Lobkowicz Palace

Prague Castle is full of grand state rooms, but most of them are empty of the life that filled them. Lobkowicz Palace is the opposite: a house that still belongs to the family who have owned it for centuries, filled with the things they collected and told in their own voices. The Lobkowicz family were among the most powerful aristocrats of Bohemia, and their palace sits at the eastern end of the castle complex, at the top of the Old Castle Steps, beside Golden Lane. Tiqets describes it as the only privately owned building inside the UNESCO-protected castle area and as home to the oldest and largest private art collection in the country. The visit is a self-guided walk through more than twenty rooms with an audio guide, and the audio guide is the reason to come: it is narrated largely by members of the family, who mix art history with family stories of patronage, war, confiscation and return. The collection includes paintings by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, whose Haymaking is the star, two views of London by Canaletto and works by Velázquez and other old masters, alongside family portraits, porcelain, arms and armour. For music lovers there is a special treat: the family were patrons of Beethoven, and the palace displays original manuscripts and scores connected with Beethoven and Mozart. The family lost everything twice in the twentieth century, first to the Nazis and then to the Communist regime, and recovered the collection only after 1989; that story, told in the rooms where it happened, gives the visit a depth that the state apartments lack. Allow an hour and a half, and leave time for the cafe, whose small balcony has one of the best views over the red roofs of Malá Strana.

Why it is worth adding to a castle day: the main castle circuit covers St Vitus Cathedral, the Old Royal Palace, St George's Basilica and Golden Lane, and by the end of it many visitors are tired of crowds. Lobkowicz Palace is usually calmer, its rooms are intimate rather than monumental, and the art is of a different order. Bruegel's Haymaking, one of his series of paintings of the seasons, is worth the visit by itself, and the Canaletto views of the Thames are a surprise in a Bohemian palace. The music rooms, with manuscripts linked to Beethoven, whose works were dedicated to a Lobkowicz prince, are moving even for non-specialists. The audio guide is long, so skip tracks if you are short of time.

Practicalities: the palace is open daily, with a ticket separate from the main castle circuit; Tiqets sells the palace entry with audio guide, a combined Prague Castle and Lobkowicz Palace ticket, and a ticket with the short classical concert held in the palace concert hall around midday. The concert is a pleasant extra, not essential. Bags may be checked by castle security on the way in, so travel light. The cafe serves light lunches and coffee and is a better place to rest than the busy castle courtyards; the view from its balcony across the river to the Old Town spires is excellent at any time of year.

Fitting it in: do the main castle circuit first, then walk down Jiřská street to the palace at the eastern end. From here the Old Castle Steps lead down to Malostranská metro, or you can wander down through the gardens below the castle in season. If you hold the combined castle ticket on Tiqets, the palace is already included, so do not buy twice. For a castle district day that goes deeper than the headline sights, combine Lobkowicz Palace in the morning with Strahov or the Loreta in Hradčany, and finish in Malá Strana for dinner.