How Our City Created An Official Tourist Trap
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 29 พ.ค. 2024
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Janek Rubeš & Honza Mikulka, Prague based journalists
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As a Czech person I'm on the tourists' side in this case.
There's no need for the whole process of buying and validating the ticket to be so complicated.
I have no words for the inspectors.. scumbags.
We have something similar in Germany as well -.-
clearly he was pushing for a fine, he kew exactly that this was mistake not to avoid paying for a ticket
@@maxjogwich6241Wo denn das? Also wo ich wohne muss man nur streifenkarten abstempeln
Don't ask the German public transport system. It works the same way.
@@Abwehr9München z. B.
The ticket inspectors were malicious, lying to the tourists on multiple occasions. Shocking!
is this shocking? I've heared/seen government officials lie so much, that I stopped believing them all togheter.
Government workers have zero consequences to lie/cheat. If they are frustrated(which they are, cuz they work for the city), they can scam people.
They were bullshitting a couple of times, but ultimately they were 100 % right to fine the guy. "Yes, I can show you the receipt I bought winter tires for my car, I just didn't put them on my car!" Doesn't work this way. Ignorantia juris non excusat.
guess i wont be a tourist their jeez
@@pakan357 one right doesnt repair 10 wrongs.
I feel like it's important for government workers to know their own work and be correct and professional about it. If i start lieing on my job 10% of the time, I lose all credibility.
@@eight7934 With your spelling, you better not be. Eww.
I lived in Prague for 3 months many years ago and I remember ticket inspectors disproportionately targeted foreigners on public transports, because they knew they were more likely to make mistakes and therefore be fined.
Imagine being so miserable that you take joy in tormenting others. If at least the inspectors put the money in their pockets and be called thieves, but no, it's just gratuitous cruelty.
ticket ispectors getting bonuses to their salary based on how many people they fined, so it is actualy money for his pocket.
True, when I was riding without tickets (it was kind of sport, tbh), I felt more calm when tourist were around. I knew inspectors would target them first.
@@filipdostal381 As much as I hate America sometimes, that sort of thing would eventually lead to a lawsuit against the relevant transit agency for violating people's civil rights. Targeting based on national origin is illegal when it comes to public accomodations.
I remember when i arrived in Prague's central bus station and discoverer euros nor credit card were accepted to buy tram tickets (only czech coins ffs) and the only convenient money changer at the station charged a ridiculous rate so i just walked to my rental 45 minutes away because i figured id be targeted. The apt rental owner said he never bought tram tickets but he was czech and im not so im sure i did the right thing lol
It is great, not only do you get a ride, you also get a short introduction to the works of Franz Kafka.
Hahaha underrated comment!
Now I'm convinced Der Prozess was the result of Kafka not validating his ticket
hhahahah
..
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If Officer A says the ticket is valid, but Officer B says the ticket is invalid, the ticket is both valid and invalid
As a Prague citizen this is beyond infuriating, the incentive system for inspectors (and by extension the dpp) is totally idiotic and only creates a conflict of interest. In this case, single use tickets should not need to be validated, period. And as for those two scumbags I have no words, they should not be working with the public.
there are definitely cases where you benefit from buying tickets in advance and USE it later. e.g. train stops outside prague in middle of nowhere
@@czsokolathan just use the app? Or a longer period ticket if you're going in and out. Single use should be valid straight after purchase especially at a stop like this. Ok at metro or a bus sure but there why?
@@domiibunn I think Instead of trying to reinvent the wheel, the simplest solution would be not take advantage of confused tourists and check the tickets at the entrance.
What exactly could be the incentive for the inspectors? They get paid a bonus? Is their employer a private or public entity?
@@erikthehalfabee6234 I don"t know how much is it now, but few years back they received around 150,- CZK bonus for every fine they collected.
I forgot to validate my ticket once. The inspectors used UV lamp to check if I really bought it at the station I claimed to get in, found out the hidden ink (location+time), confirmed I likely did not lie, ripped the ticket´s marking zone and left me with a warning.
Those two should lose the job. We should especialy be more tolerant for tourists, it is easier to make a mistake when you are overwhelmed by new perceptions. Tourism is a source of income, we need satisfied tourists who come back and tell all their friends.
The system of paying the inspectors based on the amount of fines they generate is insane.
I was in Prague as a Slovak tourist so I could speak to everyone normally and the treatment you get is much different than when you are an English-speaking tourist in general. I took this ride both ways and on the way up there two ticket inspectors stopping the foreign tourists and making them pay because of some silly things. There was no ticket sale guide person, let alone even anyone operating anything there. One guy came and opened the "gate" and that was that. Probably the scummiest experience of Prague even if it didn't effect me personally.
I’ve lived in Taipei and everything is so easy to use the MRT / subway/ transit even in English. And the staff are very helpful and honest. And there’s lots of staff there. Even security guards are helpful. They use cards called Easy Cards. I’ve gone back after a couple of years and the Easy Card still works and still had the money on it that I put 2 years before. It’s fantastic! Everything should work like that. I love Taipei
That system appears so unnecessarily confusing that it has to be intentionally hostile. Shaking down tourists for bogus fees because they didn't do the correct song and dance for the ticket they ~JUST~ paid for is pure criminal villainy as far as I'm concerned.
The inspector threatening to call the police, at an additional cost of hundreds of pounds to the tourist, only reinforces my opinion that everything about this is purposefully predatory.
I totally agree, I know this is controversial but it's stuff like this that makes the West think twice before choosing to holiday in Eastern Europe
@@samuel2291 I don't think it's that controversial. We mostly understand it, some of us a bit begrudgingly. I'm Czech and this sustained "eastern" (unhelpful, rude, self-centered, petty) mentality is something I'm having a hard time coming to terms with as well. It's getting better by the year, though, and incidents like these are becoming less frequent over time. (Also, what Janek said in the video is true -- majority of ticket inspectors in Prague already are professional, helpful and well mannered.)
@@samuel2291 It shouldn't be controversial. So many ticket inspectors all over the world are power hungry pricks who think they can do whatever they want. They should be held accountable for their actions.
The thing is: if you do not validate your ticket, you could use it again, for example the ride back down.
Thank you for making Prague a better place
I don't live there but thx too
I'm really getting a very bad image of Prague.
Too bad, I was going to visit it soon.
@@RUHappyATM Yeah, this is my first thought too! It seems they haven't considered that this awful system, which is backed up by the city officials itself, will gather poor reputation and anger, before even going there.
This channel is known for exposing scams on the streets, but this time it's the city itself that is at fault. It's simply unacceptable. Honesty goes so much longer. I think tourist traps like this is so medieval and stupid. There's none of this if you travel to Scandinavia.
@@TheStunningParallel
Yeah, I was thinking, Prague would be a nice place for me to spend 3 months.
Let them enjoy my foreign-earned money.
Generate employment for themselves.
But, but, not to a society that scams their visitors.
Make him the MAYORRRRRRRR
There are 3 different public transport ticket machines next to each other and they can be indeed confusing, even Janek made it confusing when explaining.
One of them sells tickets with timestamp, that are valid (start their active time) when bought. The other one (the bigger one) gives out without timestamp, these can be used anytime after, but you need to print a timestamp on them to activate them (validate) in that third machine. The first machine (the one with tickets active instantly) is relatively more modern and is usually placed inside trams and busses themselves, while the older bigger one is sold only on platforms, outside. But it gets more complicated when in some places, like in metro or this cableway, they put these machines next to each other on entrance.
Having the general ticket machine there is frankly the issue, especially in a tourist-heavy destination. Vancouver had the same system, but you cannot get the non-validated ticket outside of convenience stores, which are sold in packs with a discount afaik. They moved to mostly tap, though buses still sell one-time tickets if you ask the driver.
