Living in Olomouc

Palacký University Olomouc, as well as Olomouc city, offer a variety of centres and midpoints where students, academic workers, guests, and the general public can learn and improve on the basis of educational, cross-cultural, multi-lingual and self-growth abilities, skills and habits for the journey of studies, work or life growth.

Dormitories

University students, employees and guests can choose from a variety of apartments and dormitories recommended by the university or they can reach for real estate agencies with individual preferences and requirements. It is possible to see the current state of every university type of accommodation as it is all digitalized through a virtual tour.

Accommodation campuses

Accommodation facilities of Palacký University Olomouc have two main campuses, two dormitories outside the main area, and one hostel for university guests. Two main campuses are The Envelopa Campus and The Neředín Campus. Both campuses have specific characteristics based on the needs of students. The Envelopa Campus is closer to the downtown of Olomouc, whereas the Neředín Campus is on the outskirts.

Once you arrive at the dormitories, you will be asked to sign a housing contract and pay a deposit for the accommodation. However, it does not have to be paid immediately. You can pay the deposit within the first week. Make sure you pay all the costs (deposit and monthly rent) on time, or you will be put on a list of debtors, which can result in eviction.

The information about university housing options can be found at Accommodation and Dining page. If you are interested in booking a room at the dormitories, we recommend you visit the Accommodation Booking

Obligatory waste management municipal fee

It is obligatory for all foreigners staying in Olomouc for more than 90 days to pay the waste management municipal fee. 

This responsibility does not apply to students under 26 years of age staying at the UP dormitory (if you are staying in a flat, the fee is usually included in the rent, but check with your landlord to make sure).

If it is mandatory for you to pay the waste management municipal fee, please download the form and carefully read all the information. In 2023, the fee is 804 CZK per year.

How to do it:
1. step
- Fill out the form 

2. step - send the form as an attachment and the text below as the corpus of the email to address: podatelna@olomouc.eu

  • text for the e-mail (in Czech)

3. step - Wait for a response stating the amount and the payment method, and follow the instruction.

If you have any further questions, please contact the Municipality Office, Waste management office at 14 Palackého Street, NAMIRO building.

Housing and apartments

As the dormitories can accommodate only a limited number of students, there is also an option to rent a shared room or an apartment in the private sector. Sometimes students also reach for this option as it meets their specific accommodation preferences. It is usual for students to rent a whole apartment with their university colleagues and friends, so the rent for every member is comparable with the dormitory.

Students, academics and guests can reach out to several real estate agencies operating in Olomouc. Some groups and websites help international people with valuable information regarding accommodation or finding roommates and friends. We include links to real estate agencies, Facebook groups and hotel options in Olomouc:

Obligatory waste management municipal fee

It is obligatory for all foreigners staying in Olomouc for more than 90 days to pay the waste management municipal fee. 

This responsibility does not apply to students under 26 years of age staying at the UP dormitory (if you are staying in a flat, the fee is usually included in the rent, but check with your landlord to make sure).

If it is mandatory for you to pay the waste management municipal fee, please download the form and carefully read all the information. In 2023, the fee is 804 CZK per year.

How to do it:
1. step
- Fill out the form 

2. step - send the form as an attachment and the text below as the corpus of the email to address: podatelna@olomouc.eu

  • text for the e-mail (in Czech)

3. step - Wait for a response stating the amount and the payment method, and follow the instruction.

If you have any further questions, please contact the Municipality Office, Waste management office at 14 Palackého Street, NAMIRO building.

Facebook groups

Canteens and dining options

The Czech Republic has several typical foods that may surprise international visitors. However, the cuisine of the Czech Republic is quite all-embracing and foreign people can reach for almost all types of foods in Olomouc. Palacký University Olomouc usually provides students with canteens within a few minutes from dormitories, so they do not have to struggle to search for their favourite diner. There are also many restaurants in Olomouc that, in addition to the standard all-day menu, offer daily lunch menus at affordable prices. We present some dining options concerning UP canteens, restaurants, cafes and bistros.

UP canteens

Canteens supervised under the administration of Palacký University Olomouc offer a wide range of hot meals featuring Czech and foreign cuisine. Canteens also provide baked pizzas and variations of vegan, vegetarian and gluten-free meals. Students, academic workers and guests are able to choose between soups, salads, desserts and current canteen offerings. Personnel of canteen is also able to wrap the meal for take away.

Apart from canteens, you can also enjoy Fresh UP bistros. The good news is that you can use your ISIC card to pay in the bistros, the same as at the canteens. A list of all canteens and more information on how to order a meal is provided on the website of UP canteens.

Restaurants and cafes

Olomouc is a city that thrives thanks to its complex structure of restaurants and cafés. As it composes of a great variety of restaurants and cafes, it would be surprising if one would not find nourishment regarding their preferences. You can reach for TripAdvisor to see some of the most popular places.        

We are presenting some of the restaurants, cafes and other options to satisfy the appetite of every type of customer. If you prefer to stay in and enjoy a calm evening or weekend, you can always order food and groceries online.

Tips for restaurants

And many more basically at every corner...

Tips for cafés

And many more basically at every corner...

Online food delivery

Bank account services

Some foreign people must open a bank account to receive a payment or a scholarship from a university. It is possible to choose from several banks in the Czech Republic. To open a bank account, you must provide all the documents in English or Czech.

Requirements for EU residents

If you are an EU resident, it is recommended that you have all the documents prepared in English or Czech (so that the process of opening a bank account does not meet any inconsistencies).

Be prepared to provide:

  • Passport
  • Mobile phone (Czech number)
  • E-mail address
  • Place of birth
  • Permanent address (home country)
  • Contact address in the Czech Republic (for credit card delivery)
  • Proof of studies not older than 30 days

Requirements for non-EU residents

If you are non-EU resident, it is recommended that you have all the documents prepared in English or Czech (so that the process of opening a bank account does not meet any inconsistencies).

