Allow ~45 min to airport · be at gate by 04:20 (opens) / 04:45 (closes)

Terminal 3 · Seat 23J · Economy CLSC · Zone A
Gate closes 04:45 IDT · Departure 05:00 IDT

~4 hr flight + 1 hr time-zone gain · clear immigration + bags ~30 min
Optional: airport breakfast at PRG Café before transit

AE bus from Terminal 2 stop · 100 CZK adult · ~35 min · every 30 min
Drops you at Wilsonova St in front of Fanta building (hl.n. main entrance)

Prague 1 · ~0.8 km from the centre · metro access
17–19 May (2 nights) · from Praha hl.n. it is a short walk / one metro stop
Early check-in subject to availability; otherwise leave bags & head out

Checkout typically by 11:00 — confirm at the desk · they can hold bags
Morning is open in Prague until the 14:00 car pickup (your call — say the word and I'll plan it)

Pick-up Tue 19/05 14:00 · Praha hl.n. (Main Railway Station) · held 1 h after 14:00
Drop-off Tue 26/05 19:00 · PRG Václav Havel Airport · 8 rental days
Škoda Octavia or similar · automatic · A/C · unlimited km · CZ vignette incl.
Cross-border to Germany permitted (written confirmation is on the voucher)

D6 west motorway · ~125 km · ~90 min · no tolls
Scenic alt via Slaný → Žatec → Klášterec adds ~1.5 hr

Quick hypermarket stop as you reach KV — water, snacks, fruit, a picnic for the Pupp evening and the remote Bastei leg later (21–22 May).
Large CZ Kauflands are usually open ~07:00–21:00 — check the door · ~20 min · cards accepted (CZK)

Mírové náměstí 2 · Karlovy Vary 1 · 360 01
19–20 May (1 night) · valet parking · drop bags & head out while it's light

From Grandhotel Pupp, riverside along the Teplá:
Mlýnská (Mill, neo-Renaissance · 5 springs) → Tržní (Market, carved wood) → Vřídelní (the Vřídlo geyser, ~12 m / 73 °C) → Sadová (Park, cast-iron in Dvořák Gardens), then back the opposite bank.
~1.6 km loop · flat & paved · 45–60 min with stops · grab the porcelain becher cup (~€8) to taste the springs (30–73 °C).
📷 A7R5: colonnade symmetry & cast-iron detail; fast shutter for the geyser plume; soft evening light on the facades.

Roman-bath spa beneath the hotel · ~€40 couple if not in rate
OR Becher's Bar (1907 vintage, ~12 seats) for an aperitif · ~€20 couple

Best position: Pupp upper-floor windows facing the Teplá river
OR the small bridge in front of the hotel · live time in Sun & light card

Checkout typically by 11:00 — confirm at the desk · valet brings the car
Karlovy Vary morning is open (colonnade, Diana funicular) before the short hop to Ostrov

~13 km · ~20 min · Ostrov is just north-east of Karlovy Vary
Time it however you like — only a short transfer

Settle any extras · long drive to Saxon Switzerland today

~200 km · ~3 h via the Dresden direction — verify the live route in your maps app
Crosses CZ → DE (Schengen; spot checks possible) — carry passports
Germany is covered by your Budget voucher (written confirmation is on it)

Bastei 1 · 01847 Lohmen, Germany
21–22 May (1 night) · request "Talseite" (valley side)
Hotel sits literally ~50 m from the Basteibrücke

Best now: the day-trippers have gone, soft side-light, and it doubles as recon for tomorrow's sunrise. Easy plateau loop — no ladders or chains.
1. From the hotel, follow the signed Bastei path (~2 min).
2. Basteibrücke — cross the 1851 sandstone bridge over the Mardertelle gorge; note where the sun will rise (NE, behind the spires) for the morning frame.
3. Ferdinandstein — quiet ledge just past the bridge; evening side-light on the towers.
4. Felsenburg Neurathen (rock castle, ~€2 pp) — railed wooden walkways through the gorge; closes around dusk.
5. Basteiaussicht — the main lookout over the Elbe bend; last light west across the massif.
6. Back to the hotel — ~1.6 km total · flat · 45–60 min with photo stops.
📷 A7R5 + tripod (this is the sunrise recon) · headlamp if you linger past dusk.

No drive — the bridge is right outside · check the live sunrise time in the Sun & light card

ISO 100 · f/8 · manual focus stacked on Lilienstein's east face · bracket ±2 stops
Be set up ~20 min before the time shown in the Sun & light card · spires hold light ~45 min after

Wider sandstone-spires panorama · second session after the bridge

The windows have THE view · included in room rate