No, seriously. Tag along on our gallery tour and you’ll experience some very cool art while clinking a glass or two of free Catalan cava or French champagne.

Let’s go!

Sala Parés
Calle de Petritxol 5, 08002

The best time to check out Sala Parés is on a Thursday afternoon, say around 7 PM.  Located off Calle de Petritxol, a narrow street lined with galleries that runs parallel to Las Ramblas (Metro Liceu – Line 3- Green line), the space was founded in 1840 and is the oldest public commercial art gallery in Europe. In fact, it staged a young Picasso’s first public exhibition in 1901.

The gallery has three exhibition spaces showing off current work and pieces from 19th- and 20th-century collections. Time your drop-in right and you can catch an opening of recent work by one of the gallery’s esteemed stable of artists. For opening, the staff will—you guessed it!—be serving free cava and chilled white wine.

OK, keep up. Put that glass down – we’re off to the next stop…

Gracia Arts Project
Calle Sant Honorat, 11, 08002

To get from the oldest gallery to one of the city’s newest, stroll across the Plaça de Sant Josep Oriol onto Calle Banys Nous (and its antique shops), and turn onto Calle del Call, at the heart of what used to be the medieval city’s Jewish quarter. Finally, turn left onto Calle Sant Honorat, adjacent to the Generalitat (Catalonia’s government HQ), and—bingo!—you’ve found Gracia Arts Project.

Founded just two years ago, the G.A.P. is a small, friendly gallery showcasing fresh, vibrant works by an energetic, polyglot collective of Barcelona-based artists and designers. Again, if you attend on an opening night, you can snag another free glass of cava.

We’d better get out of here before it gets crowded – and it does get crowded.

La Pedrera
Passeig de Gràcia

From G.A.P., it’s just a short walk to Via Laietana to catch the Metro (Line 4 – Yellow line) two stops to Passeig de Gràcia and over to Gaudì’s famous apartment building, La Pedrera.

Avoid the line for basic tours of the apartment building and head directly through the large ironwork gates on the corner, and up the beautifully decorated stairway (pictured at left) to the free exhibition space. Here, you can typically catch an expertly curated retrospective by an overlooked European artist, circa the 1920s or 30s.

No free drinks here today, but free exhibition notes in English abound. Make sure you look around at the details in Gaudì’s molded ceilings and columns.

Ready? Time to go. The exhibition closes at 8 PM here. Last stop…

MiTO
Calle Rosellò, 193, 08036

Finally, we’re off to MiTO, a gallery just one block up and four blocks over from Gaudì’s apartment, in the heart of Eixample.

Time it right and arrive by 8:20 PM to catch another fun opening.  The place is usually packed with a good mix of artists, buyers, collectors, curators and critics, and two very welcoming hosts, Joaquim and Alfredo, who like to serve up free Piper Heidsieck French champagne and snacks.

The work here at MiTO is cutting edge. Work is created by known international artists from cities like New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Madrid, and Valencia (to name a few).

Also at MiTO, help yourself to a few free catalogues of previous shows. I recommend Brian Dettmer’s The Cemetery of Forgotten Books, a beautifully crafted “look-book” filled with some incredible stuff.  They are all neatly stacked on shelves near the glass entrance door.

What did you think?

Did you enjoy the tour? Four very different art spaces, two centuries of art, and six centuries of architecture (not to mention free cava and champagne) in two hours before dinner, and all for free!  Nice way to work up an appetite, don’t you think? Let us know in the comment section below.

About the author: Born next door to an infamous London prison, Bill Sinclair has been on the run ever since. He now resides in Barcelona where he works as a writer, translator and independent visitor guide.

Popularity: 7% [?]

We love street performers just as much as the next Cheapo. Have any idea where this quintet is making noise? Clue: You might call them renaissance men.

The first correct guess wins a free copy of the book, “Ask Arthur Frommer & Travel Better, Cheaper, Smarter.” 

Leave your answer in the comment section below. We’ll reveal the answer later this week.