Reading the comments made me appreciate the system here (Vancouver) a bit more. The fares are straight forward-ish, and they got rid of varied bus price as people were getting overcharged if they forgot to tap out. So all bus rides is the same fee, limited in a 90 minute trip. Train ride cost varies, but mostly to the benefit of the rider (not always).
A guy like you should exist for every tourist city. Please continue! (I love Prague btw)
Man as a tourist I'd get so stressed out by the seemingly conflicting information presented in a very narrow space, plus with the bad reviews I'd probably avoid this altogether even though it seems like a cool thing to visit.
@@JohannaMueller57 You ooze of nonchalance and prejudice. can people have a freedom of choice, without having a risk of being scammed? Or should everyone just be "normal" and follow the herd?
Personally, I think these small trams are charming and you get a nice view while riding it. There are plenty of uphill places to get your exercise in Prague, if you're looking for that.
@@JohannaMueller57 Ok and what if I like riding trams or cable cars because they don't exist in my country? I suggest you stop being a dick to people and let them do what they want.
It is, was there before summer. Had to double and triple check that my 72 hour ticket was valid. Was quite hard to understand, and then the sudden rush when you finally get indoor.
@@JohannaMueller57 I'm none of those things and I've walked up that hill. It is NOT an easy task. Especially if you don't go up the castle steps and go left and just go up the hill itself.
It's actually fine. Just don't be rushed, and find or ask for the validation station. Get a phone translation app.
I was there 1 month ago. I use the public transportation app, which is rarely mentioned by Janek. I validated a 3 day ticket. But when i came to the fenicular place, there where absolutely no information on how to enter with an already purchased validated ticket. I almost bought a new ticket because there were no people helping tourists. But i stood in line and waited , and thankfully, showing the app to the inspector was enough. But that place clearly need more updated and clear information for tourists.
You watched the Janek and Honza Show
So again nobody to help is around and the inspectors are present at the same time...🤔
Do you mean the inspector at the top? Or the person meant to help at the bottom
I have my own experience with Czech public transport from many years ago. I bought a ticket for a train, chose a wagon and a seat. Only sign that it was a exclusive area was a glass door sepparating sepparating half of the wagon into two. Instead of telling me i happened to be in 1st class and i should move, they demanded me to pay up. Same thing happened to a couple who enter the came wagon i did later in the journey. Someone came up to them and said something in czech, the couple moved right away.
I went to Prague this summer and gotta say, the ticket system you guys have there is the most confusing public transport system ive ever encountered. It all made sense after a little while, but when you just arrive, it can feel like you're always doing something wrong.
Hopefully the city sees this video and put in place measures to prevent this from happening. Ticket inspectors are the only benefactors of the current situation.
@@JohannaMueller57 Bingo, there's plenty of systems out there that do not require validation, inspectors or any insider knowledge, this has been chosen.
Prague thinks mass tourism is their problem so they don't care if they have some bad imago.😑
@@castorchua Yeah, about 80 years ago... Cmon, grow up. This isn't a scam, it's simply how things work for decades and how are locals used to do it.
@@castorchua this way people can buy multiple tickets at once and validate them before use (though most locals have a long term pass so it's not useful to that many people)
@@vaseklepic12 it's useful to the many people using it to fleece tourists.
I could instantly feel the frustration of the guy, as I had identical interaction in Bucharest. They claimed everything is written down (in Romanian), they didn't want to acknowledge the receipt from ticket purchase, threatened that police will fine you way more than them...
It's frustrating when you dodge scammy taxi drivers and then basically get scammed by officials in public transport.
I am sorry you had such an experience.
For public transport, Bucharest got rid of paper tickets and stamp ticket validators in 2011. We have only card tap machines since then.
So today, one can pay either with credit/debit card, or with a public transport card. You tap the card when you enter the bus/tram and it’s valid for 90 minutes, so you won’t be charged again if you change bus/tram and tap again within that interval.
Note that some (older) buses/trams may have two different types of machines inside, where only the smaller type is for credit/debit card; look for the wireless payment/maestro/mastercard/visa symbols to identify it.
You also have the option of using an app, the 24pay app, to purchase your ticket before getting on the bus/tram; also valid for 90 minutes and you can see exactly when it expires.
And as a 4th option, pay by SMS is also available (with clear instructions in every bus/tram), but tourists should not rely on this one, as I suspect you need a SIM from a local national carrier. While some tourists may get a local pre-payed SIM plan for their time in Ro, it’s unlikely they’ll have planned for excess credit on it to have available for SMS ticket purchases.
If you ever travel to Romania again, I hope you’ll have only good experiences and find the country has improved in a lot of ways!
They should just rename this the Franz Kafka experience, because it feels like being a character in one of his novels.
That is the most stupid, convoluted, impractical, and unfair ticketing system I've ever heard of. And based on how rude and scummy the inspectors are, I'm 99% sure that they just pocket the money most of the time. Even if the city pays inspectors for "catching" invalid tickets, that payment is obviously not going to be equal to the fine; otherwise the city would be losing money on the whole ordeal. So why would they *not* pocket the money.
I took the funicular this May. There was a school group ahead of me, maybe 20 kids and 4 adults, all milling about in front of the gates, so I couldn’t see the machines or validators etc. As it happens, I did have a Lítačka, so I didn’t have to pay, but I wasn’t sure about that, and when the train arrived, the staff opened the gates and rushed everyone on to the train. I was trying to show them my phone, to check everything was in order, and they just shrugged at me. There’s a very good chance, if I hadn’t had the Lítačka, I would have been at the top without a valid ticket.
@@JohannaMueller57 It seems like it's only a scam if certain inspectors work at the top. I guess they share the extra-payment with the driver and the staff at the bottom, for more tourists to get scamed.
The ride itself isn't a scam, just the bad actors, just like how the Czech Crown isn't a scam, just the doggy currency exchangers.
@@samuel2291 Perhaps but when a system is badly made and confusing that leads to people getting scammed. When action then doesn't get taken to atleast try to improve it or even simply be more lenient in understanding that people will make mistakes you become partially complicit. If you pay inspectors a bonus for every fine they hand out then you incentive them to hand out scam fines. At that point you are partially responsible for the scam.
I am from Prague and I saw very kind and helpfull ticket inspectors and a very bad one too. When I see that some inspectors are clearly bothering tourists, I offer to help and you'd be surprised how aggressive they sometimes become. Once I was even grabbed by the neck. Since then I always ask for their ID and take a picture of their numbers.
Hi Janak, I have a question. Once I validate my 72 hour ticket before getting on the bus, do I need to validate again later in the day or next day for the metro or tram or bus? Also, do the tourists 65 and older age have free transportation in Prague. Thank you.
@@stprk If it's a paper ticket you should only validate it *once* - The first validation shows it's been used, and where and when you started using it. The validity lasts either 72 hours from that point, or that and the next two calendar days, depending on the terms of issue. 📆
As given in the video validating the ticket multiple times will almost certainly invalidate it unless the rules specifically command you to do this. The easy way to check is to see if your ticket has spaces for multiple validation stamps. If it only has the one, then you only validate it once. 🎀
If it's an electronic ticket on a mobile app, then open the ticket in the app and follow the instructions for that ticket in the app - Electronic tickets normally work differently to paper ones, but in an app the terms and instructions should normally be displayed under the ticket in the language of your device.
