Say goodbye to Petřín’s funicular railway!
The iconic funicular railway that takes travellers to the top of Petřín Hill is set to close for essential repairs, but the Prague Public Transport Company (DPP) is giving fans of the funicular a chance to say goodbye with guided tours.
On Saturdays in October, guided tours around the funicular railway will take visitors around the upper station, including the engine room and into a driver's cabin. Visitors will have the opportunity to take a photo looking over the track and down Petřín Hill, and will receive a special farewell ticket.
A renovation of the funicular railway had already been scheduled for March 2025, but its closure has now been brought forward following the terrible rainfall in September. DPP’s technical director Jan Šurovský summarised the current situation:
“We have carried out a very detailed inspection of the track and an evaluation of its technical condition. The track is so damaged and worn in many places, that, for example, the fastening of a number of sleepers has stopped working. Unfortunately, the track has become completely impassable. In addition, a tree fell on it from the waterlogged ground, which further damaged the track.”
After the 2025 renovations are completed, the Petřín funicular will have a sleek and shiny new look. The current cable cars are destined to be exhibited at the Public Transport Museum and the National Technical Museum, and will be replaced by new models designed by Anna Marešová and her team. They will be able to carry up to 120 people, and will acknowledge the romantic history of Petřín Hill in a cheeky way:
"A play of lights will start when two cable cars meet along the way. Just before they pass each other, one car will give the other a broad wink. The other will get shy and turn red; the interior lights will turn red and the whole car inside will turn pink." says Anna Marešová.
This October’s guided tours start on the hour from 9 am to 6 pm, every Saturday. The tour will last one hour. A single ticket costs 60 crowns and can only be purchased online at the DPP Fanshop.
