Maternity Hospitals in Prague: Where to Give Birth

Prague has six maternity hospitals, and all of them are part of public hospitals. Together they recorded about 13,400 births in 2025. There is no private maternity hospital in the city, so whether you are insured through a Czech employer, hold an EHIC or pay yourself, you will give birth in one of these six. The good news is that choosing has become easier: birth numbers have fallen, and the old race to register in the first weeks of pregnancy is over.

This guide explains how maternity care works in Prague, compares the six hospitals, and covers what foreigners need to arrange. Each hospital has its own detailed page.

How maternity care works in Prague

• Pregnancy care is with your own gynaecologist. You see an outpatient gynaecologist throughout the pregnancy. They give you a pregnancy card (těhotenská průkazka) in which all results are recorded. Carry it with you.
• The maternity hospital takes over near the end. Most Prague hospitals ask you to come for a check-in visit around week 36 or 37, with a referral from your gynaecologist.
• Early registration is a thing of the past. Five of the six hospitals state on their websites that you no longer have to reserve a place; for Motol it is best to phone and check. Some offer a voluntary online form so they can contact you.
• Hospitals differ in level of care. Three are perinatal intensive care centres, able to look after the most complicated pregnancies and very premature babies: Podolí, Apolinář and Motol. The other three are intermediate centres, which care for babies born from about week 32: Bulovka, Thomayer and Královské Vinohrady.
• After the birth mother and baby normally share a room. Podolí, for example, gives the usual stay as three to five days and at least 72 hours.
• New in 2026: every woman is entitled to three home visits from a midwife after the birth, paid in full by public health insurance. You get the referral when you leave hospital.

The six maternity hospitals compared

Birth numbers are national statistics for 2025. Hospitals’ own counts can differ: Podolí, for example, reports 3,752 births for 2025 on its website.

The hospitals one by one

Podolí Maternity Hospital (ÚPMD)

The busiest maternity hospital in Prague and a specialised women’s hospital on the river embankment. It has the highest level of perinatal care and runs antenatal courses, ward tours and consultations in English. It also publishes clear deposits for women without Czech insurance. Read the full Podolí profile.

Apolinář Maternity Hospital

The maternity clinic of the General University Hospital, in a red-brick building from 1875 near the centre. Highest level of care, an epidural service around the clock, a Delivery Centre for low-risk births and a website in English. Read the full Apolinář profile.

Bulovka University Hospital

The maternity unit for the north of the city. Its Midwifery Centre, the first in the country, offers midwife-led births inside the hospital with a doctor close by. Epidurals and companions are free of charge. Read the full Bulovka profile.

Thomayer University Hospital

A mid-sized unit in a green campus in Krč, with four home-style delivery rooms that each have their own bathroom. Epidurals are free and two companions are welcome. The hospital also has a Foreigners Department. Read the full Thomayer profile.

Motol University Hospital

A perinatal intensive care centre next to the country’s largest children’s hospital, which matters when a baby is expected to need surgery or heart care soon after birth. It is on metro line A and has a department for foreign patients. Read the full Motol profile.

University Hospital Královské Vinohrady (FNKV)

The smallest of the six by number of births, about ten minutes on foot from Želivského metro. Registration is voluntary, and the check-in visit is booked by phone. Read the full FNKV profile.

How to choose

• Your pregnancy. If it is high-risk, your gynaecologist will probably point you to one of the three intensive-level centres.
• Distance. Think about the journey in rush-hour traffic, and at night. A hospital on your metro line can matter more than its reputation.
• Language. Podolí and Bulovka offer antenatal courses in English, and Apolinář runs a course in a foreign language several times a year. No hospital promises an English-speaking midwife on the day, so consider bringing a Czech-speaking friend or a doula who can interpret.
• The kind of birth you want. Ask about midwife-led care (Bulovka), private rooms and what the delivery rooms look like. Podolí, Bulovka and Thomayer offer tours of the delivery rooms.