I can't answer on the free bus question as I've never been to CZ (The above is taken from experience of similar systems in Germany) but the best person to ask is a bus driver or tourist information centre. Best document to use for proof-of-age is an EU format drivers licence. 🙂
@@stprk Only validate it once and that is it. More then one time stamp makes PID (Prague integrated transport) tickets invalid. For 65 or older it should be fine just showing passport instead of the ticket with exception of trains where you need some weird special card. Metro, trains, and buses are fine with just passport.
Metro, TRAMS (not trains!), and buses are fine with just passport.@@woodendoorgarage
This is easy to fix and is implemented in most modern rail systems. Have barriers that block you entrance and the validation system opens them when you scan the ticket. That way you can only get in with a valid ticket, and ergo if you are in, you have properly validated. Simples.
So… it’s a tourist trap.
I've had only one similar incident in Czech Republic and it was on a local train from Prague to Velke Popovice (going on a tour in Kozel brewery). I needed 1h ticket for the trip but didn't know I had to validate it before entering the train. That's not how train tickets work anywhere in Europe. Nevertheless, I went on without validating it. I asked a man and a girl sitting next to me if it was OK but they dodn't know or didn't want to tell me anyway. When the conductor came she noticed my ticket haven't been validated and I went on explaining what had happened. The girl that was sitting next to me backed up my story too. The conductor then waited for the next stop to come and told me to validate the ticked on one of the machines there. I was surprised I didn't get a fine instead and I'm still grateful for this gesture.
Not completely correct, you also have to validate them beforehand in the netherlands although you won´t get in without doing so anyway.
Yes, i know exactly that train. I had Support by CZ Friends. How you liked Kozel Brewery? 😊
@@xBox360BENUTZER what haha we don't have a ticket validating system. We don't even have timed tickets except for peak and non peak. I don't think you completely understand the validating system.
> That's not how train tickets work anywhere in Europe.
Well, that's not exactly true:
1) Some regional train tickets in Italy have (or at least had) to be validated too.
2) What you actually had were actually not train tickets but public transport tickets on an integrated train route. Now this might feel confusing, but it works like this for example in Warsaw, you can ride some trains with (some) validated public transport tickets.
this system is very common in Germany and Austria
I think I met these two this summer, on the metro. Me and my fiance had bought tickets in good faith, but we didn't notice the sign that we needed to validate the tickets. But we bought tickets for every trip. We noticed them and could easily have turned around, but we were sure everything was in order. I didn't really argue, but tried to explain what had happened, but they just told us that we would have to spend a night in jail if we didn't pay right away. I doubted that, but didn't want to risk it in a foreign country. The experience was so uncomfortable that I am unsure if I will return to Prague, even though the rest of the city was amazing.
our co-workers are either illiterate or imbeciles, sorry
if this is even remotely a possibility, I am never going there. It's a short bus ride away and I had plans to go, but threatning tourists like that is not okay, especially when you are some sort of authority. They would never be able to jail someone for a 80 eur fine, they release actual money exchange scammers after a quick interview.
From the comments you can see a lot of people had this extortion happen to them, and most of them had to pay without the chance to appeal, some were physically assulted (grabbed by the neck), most were threatened with jail time, and coming from some sort of authority, it is absolutely disgusting. If it was 1-2 instances I wouldn't be seeing this many comments saying the same thing.
I would avoid Prague
@@AtaGunZthe one who was grabbed by the neck wasn't a confused tourist, please read the original comment again. It was a local resident who knew these thug inspectors very well and offered to help some tourist victims when they were stopped by them. The inspectors got angry at her for intervening and grabbed her by the neck.
@@osasunaitor unfortunately, at the time of my comment, there were multiple people saying they were grabbed by the neck.
Mega episode!! Very useful information. You're doing a great job😊
for a very long time that I want to visit Prague (I´m from Portugal ) and seeing your videos, makes me want even more. Thank you , I can see that most people there is amazing, I will have so much fun.
When you started explaining the ticketing system i was like "nope, f that, sounds like a scam". And yes, it turned out to be a scam :D
"This can get a little confusing if you are a foreigner".
Apparently it's a little confising even if you are Prague's own honest guide :-)
So cool to see people with different passions and theyr awesome work! Thanks!
I went to Prague and had this exact issue, just at the metro, not at the cable car. The app ticket validation takes 3 minutes and apparently in those 3 minutes you may not enter the platform yet. We went onto the platform and I had 4 seconds left and the inspector told me to come scan it quickly. Then he fined me because my ticket was not valid (if he would have been 4 seconds later it would have been valid). Kinda ruined my day lol.
It's not just tourists and not just Prague - a couple of years ago my step-mother who is Czech got on her bus home from the centre of Liberec at like 6am after a night shift at the hospital heading to the outskirts of town where she and my Dad live - she was still looking in her bag and stuff for the bus pass/ticket when the bus moved off. At which point an undercover (!) ticket inspector positively leapt up and immediately demanded a fine for not validating the ticket before the start of the journey.
The argument was much the same as the recording - these guys do not give an inch. In my step-mums case even other passengers were complaining that this was BS.
The transport in Prague and Czech in general is amazing - but the inspectors are massive dickheads. And they are paid and trained to be massive dickheads. They are on quotas to get as much extra revenue as possible.
It's interesting that so many people had so many problems with ticket inspectors. I never had any problem, but my father was a tram driver in 90s and they hated ticket inspectors back in the day. But they hated even bus drivers. 😀
That's just racket at this point
You can actually protest paying the fine. For one you can (and should) make their life as difficult as possible, even wait for the police, etc.; chances are they will let you go. Just don't give them your details, don't sign anything, stick to your story (i.e. they didn't give me the opportunity to validate the ticket).
What's BS in this video is how the ticket inspector is lying to the police, knowing that the tourist can't even understand them and defend themselves.
@@amunak_ Good luck with that, you just gave the instructions how to end in a jail at the end, because that happens when you escalate things and deny to pay a fine. Police is mostly good in Czechia, but they have only some patience and when their patience bar is empty, you will end on the ground with knee on your neck and then you can sue them for kneeing on you just because of stupid ticket, except it's not because of stupid ticket. 😀
@@Pidalin You sound like you could do with some Czech cop love 😃
not sure how Czech law works, but in Austria and Germany it has be "intentional", so if the ticket was purchased just minutes ago for this vehicle (it should have date+time printed on it), it could be fought off. the inspectors know this and usually validate it themselves
Ticket inspectors in Czechia don't have any legal power, they have to call a police when you have some problem with them. Validating tickets by conductor sometimes happens in train, but train conductors are mostly much more friendly than city "revizors" who probably can't even do that. And I kind of understand it, you have system with time tickets which have to be validated and when people don't care or screw such simple thing 500 times each day, you just can't always help to everyone and tolerate that again and again. In all countries I visited where they have paper tickets, there is difference between tickets bought from machines and kiosks (you can buy them on stock, you have to validated them and it's on better paper) and tickets which are already validated which you buy from bus driver or machine inside of tram, these tickets are just simple white paper with text, you clearly see what kind of ticket you bought if it's that type which is already validated (that nice looking) or ticket from bus or tram which is already validated, it's pretty simple and it's the same in most of countries, you never validate tickets which you buy from a bus driver, but you have to validate tickets which you bought like day before in kiosk or machine somewhere at street, it's totaly logical. People are that lazy that they don't even look on that ticket, there is literally sign "validate here" and still, they don't do that, they don't care and then they complain about rude ticket inspector.
In Vienna, it's not that clear, it generally works the same, but you don't know how to put that ticket to validator because there is nothing like "validate here"
Inspectors here get a cut of the fine, so they don't want to pardon violations.
