Prague bans organised pub crawls in battle against stag-dos as it tries to attract 'more cultured' visitors

Prague has banned organised evening pub crawls in a bid to clamp down on noise and disruption from drunken tourists.

Lawmakers in the Czech capital have ruled the crawls, where drinkers follow a guide to different bars, can not go ahead between the hours of 10pm and 6am.

They voted to back a motion that said “unreasonable consumption of alcohol and disruptive behavior associated with pub crawls can create the impression of a lack of culture in the community, reduce the feeling of safety and … can have a negative impact on the perception of the municipality by tourists, potential investors and the citizens themselves”.

Deputy Mayor Jiri Pospisil said the city wanted to attact “more cultured, wealthier” visitors and not just tourists visiting “for a short time only to get drunk”.

It is part of a wider backlash across Europe against overtourism when locations are swamped by visitors to the extent it has a detrimental effect on local people.

A demo in Spain against overtourism (AFP via Getty Images)

The move comes as Hungary's government is considering a plan to impose a moratorium on new Airbnb licences in Budapest and to raise taxes on short-term apartment rentals in the capital city.

Economy minister Marton Nagy announced the plans about a month after residents of Budapest's sixth district voted to ban short-term rentals from 2026, the first such ban in one of Europe's most popular tourist destinations.

Some residents in European tourist hotspots blame short-term lets for driving up home prices.

"We are thinking about a possible moratorium and a tax hike in Budapest," Nagy said at a press briefing, adding the government had not made a decision yet.

"The Airbnb market will change, and it is sure that it cannot grow further," he said, calling the issue a question of housing policy.

Nagy also said the government was negotiating about the proposed new rules with trade organisations in the tourism industry and changes would not affect short-term rental properties outside thecapital.

In Budapest's sixth district, 54% of voters backed a ban on short-term rentals with 20.52% turnout in mid-September.