Popularity: 6% [?]

Most people we know with iPhones like to brag about all the whiz-bang tools packed into their phone, as iPhone “applications” extend the possibilities of the device far beyond simply making a telephone call. The “Amsterdam Mobile Guide,” one of the latest tools in the box, is a free iPhone application that acts as a personal tourist guide.

Amsterdam info on your iPhone.

Created by the Netherlands Board of Tourism and Conventions, the application provides an index of Amsterdam’s main sights. Interactive on and offline, the application is worth a test drive to iPhone users, or holders of other web-enabled mobile devices.

Large option umbrella

The Amsterdam Mobile Guide offers a wide array of tourism info. Like the guidebooks that it’s ostensibly replacing, the handheld guide lists a number of attractions, restaurants, bars, hotels and shops, categorizing them by city district. Each listing includes an image, contact information, map, and a few side notes. When you click on a listing, your iPhone’s GPS system will provide distance and directions by car, public transport, or by foot. (Unfortunately, no bike route option is available.)

On a recent trip to check it out at Amsterdam’s Mac House, the manager, Yvin Hei, had this to say, “The search option is a plus, and you don’t need to constantly be updating the application.”

Time saver

An interesting feature is the “Itinerary” option, which provides users with a detailed agenda for set time-frames, from eight-hour layovers to 72-hour weekend stays. Another bonus is the “Near Me” option, which lists bars, attractions, and other destinations within a .5 kilometer radius of your location.

The “Getting Around” option gives the lowdown on how transport works in Amsterdam. Bike rentals, tourism and public transport office addresses are cited and mapped with easy-to-follow directions. An ideal addition would be tram, bus and metro maps and time schedules—maybe they’ll add this in the future.

Room for expansion

Category listings cover about 200 venues of interest and cater to tourists with average to high-end budgets. Unfortunately, there are no sightings for cheap bars, hostels, and food joints on this application. An “Amsterdam For Free” option would be a welcome Cheapo addition.

A quick-hit search for local nightlife—again at the local Mac House— only yielded two venues in the city center. Even Hei, the helpful floor manager contends with that, “Well, there is more nightlife here than that.” Entertainment listings on the application tend to stick to the mainstream venues, yet local favorites can be spotted occasionally.

Try it out

View the Amsterdam Mobile Guide at http://us.holland.com/

Already test driving the Amsterdam Mobile Guide on your iPhone? Leave a comment below about which features you like or dislike!

Popularity: 11% [?]

The Pont Neuf, Paris's oldest bridge. Photos by Liz Webber.

By Liz Webber in Paris—

When the French “faire le pont,” they’re not talking about building bridges. Rather, they’re taking an extra day off work to make a long weekend when there’s a bank holiday midweek.

Regardless, there’s quite a bit to be said for the real bridges (”ponts“) in Paris. Join us, as we stroll from the Ile St. Louis to the Eiffel Tower, crossing over some of the city’s best bridges.

A river runs under it

Bicycle man

We start at the Pont Sully (built 1876), at the very eastern edge of the Ile St. Louis. Down below on the banks, this section of the isle is an ideal location for sunbathers on a clear day. After gazing out to the east of Paris, take a stroll westward through what has become one of the city’s most fashionable addresses.

The Pont St. Louis (completed 1970) is a tiny bridge connecting the Ile St. Louis with the Ile de la Cité. It sits in the shadow of Notre Dame, across the street from one of the many places selling the famous Berthillon ice cream (though not the original, at 31 rue St. Louis en Ile). This bridge is prime real estate for musicians and other street performers. On a recent afternoon, a crazy French clown and his amazing trick bicycle entertained a crowd of a few dozen, while a rock band was only too glad to take over once the clown’s show finished.