At least in Germany fare evasion has to be intentional to have consequences by law but the 60€ fine is defined not as a fine but as a contractual penalty. Some inspectors are nice and some vehicles have the validation inside but when you leave the vehicle and it's still not validated the ticket you need to pay. This is because some people buy tickets and validate them only if they see an inspector otherwise they leave the vehicle and reuse the ticket next time.
@@futurerails8421 "This is because some people buy tickets and validate them only if they see an inspector otherwise they leave the vehicle and reuse the ticket next time."
I know people who do the same and ispectors also know that people are trying that, so that's why they don't tolerate that, it's not that hard to understand it, people are just trying it all the time and if they tolerate that, everyone will be doing it.
@@Pidalin No - there are social experiments that honor system statistically and pratically can work.
Thank you for this video, it's so helpful to know before you go!
This was really our only bad experience in Prague. We couldn’t get the machine to accept any of our credit cards and we noticed everyone else having the same problem. The staff had no interest in assisting us and even sent us on a wild goose chase to get help from two other employees on their smoke break who seemed surprised to be asked. We finished up walking to the top and the exercise did us the world of good! But it really shouldn’t have been that difficult.
In poland rhey have super weird validation system as well.
They have timed tickets and the locals wait for the train to start moving, to validate. Sometimes train Will sit un station for a long tume and if you validate early, you can get un trouble.
This validation system is super weird and ancient 😂
I have had bad experiences throughout Prague with ticket inspectors and heard many more from English speaking friends over the past few years I've lived in Prague. A friend of was forced to pay the fine on the spot because he had forgotten his year pass at home. He knew he didn't have to pay it and that it's possible to get the ticket to pay later and take it to the office with his pass and only pay a small fee. However, the inspect started yelling at him and forced him to pay which is absolutely not legal
The same is in Riga, Latvia, where public transport ticket inspectors have additional monthly 'bonus' for each person caught and written a fine. Sure on one hand it motivates to do the job right, but it also really enforces a strict 'black or white' policy that unfairly inspectors will just use to get additional monthly maximum bonus undermining reputation for the whole ticketing system and public transport.
(p.s- the ticket validation inspection here is Riga is brutal, you are treated as a hardcore criminal, they of course lock the electronic validation machine before(drivers have a heads up and they know where are they), they stop between stops, only open doors for inspectors to get in, then they fast close it, so you are not allowed to get off. Also there is a police present and they also are inspector side, enforcing you to pay the fine and dont care about your excuses..) 😉
Bolt for the win there😂
In Denmark parking attendents do not get a bonus for every car they write a ticket, this would be illegal, but instead they are met with insanely high demands on how many tickets they must write in a day so either they get "creative", they work longer hours until they meet their quota OR they get fired for "poor performance"
There have been so many cases where they were caught doing shady stuff, but the companies they work for get away with it by claiming this is the individual inspector that has gone bad...When in fact they encourage them to do these things.
And then you can just stealthily put a 10-euro note into ticket inspector's pocket and they would forget that you don't have that ticket.
Something similar happened to me when boarding tram in Olomouc. I bought the ticket not from a machine, but from a driver. I was in rush and every time i bought a ticket from driver (for example when getting bus). I didnt need to stamp it anywhere. So i got it from the driver, did 10 steps and sat down on a chair. Immediately a woman in poncho approached me (inspector). Asked for my ticket. I gave it to her. She fined me 1400CZK. Argument that she can ask driver as i bought it from him literally minute ago and she even saw me wasnt valid. So i got out, called the number on the fine (their dispatch or something where you are supposed to pay the fine). Talked politely with the woman on phone, explained to her what went wrong. From 1400CZK fine it went down to 30CZK as "service fee".
I'm from Latin America, I backpacked thru a ton of countries in Europe, and only in the Czech Republic did almost get scammed by someone... Like at every turn in Prague it seemed there was some sort of scam, from the currency places, to actual shop owners trying to short-change you cuz you're a "clueless tourist." It seems cultural almost!
It's not cultural. literally every place outside of the god-awful historical center is basically scam free, I'd bet most people of Prague don't exactly choose to go there unless they have to most of the time, or at least I don't
“You can buy a ticket that is already validated (1:50) but you must use it right away, if you wait 5 MINUTES it’s no good”. Seriously? 5 MINUTES? That doesn’t sound weird at all! Sounds like there’s plenty of opportunities for the ticket inspectors to make bonuses!
Y'a the whole thing sounds rigged to me
Janek, I started watching your channel in 2017. I was planning my first trip out of the US, going with my best friend to backpack through a few European cities, and one of our stops was in Prague. I remember your videos even back then were the most helpful I came across for a first time visitor to any of the cities we were visiting, and I’ve been a subscriber ever since. I’ve seen several videos on this channel about various places in the US, but was SUPER surprised to see you’ve spent time in my hometown of Pensacola. If you’re ever in the area again it would be an honor to meet you and buy you a beer and show you some favorite places of locals here. If you’re ever interested let me know and I can send you my contact info. Thanks for continuing to make and share interesting, informative videos!
Many years ago, I visited Prague, and on the very last day of the trip, we used the underground for the first time, to get back to the train station. We had very little Czech money left and bought our tickets, but then proceeded to go down to the platform without realising we were supposed to validate the tickets on the ticket hall level, not on the platform (like in the rail systems we knew) or in the train (like in trams). Two inspectors watched us go to the stairs, stopped us and made us pay a fine for trying to go to the platform without stamping our tickets. We didn't have enough Czech money left to pay the fine, so they made one of us go to a cash machine and withdraw money (an inspector accompanying me to make sure I wouldn't run away!) Now, we had not been trying to dodge the fare. It was a honest mistake and we were on our way home, so we were not likely to use the un-validated tickets again.
To cut a long story short, after being obviousIy targeted and milked by these inspectors, I have not set a foot into Prague or Czech in more than 20 years (had been there at least 5 times before that). I thought they might not like Germans in their country (just their money), but maybe some people there have the same mentality towards all foreign tourists.
A lot of times there are similar problems in Germany on public transport. Complicated tickets, exact mode of operation different between cities, and then even people who tried to do anything right get slapped with a fine when they run into a ticket inspector.
I really like how the Japanese system works. You buy a ticket and use it at the gate to enter the station you depart from. When you arrive at your destination you put it in the gate to leave the station, if the ticket was correct the gate opens. If it wasn't correct in one way or the other, the gate closes, and you go to an attendant that checks the situation, can see where you entered the system on your ticket, and then just sells you the correct ticket to leave the station at that point. So it is basically impossible to get fines by *accidentally* buying a wrong ticket.
Oh, absolutely. I'm from Germany too and still remember when I had to pay a fine as a CHILD because no where during the whole purchase system did it show a warning the state ticket is only valid from 9 or 10 am onwards. It's printed on the ticket, but who reads through the details on their ticket after purchase? Also, it's a little late then. You already purchased the ticket that you can't use so you have to pay more money to buy a second one 😒
Coming from Hong Kong where our train ticket system is similar to Japan’s, I always get confused when I go to countries that have these inspector systems and fines. It all seems so inefficient and punitive for no good reason.
You need to get some recognition from the Prague officials for all your work 👏, been to Prague for the first time couple of months ago and beforehand I've watched at least 30 of your videos it helped me a lot. It was like I lived in Prague, and your city is amazing will definitely come again so many museums are left unchecked.
I was in Prague last week. You helped me a lot with your videos. I looked them in planning this trip. For example the video "how to buy a ticket for the public transport" you mentioned. Because of this I was buying a 3-day-ticket at the central station when I arrived in Prague and validated the ticket when I was in the first Tram to my hotel. Thank you for your very usefull videos.
Hi, Once I validate my 3 day ticket before getting on the bus, do I need to validate again later in the day or next day for the metro or tram or bus? Also, do the tourists 65 and older age have free transportation in Prague. Thank you.
