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Travelers to and within Czechia and Prague are reminded to beware of the impact on some transportation schedules as the country ushers Daylight Saving Time (DST) this Sunday, March 31, 2024. All clocks in the Czech Republic will switch to Central European Summer Time (CEST) as is the case in most European countries. This period will last seven months operating until the last Sunday of October.

This switch from the standard Central European Time (CET) in Prague and throughout the country will move clocks forward by one hour at 2 a.m. on March 31. In Prague, the impact will affect transportation schedules especially overnight trains which will face one-hour delays.

History of Czechia’s Daylight Saving Time (DTS)

The Daylight Saving Time custom in Prague and Czechia is over a century old. It started in 1916 during World War I. The Austro-Hungarian Empire introduced it across its territories and Czechia was part of the region then. The practice was observed in the country for a while and scrapped.

In 1940, the Nazis brought Daylight Saving Time (DST) back to the Czech region. It took effect until 1949 when the Communist era abolished Summer time in Czechoslovakia. For thirty years, daylight saving time was forgotten in the country until 1979 when the Czechoslovakia Communist regime reintroduced the tradition.

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Through an EU directive in 1996, daylight saving time saw an extension from six to seven months. The Czech Republic was already an EU member at the time, following its split from Czechoslovakia in 1993.

In recent years, this practice has received criticism on whether it is an energy-saving measure across Europe. Critics also cite that biannual time changes disrupt natural human biorhythms which can lead to potential health risks.

These deliberations led to a 2018 European Commission proposal to scrap these time shifts. Member states of the European Union were given the authority to choose to stick or scrap summer or winter times.

With no consensus reached among EU members, the Czech Republic approved observation of summer-time for five years since 2021. This period will allow the country to wait for a wide resolution among EU members.

The 2024 Summer time shift in Czechia marks over 30 years of observing Daylight Saving Time since the country’s breakout from Czechoslovakia.