When we were planning to visit Prague we asked our host to recommend some outdoor spaces that we could take our daughter to and one of the ones she recommended was Max van der Stoel Park. Travelling with a toddler is not the easiest but it helps that I actually love spending time in parks and would rather be outdoors than inside a museum anyway.
Prague is in fact a city that begs to be explored on foot with so much to see and experience in the outdoor realm. I was amazed by the beautiful sidewalks and took several pictures of the cobbles and the patterns and details they were constructed in.
Before I get carried away with describing the delightful vistas and beautiful buildings that are found in this magical city, let me get back to this gem of a park.
The central focal point is a long, linear water feature that is interactive and a real delight for little ones. You to get up close to the water that merrily winds its way to the bottom and it allows you to manipulate the stream in various ways.
The Park has comfortable seating and play equipment for children of various ages. The seating and most of the play equipment is made from timber so the park has a natural and warm feel to it. I liked the fine pebble crush that was used beneath the play equipment – a much nicer material than the rubber matting we mostly use in South Africa. It crossed my mind that a park like this would probably not be robust enough in a South African setting.
Lots of trees have been planted and properly staked. Like every garden, maintenance is required and some of the gravel pathways have washed away. I am sure these will be quickly repaired.
Visit http://www.praha.eu/jnp/en/life_in_prague/environment/park_for_everybody.html for more information. You can also view videos of the water feature posted on YouTube
It is situated on the tram line at Hládkov station and on Google Maps it is called Park Maxe van der Stoela. 50°05'27.7"N 14°23'10.5"E