@@stprk You don´t have do validate the ticket again. Janek said this in this video.
Thank you guys for all your great work.! :) 10+ years ago Prag was one big tourist scam. (I was visiting a lot due to my job). - Thanks to you and some more of awesome people its getting much better. (My last visit is 1 month ago). Hope to meet you one day in the city! Keep doing please! ;) S pozdravem, Leo
Honestly, a similar thing happened to me in Germany.
I was accidentally stuck on a train that runs on the same line as the metro. The ticket is obviously valid for both, but the stops are different. I had a season ticket for the central area, plus another one, valid only for that day, for the next area. Theoretically I should have got off at an intermediate stop to validate the second ticket, but the train, skipping some stops that the metro do, was practically in the middle with no possibility of getting off. I proved my good will with the two tickets and I made clear that I was in fact still in the first zone while they stopped me, but their theory was that, since I could not get off, I would find myself with an invalidated ticket at the next stop. Rather than print an extension (they can sell it) or simply understand the point and validate the ticket (they can do this too) they threatened me in a very bad way by fining me and alerting the police because I was complaining.
These supposed inspectors benefit financially from fining people, so any kind of discussion is a waste of time.
It's the system itself that is outdated and corrupt, these cheap thugs just swim around in it like Piranhas pulling out the "authority" card.
The whole world is just a big country. A sh**ty one actually 🤷🏻
Be careful
In switerland we have the very funny system of:
You enter your start and end destination and then get the zones you need for the travel.
Easy! Now if you have a month ticket for some zones, and now specifically what zones you need on your day pass?
Simply! Guess two stops that result in the zones! Wait? Was I buying a travel from A to B to C? Or was I attempting to buy transportation within in zones?
And to make the job of everyone easier: You enter B-C, but get the ticket in Zone numbers.
But if the train does not stop in B (the transition station), you have to get a ticket from A To C! Awesome!
And for some time, Ticket A to B via C where cheaper then A to C and the machine printed those tickets.
Offcourse, those are invalid! How could a machine of all things find a logical loop hole?
so did they actually call the police? Because I suspect they wouldn't have. Same happened to me in Budapest. Bought tickets online that I was apparently supposed to validate on the outside of the tram, not on the inside like in most trams around the world. After boarding I even asked the inspectors myself where do I validate the tickets. They told me that outside, so i was like, "here's the tickets I just bought", and thought that was it, when they prompted me with. You have to pay fine now. I couldn't believe it. Anyway, I was obviously a tourist and didn't try to scam the system by BUYING tickets and then NOT validate them, but they insisted I have to pay a fine. I got off at the next station. They threatened to call the police. So I told them to fuck off and I walked away. They started swearing at me throwing some ethnically charged slurs, but they didn't call the police. I actually just passed some police after 1 min walking.
I can only agree with your finishing wisdom words.
Chování některých revizorů je fakt otřesná vizitka Prahy. Mám mezi nima už několik "známých", o kterých dopředu vím, že se chovají hrubě, sprostě a navíc neumí anglicky. A turistům nejenže nevysvětlí co po nich chtějí, ale navíc jim vyhrožují, viz. video Honzy a Janka. Tihle lidi mají opravovat eskalátory, ne komunikovat s lidma.
Jak se to stane že člověk takhle zná revizory? Nejezdim na černo, takže žádnýho neznam. 😀
@@Pidalin taky nejezdím na černo, ale používám roky každej den tramvaje a metro, občas i autobusy, za tu dobu si člověk některý obličeje zapamatuje. Plus pracuju na Veleslavíně, což je oblíbený "odchytový" místo pro revizory, číhají tam na turisty každý den, aby jim následně mohli předvést svoji neangličtinu a agresivní jednání.
@@Tomas.P Takovéhle revizory ráda trolím tím, že mi nestačí pouze odznáček MHD, ale požaduji po nich platnou legitku se jménem a fotkou. Koneckonců, to právo je zvájemné. Oni mají právo vidět platnou jízdenku, já zase jejich legitku. XD
nepište jim české komenty, skazí jim to algoritmus
@@Tomas.P V Praze už nebydlim asi 10 let, revizora jsem roky neviděl, nebo se tam někdy mihli že jsem si jich sotva všimnul, ale když jdu na férovku suverénně směrem k nim, tak mě nekontrolujou, oni to nějak poznaj že člověk nemá platnou jízdenku.
The problem is the incentive. If they get more for every fine... you can be sure they will find people to fine.
This is like a speeding fine - incredibly easy to avoid. Make sure you have a valid ticket before you travel. The funiculor railway is not like an international service if you miss it, you just wait for the one on the way down they are reasonably frequent and its hardly a massive walk up in any event.
maybe it's just that they do skimming with knowledge of the company lol
@@timothyphillips679 no, this is nothing like a speeding fine. Also it's not easy to avoid. This is the exact point of this video, that this fine is not easy to avoid.
@@timothyphillips679 oh, it's a scam alright. Think about it. It's a funicular. There's only one line. Why are the ticket inspectors placed at the end of the trip trying to trip people up to generate fines?
Just place them at the entrance. They can just stand at the entrance gate/machines, and watch as people validate their tickets. And stop anybody who don't validate their tickets. The fines are totally unnecessary. Just a way to generate more money from tourists because they messed up using an unfamiliar system.
It's not like a bus network, where people can get on and off at any of hundreds or thousands of stops all over the city so it's impossible to place an employee at every stop. The funicular only has two or three stops.
Really enjoyed your honest presentation.
As someone who has grown up in a city with public transport. Never give your ticket away to any "inspector". They always just look at it and that's it.
Loved this new style of voice-over narrations and fun graphics added in editing. Both informative and hilarious, esp. THIS MACHINE NOT THIS MACHIN graphic 😄
Wow guys what a timing to release this video.
I was in Prague on the 28th October, i had come across your channel and was prepared to tackle intricacies of Prague local transport due to your videos.
I had arrived on 27th evening and immediately bought a day pass and got it validated on the tram.
Woke up early on 28th and searched for where all the 24 hr ticket is valid and got to know about the funicular and reached the place at 7:55 am, I was in luck as on 28th October it was reopening almost 2 weeks later after repairs.
I was first in line for the 8 am train and boy was it an experience.
Almost empty train and the views from the top are too good.
Though there weren't any ticket checkers that day so I was alright but prepared with my 24 hr ticket.
don't forget to mention the rose garden at the top 😆
We have a similar issue with public transportation in Germany. When you buy a ticket on the bus/train, it is immediately valid, because it is timestamped and the current location is printed on it, both important as tickets are time limited or range limited (or both). If you buy the ticket at a station instead, it first has to be stamped, so a time and location is printed on it when you start using it. But once stamped, it is valid and there is no need to stamp it again if you reuse it (e.g. a day, 3-day or weekly ticket). This can lead to confusion, even among locals and especially among tourists. Yet I have never seen that inspectors would reject you ticket because you accidentally stamped it twice, as long as they can read both prints, in which case the first one counts and the second one is ignored. My recommendation to tourists is to always buy a day or 3-day ticket (with more than 2 rides a day that usually be cheaper) and as a rule of the thumb: if you buy it and the machine displays a start date or allows you to enter a start day of your choice, it is valid from that date and won't require stamping, if not, you need to stamp it once to have the starting date printed on the ticket.
the funnniest dialog I heard in a Bus operated by Deutsche Bahn:
A guy bought an App ticket while waiting for the bus.
The bus came and the bus driver argued that the ticket was purchased after the bus left the bus stop.