Everything old is new again

Continuing west off the Ile de la Cité, the next major bridge is the Pont Neuf. Despite it’s name, it’s actually the oldest bridge in Paris, completed in 1607. Just north of the bridge is the Samaritaine department store, closed since 2005 for safety-related renovations. The tip of the island to the west of the Pont Neuf is popular with picnickers. Although alcohol is officially ”interdit,” gendarmes tend to look the other way if you pour your beverage into cups and hide the bottle.

Looking towards the Pont des Arts

No cars allowed

Following the Seine west, the next bridge we encounter is the Pont des Arts (completed 1984), an iconic footbridge anchored by the Louvre on one side and the Institut de France on the other. Taking a cue from the bridge’s name, many artists and craftsmen set up shop here to display their creations.

A little ways down is another pedestrian bridge, today called the Passerelle Léopold Sédar Senghor after the first president of Senegal and the first African to be a part of the Academie française. Completed in its latest incarnation in 1999, this bridge arcs right down to the edge of the Seine.

Bridging the gap

The Paris city hall website calls the Pont Alexandre III “Paris’s most elegant bridge.” It can be a little hard to appreciate the fine sculpture work, however, with all the cars and buses roaring up from the Avenue de Maréchal Galliéni. The bridge was built between 1896 and 1900.

Between the Pont Alexandre III and the Eiffel Tower there is not much to see aside from the Passerelle Debilly, a pedestrian bridge built for the 1900 World’s Fair. Still, a walk along the southern bank of the Seine is quite pleasant, as it’s mostly a tree-lined strip of a park.

La Tour Eiffel

Get over it

We have finally reached the Pont d’Iéna (completed 1814), which was originally conceived to commemorate Napoleon’s 1806 victory in the battle of Jena. The bridge is an excellent spot for taking photos of the Eiffel Tower. Across the river, the steps of the Palais de Chaillot are probably the best place to watch the tower’s evening light show that takes place every hour from sunset to 1 AM (2 AM in summer).

Your favorite bridge?

Do you have a favorite bridge in Paris? How about a favorite spot along the Seine? Tell us in the comments section below.

About the author: Liz Webber is a freelance journalist living and working in Paris. She has previously worked for the International Herald Tribune and Budget Travel.

Popularity: 11% [?]

Tasty samples at the Czech food festival.

This year, the month of May provides several tasty reasons to celebrate in the fair city of Prague. The weather turns milder and the city puts its food and beer on display. Here are two festivals, for gourmands and imbibers alike, that we think are worth czech-ing out.

Brew-ha-ha: Czech Beer Festival
May 22-31, 2009

Oktoberfest may be a standard in Munich, but in Prague the second annual Czech Beer Festival kicks off on May 22, 2009 (through May 31). Up to 50 brands of beers are featured this year, and large-scale tents will provide ample hop stops, as well as food stalls.

Taste, buy, and be merry! For more info, visit the event’s web site (in Czech only). 

Gourmet days: Czech Food Festival
May 29-31, 2009

What goes better with a little beer than some gourmet cooking? The third annual Czech Food Festival runs May 29-31 (time it right and you could do the beer and food fest over the same weekend!). This year’s festival features the intriguing (and potentially hard-to-swallow) theme, “Culinary Sensation in a Time of Crisis.”

Fun (and food) for all.

With food stalls and restaurant locations spread between the Charles Bridge and Manes Bridge (including some choice culinary stations positioned on boats and along the Vltava River), the event promises ”food with a view” and offers its guests tastes from 33 of Prague’s best-known restaurants in a pretty idyllic setting.

Delights span the culinary map. Aside from Czech delicacies, expect to sample Brazilian, Japanese, French, and kosher cuisine (to name but a few). The festival will also include some food-themed events, including the “Asparagus Cup,” which promises that attendees won’t leave without learning the many methods for using the lean, lanky veggie in day-to-day cooking.

Admission

Official admission to all events (including 10 food tasting vouchers) is 350 CZK (€13). Additional tasting vouchers cost 25 CZK each (about €.90), and a packet of ten is 250 CZK (about €9). Children receive a discount. More info can be found here.

Popularity: 12% [?]