Prague. Photo: Shutterstock Czech Republic recorded an increase in tourism during the summer of 2026, with more visitors arriving at hotels and other accommodation facilities and Prague Airport handling more than 12 million passengers over the season.
Between July and September, approximately 8.2 million guests stayed in the country's registered accommodation facilities, an increase of 4.1% compared with the same period last year. The number of overnight stays reached 21.9 million, up 3.2%, with visitors staying an average of 3.7 days.
Prague Airport. Photo: Jaromir Chalabala / Shutterstock.comPrague Airport handled 12,072,809 passengers during the 2026 summer flight season, a year-on-year increase of 3.1%. A total of 84 airlines operated flights from the airport during the period, which ran from the end of March or beginning of April through October.
Despite operational challenges caused by the conflict in the Middle East and rising aviation fuel prices, passenger traffic continued to grow.
Jiří Vyskoč, Executive Director of Airline Business Development at Prague Airport, said that increasing demand from international travelers was a major factor behind the results. The number of arriving foreign passengers increased by more than 280,000 compared with the previous summer, accounting for over 56% of all passengers.
The strongest year-on-year growth among incoming international passengers was recorded from Romania, Denmark and Turkey.
Prague Airport and its airline partners offered direct flights to 190 destinations during summer 2026, 23 more than a year earlier.
Italy had the largest number of available destinations, with 21, followed by Greece with 19 and Spain with 17. In terms of passenger numbers, the United Kingdom, Italy and Spain remained the three leading markets.
Germany, Poland and Slovakia were the most common countries of origin for foreign tourists visiting the Czech Republic. The United States, United Kingdom, Austria and the Netherlands also featured among the leading source markets, alongside Finland, Ireland and Israel.
Prague remained the country's most visited destination, welcoming more than 2.3 million guests during the third quarter. The South Bohemian Region followed with approximately 860,000 visitors, while the South Moravian Region received around 855,000.
Visitors stayed the longest in the Karlovy Vary Region, while the shortest stays were recorded in Prague and South Moravia.
Prague. Photo: ShutterstockHotels remained the most popular accommodation option during the third quarter, welcoming 4.9 million guests who generated 11.9 million overnight stays. Both figures increased by 3.4% year-on-year.
The figures also revealed changing seasonal demand. May and part of June were among the strongest months for hotel revenue, while room prices declined during the summer holiday period. September, however, brought a recovery in demand and hotel sales.
Prague maintained the highest hotel occupancy among Central European capitals during the period, reaching approximately 86% in September. The average room rate stood at around €135, bringing the Czech capital closer to Vienna after several years of price differences.
Tourism also remains an important contributor to the national economy. According to the latest available figures for 2024, the sector accounted for 2.5% of Czech GDP, equivalent to approximately 202 billion Czech crowns.
From January through September 2026, a total of 18.9 million guests stayed in mass accommodation facilities across the country, generating 48.2 million overnight stays.