But the bus was still in the bus stop. Yes, but tickets have to purchased by scheduled time, not actual time.
Yeah, but how to resolve that issue? Buy a ticket! And what time would be on that ticket? The current time off course!
Tickets are sold in actual time, not scheduled time. So after the bus has left? No! off course not, the bus is still on the stop!
But ticket rules in Germany depend on the region you are in. In certain regions you will find single tickets immediately valid bought from a vending machine while in other regions those need to be validated. For example : The DB vending machine in Aachen sells you single tickets for immediate use, while in Berlin you need to stamp them (at least last time i was there).
Here's my question: why make validation be a separate step if people (at least the tourists, I guess) are just gonna use the ticket immediately after they buy it? All you need is to make the machine print timestamps saying when the ticket was made, and how long you can use it for (or even better, just print the expiration date instead), which I suppose is basically incorporating the validation part into the ticket making. For people who don't wanna use a ticket immediately, maybe there could be a different machine/option that prints unvalidated tickets, but don't make that be the default system (since that generates all the confusion we're seeing here).
Because sometimes you don't validate it immediately. Sometimes you buy tickets ahead of time when you're in some remote place where there aren't ticket machines or when you don't have a phone for example. So you buy several in advance and then validate them.
The default system used to be always non-validated. Only the new card-only ticket machines print time on the ticket (since late 2010s).
i had a weekend ticket für public transport... this version is new for me
intrastructure should also be understandable for tourists
I had the same problem when I visited Prague. I bought the ticket, I tried to validate it before to ride but there was noone to help me and then the ticket inspectors caught me on top and they were very rude. I am sure that when the inspectors are there, nooone helps you to validate your ticket. Rude people
I just use the app when I go to Prague - much less stressful
Bro, now I want to buy 2 tickets for myself, validate one and not the other, then run into the inspectors and mess with them using the non-validated ticket, and when the police arrives I'll be like oops, here's the correct one.
@@WithmeVerissimusWhostoned Which basically means you will force the police to come there for no reason, just making yourself feel better, while they could be helping others who actually need it.
How hard is it to stick a piece of paper in a machine? 😂
@@WithmeVerissimusWhostoned don't say that oops. show only the valid ticket :D
I was using the funicular when I was in Prague, I haven't had any problems with that but originally I'm from Poland and we have similar ticket systems with validators so rules were clear to me (I was using 72h ticket so funicular ride was free for me anyway).
I can understand tourists from some other countries, they can be lost, in lots of countries you need to buy ticket only and it is valid immediately and this causes issues there...
Whoever thought it's a good idea to separate the process of purchasing and validating tickets caused this whole problem to begin with.
In southern Finland, you buy the ticket in a mobile app and it generates a session for you, which allows you to use the ticket everywhere in a zone during a time period. When you board the bus, you show the ticket from the app to the bus driver when entering(each ticket has a qr code and a color pair determined algorithmically, which the driver can validate with a quick glance). When you board the metro, train or tram, you don't need to show it at all, but if someone doesn't have a ticket during a random inspection run, which happens like once every 30 rides or so, they get fined.
All you need to think about is: Buy ticket, when asked to show ticket, show ticket and move on. It should not be any more complex, than that. Want to buy ticket in advance? You can do that and it will automatically validate on the time you chose.
The additional benefit is, that even if you run out of battery or you cant for whatever reason show that you have a valid ticket during that time, you can send them verification later and they will not make you pay the 80 euro fee. The treatment the people in this video received would be unthinkable here.
The same system (Used to be) used in Germany as well, and I _think_ the reasoning behind it might've been because only issuing tickets for immediate use causes other problems with cash handling and certain fare types, particularly multiple-journey tickets.
The Dortmunder VB used to offer 2, 4 and 8 journey tickets (The latter simply being 2x the former) with quite some saving over the cost of buying each trip individually, and these were issued on ticket stock which had two or four places for validation stamps (Each end of the ticket, on both sides for a 4x). 🎫
Another issue with _immediate use only_ tickets is that where they're used, they cause massive queues at ticket machines during busy periods because people have to buy before boarding. Being able to buy a bunch of tickets during a spare moment (e.g. When alighting the S-Bahn on the way home from work) means at busy times you can walk straight onto the platform, and the only delay for the people behind while validating your ticket is about half a second versus the 2-5 minutes spent selecting a fare and digging for change. 🪙
Some areas are not safe to put cash-accepting machines in, so the validation system means that these stations can be fitted with the validators alone, regular passengers can buy tickets from other stations or newsagents (etc), and a rules exception can be put in place to accommodate visitors who won't know how the system works (e.g: Obtain a boarding pass from driver/guard, pay at destination). 😇
All in all both approaches - _Immediate use_ and _Buy then Validate_ - Have their individual strengths and weaknesses, but the advent of mobile ticketing and electronic payments does mean that validation-based systems can easily be replaced with more modern approaches...So long as alternative measures are still put in place for folks like me who can't afford a smartphone! 🙃
@@dieseldragon6756 With NFC technology being relevant since the late 2000's, there's no problem with not having a smartphone(though its virtually impossible to not have a smartphone in Finland). You can have a card, that you flash onto the validator and that will automatically deduct from the card's balance. There's validators inside each bus, before each metro and train.
There are ZERO problems with queues in this system, actually even less of a problem, than in the case of having to buy a physical ticket, then activating that ticket on a validator, because you're literally just removing the point of purchase from the station.
Anyways as I said, your point about instant validation with tickets being potentially bad because you can't buy in advance is simply not correct. As said previously, you can buy instantly validating tickets in advance. The only downside is that you can't hoard these tickets, unless you roughly know each time you're going to depart. Although the idea, that hoarding tickets would be a good idea indicates a completely backwards system to begin with.
@@luistin It's good that they provide smartcards (An excellent work-around for the phoneless, that!) but one issue I have with smartcards is that there's no definite (Printed) proof of payment for the journey being made - You have to trust that the system is working as intended, and does so _throughout the course of the contract for travel._ My local system is TfL Oyster🦪 (MiFare based, wholly ITSO incompatible) and that has - Let's just say - A rather _unique_ level of „reliability“ to it... 😉
The issue of hoarding tickets can be analogous to similar things e.g. postage stamps and parking vouchers. AFAIK in Germany an unused ticket remains valid in perpetuity until validated (I note the HVV still has validators in many stations, yet the HVV hasn't issued a ticket requiring validation stamps since before the year 2000) and outstanding unused (Valid) tickets can be a headache for operators, but at the same time it allows a passenger to avoid the impact of inflation by buying as early as they can, and the operator (Who can invest that money early on) potentially benefits too. 💰
If I dug out that half used 4-fahrkarte for the VRR and they still accept them, it would allow me to effectively make a journey around Köln or Düsseldorf tomorrow that was originally paid for in Marks...Not only avoiding inflation, but effectively converting those Marks into Euro at the same time! 😲💶😇
I would rather stay away from this rather than risking the situation
why, the ticket thing is easy
or you can have properly validated ticket and you don't risk anything 🙃
Which is really sad but understandable. Prague must do better - have better signage, and here perhaps even have an actual turnstile to check the tickets first.
We have the same attraction in HK, the Peak Tram, but without the scam fines and shakedowns.
@@castorchua those aren't scam fines, it was the tourist fault, the sign saying how to do it correctly is big enough. You hate Prague without any reason.
Similar thing happens with trains to Versailles where people always buy the wrong ticket and then get fined so there are warnings all over some ticket machines telling tourists what to do
If people always or just frequently buy the wrong ticket, the ticketing system is poorly designed and needs to be overhauled.
Tickets are not rocket science, if there's such an issue, they're doing them wrong.
