Prague is to ban night-time pub crawls organised by journey businesses, in a bid to discourage rowdy vacationers from visiting and attracting extra “refined” guests as an alternative.
The Czech capital’s authorities say organised pub crawls – typically geared toward overseas stag and hen dos – shall be banned between 22:00 and 06:00 native time (21:00-05:00 BST).
Deputy mayor Jiri Pospisil stated he wished town to turn into a spot the place “refinement and respect for shared public house are a precedence”.
Prague isn’t alone in its bid to discourage rowdy vacationers – many from the UK. Final 12 months, Amsterdam launched a marketing campaign to discourage younger British males from travelling to the Dutch capital to make use of medication and drink closely.
Prague Metropolis Council stated councillors had accepted an modification limiting “organised actions of vacationers from pub to pub, disrupting the evening peace particularly within the centre”.
The change was made on noise, security and cleanliness grounds. Crowds of drunk vacationers additionally negatively have an effect on the status of town, councillors claimed.
Officers within the central Prague One district, most of which is a Unesco World Heritage Web site and the place many bars are situated, welcomed the transfer.
Prague One mayor Terezie Radomerska stated it was a “welcome change” which might “scale back the unfavourable results attributable to extreme noise within the streets”.
Police shall be charged with imposing the ban.
Councillors stated disorderly behaviour had led to “an extreme deployment” of cleansing and police providers, stretching town’s sources.
Prague resident Stepan Kuchta instructed the Occasions newspaper his well being had been “ruined by power noise”.
However Prague Pub Crawl, which organises the drunken excursions, panned town’s choice as “merely a populist transfer to cowl up town administration’s incapability to deal with actual points, reminiscent of the dearth of municipal cops to implement night-time peace”.
The town of 1.3 million welcomed round 7.4 million vacationers final 12 months, in response to the Czech Statistical Workplace.
Traditionally, many vacationers have been enticed by the Czech capital’s stunning historic options and low-cost beers – which in some eating places and pubs could be cheaper than bottled water.
Vaclav Starek of the Czech Affiliation of Inns and Eating places welcomed town council’s choice. Mr Starek instructed the AFP information company that he did not assume enterprise can be affected.
“I do not assume this can harm our gross sales. No person shall be banned from going to a pub however these nightly organised pub crawls … are nothing we would wish.”
