The 81st Prague Spring International Music Festival will take place from 12 May to 4 June 2026, presenting more than sixty events, including 38 concerts, 19 workshops and masterclasses, and 7 accompanying events such as the traditional Prague Spring Art Salon exhibition. In the year marking the eightieth anniversary of its founding, the festival will welcome 97 artists, chamber ensembles, and orchestras from 28 countries around the world. The festival itself will be preceded by the 77th Prague Spring International Music Competition, held from 6 to 14 May.
The 2026 edition stands out for its major vocal-instrumental projects. The Festival will also welcome a number of leading orchestras, including the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, inseparably linked with the festival’s founder Rafael Kubelík. After fifty-two years, Martha Argerich returns to Prague Spring, while Finnish conductor Klaus Mäkelä will be back after three years. The programme includes a recital by Eric Lu, the recent winner of the International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition in Warsaw, as well as many festival debuts, particularly among the world’s foremost vocal stars. Appearing at the festival for the first time will be Elīna Garanča, Benjamin Bernheim, Kang Wang, and, above all, the Canadian soprano and conductor Barbara Hannigan, the Prague Spring 2026 Artist-in-Residence. The Festival will also showcase an entire generation of leading Czech conductors: Petr Popelka, Jakub Hrůša, Tomáš Netopil, Tomáš Hanus, Václav Luks, and Robert Jindra. And finally the Prague Offspring’s 2026 Composer-in Residence, Unsuk Chin.
For eighty-one years (since the spring of 1946) the Prague Spring International Music Festival has established itself as one of the world’s most respected classical music festivals. Rafael Kubelík, a preeminent conductor of 20th century classical music, was instrumental in the founding of the festival. The very first edition saw the international debut of the later renowned conductor Leonard Bernstein. Established in 1947, the Prague Spring International Music Competition, a founding member of the World Federation of International Music Competitions since 1957, has become an integral part of the festival.
Prague Spring Festival is held in Prague, the capital city of the Czech Republic and one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. The concerts take place at two main venues – the Municipal House and Rudolfinum at the riverbank of Vltava and several other venues, including DOX Contemporary Art Gallery, National Technical Museum, National Theatre, various churches and monasteries and others.
The festival’s concert venues will take you to the most beautiful places in Prague: Art Nouveau gem Municipal House, Rudolfinum at the riverbank with spectacular view of the Prague Castle, tiny churches like St Agnes’ Convent at the heart of the historic centre and others. Concerts take place also in less typical or industrial venues like DOX Contemporary Art Gallery or National Technical Museum and others.
By airplane
The international Václav Havel Prague Airport is located on the northwestern outskirts of Prague in the Ruzyně district. Connections to the city centre are provided by public transport buses, AE – Airport Express buses, or Airport Taxi.
By train
Three European railway corridors intersect in Prague, connecting the metropolis with the whole of Europe. The city’s primary train station is the Prague Main Railway Station, which sends over 200,000 trains a year to all major Czech cities and abroad. The second international train station is Prague Holešovice. Czech Railways is the largest national carrier in the Czech Republic; other major operators include RegioJet and Leo Express.
By bus
The central bus station in Prague is Prague Florenc Bus Station, a full-service station in the city centre at the Florenc metro station (lines B and C). More than 100 transport companies service the station, including international carriers. One of the major domestic and interstate carrier is RegioJet, which operates both buses and trains. Other large carriers include FlixBus. LEO Express provides bus connections to Prague from Poland and Slovakia.
By car
A dense network of roads leads to Prague, which are linked together by the Prague ring road (D0) in Prague. The ring road also handles transit traffic from the D1, D4, D5, D6, D7, D8, D10 and D11 motorways. Motorway tolls are collected in the form of a motorway electronic vignette (dálniční známka in Czech) which can be purchased in an e-shop, at sales points, or at self-service kiosks. More information about parking through this link.
More information about how to get to Prague through this link.
There are various types of accommodation for various demands, as in every other European city – from branch hotels to Airbnb apartments and hostels.
In Prague itself you can visit many important and interesting places, with beautiful architecture, such as: Prague Castle, Charles Bridge, Old Town Square, Jewish Quarter, Wenceslas Square, National Museum, National Gallery and many more.
Whether you've come for luxury or with a backpack, Prague will tell its thousand-year-old story at every turn. In galleries you will find works by Dürer, Picasso, Warhol and Hirst, as well as outstanding Czech modernism by Kupka, Toyen and Filla. Nowhere else in the world will you find as many cubist houses and interiors as in Prague. Observe the life of the city from the cafes and restaurants where Kafka, Einstein or Havel used to sit before you.
There are several cities close to Prague where you can take a day trip. By train, by bus or by car you can go to the famous Kutná Hora, Český Krumlov, Litomyšl, the spa town Karlovy Vary, beer making city Plzeň etc.
The festival takes place for three weeks in May. The weather is already warm, but it can still be rainy. An umbrella is recommended for walking around the city. For concerts inside the beautiful concert halls, smart casual dress is recommended.
Prague has a very diverse gastronomic scene, offering a whole range of unique places, from Michelin star restaurants to an abundance of breweries and sweet shops. To explore the wide variety please click here.
The Prague Spring Festival offers a great opportunity to see and hear the very best contemporary performers of classical music, in one of the most beautiful historic cities in the world.
