Life as an English teacher
in Czechia
A typical week, Czech culture decoded, weekend rail travel across Europe, seasonal reality, and the things that consistently surprise teachers who move here.
Life as an English teacher in Czechia
What a typical week looks like, how Czech culture actually works, what to do with your free time, and the parts nobody mentions before you go.
A typical teaching week
Early mornings (7–9am)
Business English classes for professionals before work. The most lucrative slot — corporate clients pay the best rates and book the most reliably. Non-negotiable if you want to build a corporate income.
Mid-morning gap (9am–noon)
The Czech teacher's "office hours." Most teachers prep lessons, handle admin, travel between clients, or take private students during this window. Coffee shops in Prague and Brno are full of teachers with laptops.
Lunchtime classes (noon–2pm)
A secondary corporate teaching slot — 45-min to 1-hour sessions for professionals at their offices. Less lucrative than mornings but highly in-demand and a good way to fill the timetable.
Afternoon break (2–4pm)
Most teachers have a real break here. Czech professional culture doesn't extend into afternoon lessons the way evenings do. Use it for admin, exercise, or Czech language study.
After-school and evenings (4–8pm)
Language school classes for children (4–6pm) and adult evening classes (6–8pm). These complete the split shift and make up the majority of language school hours. Expect travel between venues.
Evenings and weekends
Free. Czech cities have excellent restaurant, pub, concert, and arts scenes. The hospoda (pub) is the social hub — cheap beer, good food, and where real Czech friendships are built.
Czech culture — what actually surprises teachers
Reserve ≠ unfriendly
Czech people have a reputation for coldness that confuses new arrivals. The reality: Czech culture is formal at first but deeply warm once rapport is built. Don't mistake initial reserve for rejection. Show up reliably, respect punctuality, and the warmth follows.
Punctuality is serious
In Czech professional culture, being late is genuinely disrespectful — not just inconvenient. This applies to lessons, meetings, and social arrangements. If you're going to be late, phone ahead. "Czech time" doesn't mean late; it means exactly on time.
The hospoda is the social centre
Czechia has the highest beer consumption per capita in the world. The local pub (hospoda) is where colleagues become friends, where deals get discussed, and where you'll have your most memorable conversations. You don't have to drink, but understanding its cultural importance matters.
Czech is hard — learn a little anyway
Czech is one of the most grammatically complex languages in Europe. Functional fluency takes years. But learning Dobrý den (hello), Díky (thanks), Promiňte (excuse me), and basic numbers makes an enormous difference in how locals respond to you.
Four very different seasons
Czech winters (November–February) are genuinely cold, grey, and long. Spring and summer are beautiful — outdoor markets, river swimming, cycling, festivals. Autumn is stunning. The seasonal contrast is one of the most vivid aspects of life in Central Europe.
Weekend travel from Prague and Brno
🚂 From Prague (train times)
🚂 From Brno (train times)
Things teachers consistently say about living in Czechia: The quality of life surprised them. The architecture never gets old. Czech beer really is that good. Building a full client roster took longer than expected. The winters were harder than they expected. They stayed longer than they planned.
Ready to make the move?
TEFL Heaven can help you plan the right approach — qualifications, timing, destination, and what to expect when you get there.