Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Czechia Prague Nuclear Bunker Museum
AO Edited

Nuclear Bunker Museum

Buried five stories underground, this Soviet bunker is packed with gas masks and Cold War paraphernalia.

Prague, Czechia

Added By
Urvija Banerji
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Nuclear Bunker Museum   Laika ac
A post-apocalyptic family   Greger Ravik
The bunker’s entrance is behind an unassuming graffitied wall   Laika ac
The “Lenin” wall plays on Prague’s famous John Lennon wall   Laika ac
Gas masks galore   Laika ac
A naked dummy being scrubbed clean   Greger Ravik
Music Club Parukářka Underground  
Music Club Parukářka Underground  
Parukářka - enter  
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Behind an unassuming graffitied wall is an old Soviet bunker which today evokes the paranoia and violence of the Cold War years.

A civilian bunker lies buried five stories beneath Prague's decrepit Parukarka hill, a product of the fear of nuclear armageddon that penetrated the masses during the Cold War. Though both sides of the Iron curtain became obsessed with preparing for the possibility of a nuclear war, such bunkers were constructed with more frequency in the Eastern Bloc, as communist economies fully focused their resources on defense and army structures.

This bunker was not designed to house its inhabitants for decades, or even for years. Studies at the time found that there were many psychological risks associated with keeping people within the bunkers for extended periods of time, such as suicide and mass panic. So instead, the civilian bunker in Parukarka park was meant to save civilians from immediate death in face of nuclear explosions, and the idea was that they would evacuate to the countryside soon thereafter.

Today, you can explore the remnants of Soviet era paranoia on a two-hour-long guided tour, which takes you through some of the communist spots in Prague's Old Town and ends in the nuclear bunker. The museum within the bunker serves as a snapshot of Soviet life, and in addition to the requisite dozens of gas masks, contains books, newspapers and photographs from the time. 

 

Related Tags

Soviet History Nuclear Bunkers Museums And Collections Museums Cold War Gas Masks Communist Architecture Communist Monuments Military

Know Before You Go

The nuclear bunker is only accessible through guided tours, which occur daily at 10:30 am and 2:30 pm. Tickets can be purchased online or at the tour's starting point, the Prague Special Tours ticket office at Old Town Square.

Community Contributors

Added By

urvijabanerji

Edited By

Sebastian Wortys

  • Sebastian Wortys

Published

March 21, 2016

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://www.prague-nuclear-bunker.com/museum-home-page
  • http://www.dark-tourism.com/index.php/15-countries/individual-chapters/875-prague-nuclear-bunker-and-communism-tour
  • http://www.bruisedpassports.com/wheres/offbeat-prague-top-10
Nuclear Bunker Museum
Malé nám. 11
Prague
Czechia
50.084248, 14.458067
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

'Babies'

Prague, Czechia

miles away

Žižkov Tower

Prague, Czechia

miles away

Olšany Cemetery

Prague, Czechia

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Prague

Prague

Czechia

Places 82

Nearby Places

'Babies'

Prague, Czechia

miles away

Žižkov Tower

Prague, Czechia

miles away

Olšany Cemetery

Prague, Czechia

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Prague

Prague

Czechia

Places 82

Related Stories and Lists

23 Places to Relive the Cold War

List

By Gemma Tarlach

Related Places

  • Aerial view of the Soviet summer camp.

    Bluemont, Virginia

    Soviet Embassy's 'Summer Camp' House

    Conveniently located within binocular range of a nuclear bunker, the "summer camp" area was a painfully obvious spy house.

  • Looking down the hall to the bunker

    Moscow, Russia

    Bunker-42

    Dr. Strangelove-esque tours reveal the inside a bunker once reserved for Stalin himself.

  • Warrenton, Virginia

    Cold War Museum

    This museum sits on the site of a decommissioned military communications base.

  • Schorfheide, Germany

    Finowfurt Aviation Museum

    This former Soviet military base has over 10 original aircraft and an enormous amount of memorabilia on display.

  • Museum Uranbergbau exterior.

    Bad Schlema, Germany

    Museum Uranbergbau

    Learn the incredible story of how an unassuming spa town was transformed into one of the world’s largest uranium mining sites.

  • New Orleans, Louisiana

    Civil Defense Control Center

    An abandoned underground bunker not far from downtown New Orleans.

  • The monument and its surroundings.

    Georgia

    Russia–Georgia Friendship Monument

    A cylinder monument with a spectacular vista commemorates a friendship that some say never existed.

  • Washington, D.C.

    Russian Ambassador's Residence

    Was there a small "backpack nuke" hidden in the attic? JFK apparently thought so.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.