@@Swordfish728 Yes!
Did you read your bicycle's manual to use it?
Did you read your smartphone's manual to use it?
Did you read your computer's manual to use it?
Did you read your softwares'[like your OS' and your browser's] manual to use it?
These things should be much more complex than buying a ticket.
Yet for buying a ticket you have to read the manual else you have people getting it wrong.
thank you.
i finally had the opportunity to visit your beautiful city.
i have watched many of your videos as they are intersting and well presented.
thanks to your videos, we avoided the meat sellers in the square, and a number of the other tourist traps.
but this one specifically was useful, as soon as we go to the entrance i said to my party, we must check carefully...... we all read the signs, and on realising that the 72hr ticket we had already bought was valid,, knew we didnt need to do anything.
there was an inspector at the bottom, who appeared to be (semi-reluctantly) assisting passengers when tehre were questions or issues.
but this video also assisted when we bought hte 72hr tickets in teh first place...... i realised we needed to validate, and so we all did!
I hope to go back sometime!
i actually love ur videos
Public transport as a tourist can be incredibly confusing in general. Often signage even in my own country (UK) can be confusing and misleading, especially when travelling in and around/out of London. (e.g. Elizabeth line to Reading with contactless card, many people don't realise they need to tap out and buy ticket for further travel west.)
I'm also from the UK, but this sort of thing is why I always change at Paddington and use GWR between there and Reading. This isn't just because it's considerably faster (And I have to confess I like Class 80x _Shinkansen_ a lot 😇) but it's also to avoid running into potential issues for the fact I haven't a clue where the Oyster boundary is on the WoE line! 😲
That ticket system is needlesly complicated.
The tickets could be unified, but it is not difficult and 5 minutes of preparation before going to a CITY YOU DONT KNOW will give you all the info you need.
Most of these incidents are because tourists assume stuff they shouldnt and proceed to get mad that it doesnt work like in their country.
I will admit that some of the inspectors are assholes though. Tourniquetts at the fenicular are definitely a good idea, however a really bad one in the rest of the city.
@@Joe-sg9ll Actually, the ticket system in Prague is not complicated at all. If you take 3 minutes of your time and look it up on the internet or just look around you at the station. I travelled across almost 40 countries and used public transportation in hundreds of cities, and I never had any issues. Just don't be lazy.
@@kotoucjan this is not public transport ticket, this is cable car ticket, not interchangable
@ Well, that is not entirely true. The cable car is part of Prague Public Transportation. It is included in any ticket that lasts 24 hours or more. You pay extra only if you don't have any. But it is almost always worth it to buy the 24-hour ticket for 120 Kč because you can take the cable car and regular public transportation. And you can buy those in all machines at the cable car station as well. That is why there are ticket inspectors there. Because it is part of the system.
@@kotoucjan but you can't buy the cable car specific ones everywhere, your argument is stupid
Why sell ticket specific to only cable car at the entrance to cable car that needs validation? Yea sell it somewhere else, but wtf, you're not gonna use the ticket anywhere else and it's only valid there
It should become a standard to switch to those tap-in/tap-out systems like you see in London or even Brno. It automatically creates the ticket and bills you at the end of the day, BUT if you tap in and out so much, you cross daily ticket value, it caps out at the daily price. Absolutely problem free and easy system for tourists.
I live in a big city, there are no tourists here. And I have never had to validate tickets in my life. There are either turnstiles or inspectors who check each ticket upon entry. To me this situation sounds like a 100% tourist trap.
Ah Prague, the city where even the system tries to scam you 😂
Hey, I was in Prague about a year ago with my school, on the first day we had a tour where we took the underground and got stopped by ticket inspectors, we all had valid tickets (about 50 ish people) and one guy had an invalid one because the stamper broke (we learned later it usually does that) and so one of us was about to get fined until the guide saw what was happening and argued with them in our favour, took about 15 minutes but we got off and he stamped his ticket. Why could they not just use their brain before? We were all travelling together and 1 of 50 is invalid. Just let him stamp it there and let us go.
I think it's lovely how he taught the words at the end!
Janek needs to be head of tourism.
For obvious reason (corrupt system) they would never let him and his honesty have this job.
He would revolutionize and rout pit all the scams perpetrated by the government.
We can only hope!
Thanks for the great channel
I am British but live in Bratislava where I use pubic transport a lot and visit Prague often but I’ve been caught out and it was ridiculous. I used the PID app to buy tickets for my whole family and the tram came along and we hopped in but our ticket took 2 minutes to become validated which we hadn’t realised - it’s 30 seconds on the Slovak version which is much more reasonable. There was a ticket inspector on the tram and he fined us for having invalidated tickets even though they became validated while we argued! He knew that it was morally outrageous though a we’d paid and weren’t trying to ride for free - and he only fined me rather than all 4 of our group as he was legally entitled to and he gave us a smaller fine. It sucked though as we absolutely were not trying to cheat and it left a really bad taste in my mouth. 2 minutes is a ridiculous amount of time to need to wait. In BA they’ve now altered the app and you can choose when you want the validation to start from so you can maximise the time you use the ticket for according to when your first bus will arrive but you can also opt for using it instantly which is the default now.
You can also select a specific time with the PID app, but the 2min delay is still enforced.
It exists so that people can't hop onto public transport and when they see an inspector to just buy the ticket in-place; it's much easier to stall for just 30 seconds (and it takes them a while to check the people before you). So I kinda understand that but it still sucks - I also often don't know when I will need the ticket so it can be a hassle especially when your trip is just at the limit of the ticket's validity :D
Though now that you know this you could just stall for 2 minutes next time, it's not really hard.
Hello, once I validate my 72 hour ticket before getting on the bus, do I need to validate again later in the day or next day for the metro or tram or bus? Also, do the tourists 65 and older age have free transportation in Prague. Thank you.
@@amunak_Thats why inspectors shut down validating machines when they get in. (in Brno)
@@stprk Let's say you use 50 vehicles of public transport in 3 days. Would you be able to read anything on the stamp after 50 validations? Would you be able to read the stamp even after the second time you validate it? Think about it.
The ticket is valid for 72 hours after you first validate it. DO NOT NEVER EVER EVER STAMP THE TICKET TWICE!!! He said it in the video too.
If I buy a 72 hours ticket I can ride the funicular, without do anything at the machine right?
Yes because you would have already validated it when you first used it and it will already have a time stamped on it.
Can someone also push this question to Prague tourism management?
Inspectors should only be positioned at the bottom (entrance) and request tickets there. If a ticket is not valid, they should deny entry or validate the ticket for the customer. This is not a tram or train, where there are multiple stops for passengers to board or disembark (at least, that's how I understood it from the video; I've never been there)...
Also, perhaps a bit off-topic but still related to tickets in public transport: when I was a student, on some trams in our city, there weren't enough machines to validate tickets at every door, and trams would be so crowded that you couldn't move. When the inspectors came, I never gave them the ticket or ID; I just told them what the problem was. If they wanted to clear a path to the machine to validate the ticket, I would be glad to do so. They never wanted to do it and simply threatened to involve the police, but it's all nonsense. I would just wait for my stop and then leave; they don't have any right to detain you.
One more story, actually about Prague: about 12 years ago (18 at the time first time in Prague), I was about 3 meters from the entrance of the underground, waiting for my friends and smoking a cigar on street level. Security approached me and told me I needed to pay a fine (they said they would call the police and everything in between). I didn't pay the fine because the first forbidden smoking area was at the bottom of the stairs from the entrance. They never called the police; I just went on my way, and that was that.
