Officials in the Czech capital Prague have banned organised evening pub crawls in a move intended to restore “refinement and respect for shared public space” to the streets.
The historic city is lined with pubs and breweries, and the average Czech drinks more beer than any other nationality in the world, according to the Czech Brewers’ Association. But now the behaviour of some of the city’s 7.4 million annual visitors has become too much even for such beer-loving locals.
No organised pub tours between 10:00 pm and 6:00 am
Noise pollution, safety issues, littering and antisocial acts are just some of the issues city residents are contending with, and the problems have become so pronounced that councillors have noted “an excessive deployment” of sanitisation teams and police.
As a result, between the hours of 10:00 pm and 6:00 am, pub crawls that lead participants from venue to venue to consume alcohol will now be outlawed, due to “unreasonable consumption of alcohol and disruptive behaviour” the council motion said, adding that “pub crawls can create the impression of a lack of culture in the community, reduce the feeling of safety and … can have a negative impact on the perception of the municipality by tourists, potential investors and the citizens themselves.”
Seeking a more cultured, wealthier tourist
Deputy Mayor Jiří Pospíšil has gone even further, Agence France Presse reports, in words that signal a change in strategy for the city that is “seeking a more cultured, wealthier tourist … not one who comes for a short time only to get drunk.”
Prague police are now responsible for ensuring the ban is respected. They may have a challenge ahead. At the time of writing, Prague Pub Crawl, which describes itself as the city’s “top-rated nightlife experience” is still advertising its pub crawls during the prohibited time slots.
A populist move?
“You can join any time from 8:00 to 10:00 pm, and you will get free drinks until 10:00 pm. If that is too early for you we have another group starting at 10:00 pm where you will receive unlimited drinks until 11:00 pm,” its website says, adding that: “The Pub Crawl always runs. Every night. No matter what happens.”
The firm has condemned the council decision, as “a populist move to cover up the city management’s inability to address real issues, such as the lack of municipal police officers to enforce night-time peace.”
Other businesses however have questioned the value of the pub crawls and appear to be unconcerned by their demise. Vaclav Starek of the Czech Association of Hotels and Restaurants told AFP, “I don’t think this will hurt our sales. Nobody will be banned from going to a pub but these nightly organised pub crawls … are nothing we would need.”