What is covered and what costs extra

With Czech public health insurance, pregnancy care, the birth and the hospital stay are covered. What you may pay for are extras:

• Private rooms. Around 1,700 CZK per night at Bulovka, 2,000 CZK at Apolinář, and 1,700 to 3,900 CZK at Podolí depending on the room.
• Antenatal courses. For example 4,500 CZK per couple at Apolinář, from 3,900 CZK in English at Podolí, 4,000 CZK in English at Bulovka.
• A companion. Free at Bulovka and at a vaginal birth at Apolinář. Královské Vinohrady charges 500 CZK for the companion’s briefing and Apolinář charges 750 CZK at a caesarean. Ask the other hospitals.
• Your own midwife. Apolinář offers an individual midwife for the whole birth for 25,000 CZK.

Bulovka and Thomayer state that an epidural is free of charge. At the other hospitals, ask whether there is a charge when it is given at your own request.

Giving birth in Prague as a foreigner

Insurance

• Czech public insurance: you are covered like any Czech woman.
• EHIC: covers medically necessary care during a temporary stay. Ask your home insurer in advance how it applies to a planned birth abroad.
• Commercial insurance for foreigners: read the policy. Check whether pregnancy and birth are covered and from when, because policies often have a waiting period.
• No cover for birth: you pay as a self-payer, and the hospital takes a deposit in advance.

What it costs without insurance

Podolí publishes its deposits: 55,000 CZK for a vaginal birth, 80,000 CZK for a planned caesarean, 30,000 CZK for care of the newborn and 20,000 CZK for prenatal care (price list valid from 15 October 2026). The final bill is calculated after you leave. Apolinář asks for 100% of the estimated cost in advance. For the other hospitals, ask their desk for foreigners for an estimate a few weeks before your due date.

Your baby’s health insurance

A baby born in the Czech Republic to a mother with a long-term residence permit is covered by public health insurance from birth until the end of the month in which the baby is 60 days old. You have to apply for the baby’s residence permit within 60 days of the birth, and cover then continues while the application is decided. The parent pays the premium, 3,024 CZK a month in 2026, and has to report the birth to the health insurer within eight days.

The birth certificate

The hospital reports the birth to the registry office (matrika) of the district where it stands, and the registry issues the birth certificate within 30 days. Married parents show their marriage certificate, their IDs and a signed agreement on the child’s name. Unmarried parents also need a declaration of paternity, which can be made before the birth. Foreign documents generally have to be translated into Czech by a court-certified translator, so contact the registry office well before your due date to check exactly what it needs.

Home births and private care

Home birth is not prohibited in the Czech Republic, but the Constitutional Court has said that it is not healthcare under Czech law, so the usual guarantees of the health system do not apply and the risks stay with the mother. The closest alternative inside a hospital is midwife-led care at Bulovka. Private clinics in Prague offer pregnancy care with English-speaking doctors, with the birth itself taking place in one of the public maternity hospitals. See also our guide to finding an English-speaking gynaecologist in Prague.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to register at a maternity hospital early in pregnancy?

No longer. Prague’s maternity hospitals have dropped compulsory early registration; for Motol, phone to check. Guides that tell you to register by week 14 are out of date. Look at the hospital’s page for when it wants to see you, usually around week 36.

Which maternity hospital in Prague is best for English speakers?

Podolí runs courses, tours and consultations in English. Apolinář has an English website and its own foreigners’ department. Bulovka runs an antenatal course in English. For help with insurance and payment, Motol, Thomayer and Královské Vinohrady have desks for foreigners.

How much does it cost to give birth in Prague without insurance?

At Podolí the deposits for a vaginal birth and care of the baby add up to 85,000 CZK, before any extras. Complications and caesarean sections cost more.

Can my partner be with me?

Yes, in all six hospitals. Some allow two companions.

Is there a private maternity hospital in Prague?

No. All hospital births take place in the six public maternity hospitals. Most of them offer private rooms for a fee.

This guide was last checked in November 2026 against official sources. Prices and rules change, so confirm the details with the hospital you choose. Browse all listings in our maternity hospitals directory, or read the general guide to hospitals in Prague.