While in Prague, you will spot an Eiffel Tower lookalike on a hill above the river Vltava. It is the Petrin Observation Tower and it has really been made as an imitation of the tower in Paris. It provides a beautiful view of the city of Prague and even of the countryside outside the city. It is situated on the Petrin hill and it is one of the most popular Prague tourist attractions.
Smaller replica of the Eiffel Tower
When the organization The Czech Tourists Club saw the Eiffel Tower in Paris in 1889, they admired it so much that they decided to build a similar one in Prague. They chose a location on the 322 metres high Petrin hill. The author of the project was architect Vratislav Pasovsky. The tower was built within four months and it was opened on the occasion of the Jubilee Exhibition in 1891.
The Petrin Observation Tower is 60 metres high, so it is five times smaller than the Eiffel Tower in Paris. There are 299 steps to its top and it is made of 175 tons of iron.
The tower was used as a transmission tower in the 20 th century and it was even inaccessible to the public for some time, but it was largely restored an opened again in the 1990s.
View from the Petrin Observation Tower
You can enjoy the view of the city on the terrace in the height of 20 metres, or on the lookout at the top, 51 metres high. On clear days it is possible to see far outside Prague: you can see mountains in the Central and Northern Bohemia.
You can get on the top of the Petrin hill by a funicular or on foot. There is an elevator for disabled and elderly people available in the Petrin Observation Tower.