Be prepared to provide:

  • Passport
  • Mobile phone (Czech number)
  • E-mail address
  • Place of birth
  • Permanent address (home country)
  • Contact address in the Czech Republic (for credit card delivery)
  • Proof of studies not older than 30 days
  • D visa or Permanent/ Long-term residence permit

If you are waiting for a residence document receival, you need a confirmation of fulfillment of the conditions for issuing a long-term residence permit (issued by the MOI) - this confirmation must not be older than 65 days.

Mobile phone services

The Czech Republic has a wide range of mobile phone service providers. Some of them are more popular and desirable to customers than others. The main difference lies in their tariff options. Sometimes it is required to possess a Czech number to open a bank account, make an appointment, communicate with national authorities, or order online. However, if a customer has a SIM card from any other European Union country and does not need to do the mentioned actions above, there should not be any inconsistencies with the drawing of the services set by the preferable provider from another country.

How to acquire a Czech SIM card?

The process of acquiring a Czech SIM card is simple. A customer should be able to provide some of the documents declaring his identity and further information to the mobile phone services provider. It is also possible to buy pre-paid SIM cards from newsagents and supermarkets that provide some amount of internet data and calling minutes. The costs of pre-paid SIM cards and monthly tariffs may not be the same. It also depends on the amount of internet data and calling minutes. Average tariff costs are between 400 to 1000 CZK per month.

Mobile phone providers

These are three main providers in the Czech Republic:

Examples of smaller operating services:

Living costs in the Czech Republic

It is possible to declare that the Czech Republic is, comparing living costs among other EU countries, affordable. Living costs in the Czech Republic may differ mainly because of a different location, spending habits, accommodation choices and lifestyle. Still, the average range of living costs is between 7 500 and 17 000 CZK per month, including meals, accommodation, public transport and culture.

To see up to date what costs how much visit the Numbeo webpage which provides overview for Olomouc as well as other cities and also comparison of prizes.

Student Card

The ISIC (International Student Identity Card) card is the most practical item for all students. It allows cardholders to get student discounts for transport, restaurants, cinemas, museums, exhibitions and concerts. In principle, students coming to Czechia should obtain an ISIC card at their home university or in their home country.

More details on how to obtain the ISIC at Palacký University can be found at the ID Cards section. It is also possible to apply for the ISIC card at the official ISIC website.

Food and drinks

Lunch in a students' canteen

around 120 CZK

Pizza in a pizzeria

around 180 CZK

Restaurant meal (daily offer/menu)

around 150 CZK

Beer at a pub              

around 45 CZK

Public transport – city trams and buses

For more information, please see part ''Public transport''.

Entertainment

Cinema ticket                          

around 200 CZK

Theatre ticket

100–500 CZK

Museum admission

from 40 CZK

Job opportunities

All full degree students (Bachelor’s or Master’s students) are allowed to do temporary work (part-time job) for up to 300 hours per a year. Other international students (non-EU) are required to hold a work permit to undertake paid work of any kind.

Exchange students who are less than 26 years old are allowed to do temporary work up to 300 hours per a year provided they do not work longer than 7 days in sequence or a max. 30 days in a calendar year.

Labour office

The Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs manages two employment search portals:

  1. Labour Office – jobs for foreigners is a national register for job vacancies managed by the Labour office. Database search
  2. The basic role of EURES network (EURopean Employment Services) is to facilitate the international mobility of workforce. Database search

Job servers

Besides the Labour Office attempting to accumulate all job vacancies – as listed below – there is no central registry you can go to, to learn about job openings. Perhaps the most comprehensive is the English version of the jobs.cz server.

Other popular job search servers include expats.cz/jobsjobspin.cz and acjobs.cz for more multilingual jobs, executivejob.cz for management career opportunities, itjobs.cz for IT professionals and global monster.cz. Job vacancies for (not only) French-speakers are also available through a project of the French Embassy czechemploi.fr.

Social media groups

Opportunities offered through social media are also worth mentioning. Job-seeking Facebook groups for foreigners in Czechia such as „Jobs for foreigners in the Czech Republic“ or „Remote jobs for foreigners in Czech Republic“ could be helpful as well.

Czech Language Courses

If you are a student at our university, there are seminars you can attend, get credits, and learn Czech Language. 

List of language courses

There is also a Center for Support of Integration of Foreigners which offers language courses for free.

Each faculty offers classes of foreign languages. Philology departments, in particular, also provide courses for students of other departments and faculties.

 

 

Public transport

Olomouc transportation is managed by a complex network of tram and bus lines. Tram lines transport passengers around the central parts of the city, whereas bus lines expand transport to peripheral parts, where there are no tram rails. In some instances of line exclusion, buses replace the trams.

The major operator is Olomouc Public Transport Company (Dopravní podnik města Olomouce, DPMO). For the timetables, tickets, fares, etc., please see the website of DPMO. You can also search your connections in the Integrated Transport System (IDOS.cz).

More information about tickets, main routes, etc. at the Arrival to UP section.

Privacy settings

We use cookies and any other network identifiers on our website that may contain personal data (e.g. about how you browse our website). We and some of the service providers we use have access to or store this data on your device. This data helps us to operate and improve our services. For some purposes, your consent is required to process data collected in this way. You can change or revoke your consent at any time (see the link at the bottom the page).

(Essential cookies enable basic functions and are necessary for the website to function properly.)
(Statistics cookies collect information anonymously. This information helps us to understand how our visitors use our website.)
(They are designed for promotional purposes, measuring the success of promotional campaigns, etc.)