Please mention that if you buy a ticket in the app you have to wait 2 minutes
Even if you activate the ticket inspector comes before 2 minutes you have to pay fine
Yes, it's true that there is (almost) always someone to help the tourists to buy/validate the tickets. But they are not always as friendly as you said. And most of them only speak Czech ( or pretend so), therefore you can't ask any question and also can't understand what they say, if you are a foreigner.
exactly, I'm yet to see inspector willing to speak english, they have it as job requirement, but exactly 0 of them speak it
@MrDjTilo Actually, at least for me, the instructions are clear, and it's also in English. And it works exactly the same as any other public transport in Prague. I think that's the point tourists don't get.
Just the help from the workers is not that good.
Just came back from Czech yesterday and we went on this on our last day luckily we walked up and took a one way journey down on this and validated it on the machine
I’ve been watching for years and Czech was a lovely holiday and luckily I didn’t run into any of the scams you’ve shared before
I visited Prague twice, and I am going to visit again very soon and again I will use PiD Litacka, having the e-ticket solves the problem. Regarding the Cable car station one more problem - the toilet is disgusting.
The ticket stuff isn't that complex once you understand it.
We also had annoying encounter with a ticket inspector, as we were about to leave the bus in our stop. It was stressful digging our tickets from our pockets with hands full of luggage and fearing that the bus will leave with us missing the stop.
Well, you have no choice but to keep your ticket in your pocket or wallet in case of an inspection. After all, it's printed on it.
Just tell the guy you need to get off now and that you are not running away. Also, you should have your ticket on hand really.
@@zhr3k Yeah, my gripe is that the inspection didn't happen between stops, but literally as we were about to get off.
We were stopping at the bus stop just before the stop at the airport, so I think the inspector thought we were trying to get off to avoid inspection.
The problem with your statemente is exactly the "once you understand it". Tourists have basically 1 shot at getting that right, since they won't come back multiple times on that ride, so it has to be perfectly clear at first glance. Tourists won't have the "once you understand" opportunity :/
@@danevileye You can't assume everything to work automatically. The machine says how long the ticket is valid when you buy it, also iirc the ticket reads that you must validate it before using it. Only thing hard is to understand what lines the ticket is valid at.
I've only visited Prague once, and we had some minor mishaps like didn't realise that the 24h ticket would've saved some money and my friend stamping the ticket at the wrong end.
In Poland, they have a super weird validation system as well.
They have timed tickets and the locals wait for the train to start moving, to validate. Sometimes trains can sit at the station for a long time and if you validate early, you can get un trouble.
This validation system is super weird and ancient 😂
have been in Prague several times - but only once used public transport when i had to go to pretty far outside town. Always found the whole ticket process to be so confusing that I rather just walked. But that cable car is kinda taking the cake.
(on the upside: walking through Prague is a lot of fun and there's so much to see and pass by and all. Also good excercise regimen to counter all that good food 😂)
1:54 Even the machines in Prague are rude and hate their job.
I had coworkers visit Prague. They bought a 3-4 day ticket, but they didn't validate it. The ticket inspector made them pay almost 4000 ck. Damn crooks.
Why crooks? They didn't have a valid ticket. If you are an inspector, you have no way of knowing wheter the person is lying and is just riding with one not validated ticket (in case they get cought) or if that's a legitimate mistake. All the information is on the ticket, it's not that hard.
Yeah, but 4000 Czech crowns are 175 US dollars.@@mrkv4k
@@mrkv4k
Well, if the system is made in a way that there are so many honest people unintentionally making mistakes and then fined it is reasonable to call the operators crooks.
If the ride supposedly accepts different kind of passes, tickets, then it is reasonable to expect that the operator of this ride provides proper system where all passes, tickets be scanned (or validated) correctly before you can take the ride and not penalise people for something the operator failed to do.
@@Dan8254 What do you mean "so many"? Is it 1%? 0.1%? Less than 0.01%? You don't even know...
@@mrkv4k
Watch the video and try to listen to what Janek said when he was commenting on people entering the gate. Do I even need to tell you the timestamp?
Let me just say my experience in Prague.
I left my phone in the back of a taxi and was unable to log into my apple account to use find my iPhone so I had no idea where it was. The phone had our boarding passes on as well as all my payment methods (stupid I know).
After hours of calling the phone a policemen eventually picked up! The next day we agreed on a place to meet and he waited for 45 minutes for me to arrive. When I turned up and tried to offer him some money for breakfast he sincerely declined. They were very polite and helpful. Kudos to them and the taxi driver for handing it in! Great city with great people! I’m glad there are people like Honest guide keeping public officials to account.
You tried to offer a reward to a policeman? 🤨 I would have just arranged to meet at the police station from somebody working a the desk. So nobody had to wait at another location.
A couple months ago we went to Prague with school. The teachers bought tickets for the people that didn't want to walk up. They made a mistake when showing the tickets and everyone had to pay a 1000 crown fine and spent a few hours at the police station. I didn't have to cause I walked up but it still sounded pretty crazy. In total it was about 40 people who had to pay a fine.
As long as the people are buying the tickets valid for only the ride to the top of the hill should not require validating .. as you said, if the validation is going to make already validated tickets invalid .. this is absolutely not right .. I think this needs to be sorted by the city and you should do something about it Janek
The ticket you buy for the cable car is the same as for ALL public transportation in Prague. If you don't validate it, you could use the same ticket for ever. That's why you need to validate it. Because the tickets you buy are valid only for a certain period of time after validation. 30min, 90min, 24h, 72h. It's not confusing at all. It's actually very clear. And this system is used in many European cities.
I didn't know this funicular existed when I went to Prague. Now I'm definitely not going the next time I'm there!
why not, it's nice and it only costs like 2€, you just need to validate it correctly
@@Luck9nN too much drama! 😀
it is there for almost 100 years. unless you were there in 1930 it was there last time
He said he didn't know, not that it didn't exist.@@lukasdolezal8245
Security guards power tripping is something that happens everywhere it seems like
Great content
there is no reason other then for the company to make money from fines for them not to be automatically "validated"
Therapist: A video can't make you angry.
The video:
There is a cable car between Sankt Gallen and Sankt Georgen in Switzerland 🥰 the best thing to do is ride it up and walk down ... for the awesome view. Also nice and cool, that route, thanks to the shade and running water.
There is similar system in other countries as well. But in a place like this important tourist attraction, there must be no inspector at the top (no point for that), only a bottom and reject who is not allowed to step in. If you are in, then ride and enjoy. Or option 2 is to have a stamper on the top and validate (or invalidate) the ticket manually and remind the tourist to do it at the bottom next time. Having no ticket is a different question, pay a fine no excuse.
Even for the last part I think there can be an excuse, if e.g. you can easily and definitely prove you just bought a ticket, but you simply lost it in the past few minutes. But absent of that, even if you actually lost it, I agree. You just write it off as bad luck and pay the fine.
As in most countries ticket inspectors have to be aware of public perception. BUT in Australia there is an entire government department set up to prosecute corruption or public servants
which exploit their positions. So it's actually in ticket inspectors best interest to be nice and not enforced infringements. Which then makes it a better riding experience for everyone.
How did you not mention that you can travel with a normal day pass for all Prague transportation system for the same price as a round trip ticket on this? Also a scam how they don't allow anymore 30 or 60 minutes tickets. Why?
Very good video timing
This is very "common practice" in post soviet block countries. Try to get a train from Warsaw airport to central station as a foreigner. I'm polish, and I'm always astonish by complexity of buying a simple ticket for a sole railway line. I was witness several times of a situation where an inspector was giving 100euro fine to a person that bought 0,1euro cheaper ticket. Your theory on correlation between presence of inspector and absence of support personel may be right.
I am police for comment section!