Knopf MapGuide: Prague (Knopf Mapguides) (ISBN 037571099X)

Love these guides!:
I own 11 of these Knopf MapGuides I find they are perfect for most of the sightseeing on does in major metropolitan areas. The layout, by neighborhood or zone, allows one to save steps and time by not needing to "back-track" when missing a sight. The small-sized booklet makes it easy to use and keep "concealed" when you don't want to look like a "tourist."

Great little mapguide!:
I love this series - small, light, excellent for walking around cities. It organizes information by geographic area and has large, readable maps that make getting around really easy. I use these as a subsitute for a map. If I'm spending enough time to see a city in depth (as I did in Prague), I bring a "real" guidebook too - in this case, Time Out - but this series will always have a place in my suitcase. For someone who travels really light, that is the biggest compliment I can bestow!

Lost in Prague:
In some ways, Prague is best approached without a map. The main sector is fairly small, and landmarks like the castle, the river, and the Charles Bridge are easy to find from anywhere, so you can never really get lost. It is easier to find cool things when you don't care where you are going. Still, if you are in full tourist mode, you want to get where you are going, and finding your way through the tangled web of Prague streets can be a real challenge. Unfolding a huge map not only looks stupid, it is awkward as well. Try walking a crowded street with one open; you only need to do it once before you pitch the big map in the nearest receptacle. Big maps are bad, but small maps are useless for a city where streets are either a few blocks long, or at least change names every few hundred meters. The Knopf Guide has it both ways. It is small enough to fit into an inner pocket of a blazer. It breaks this fairly small city down into a half-dozen sectors, and covers each with a fold-out map on heavy paper. We used the previous edition for years (the changes are minor, so you'll do fine to buy either edition), and all of the maps are still in great shape.