Are you coming to Ostrava and worried about the local environment? Do you want to handle all the needed paperwork (accommodation, city transportation, school system) easily?

Find a Buddy!

A Buddy is a volunteer local student — and maybe your first friend here! 🙂 They will be happy to give you local tips (places to visit, shops, clubs, etc.), translate for you (not all people here speak English), and help you whenever you need.

Your Buddy can help you with:

  • Picking you up from bus or train stations in Ostrava
  • Taking you to your accommodation and assisting with translations at the reception
  • Registration at the Immigration Office
  • Setting up useful apps and cards (ISIC card, virtual ODIS card, ESN card, bank card*…)
  • Getting a SIM card**
  • Showing you around your faculty and attending your faculty coordinator's meeting

If this sounds interesting to you:

and we will find you a great Buddy!

Of course, all of this is free. But if you feel like rewarding your Buddy, you can buy them a beer, a coffee, or take them to one of your Erasmus parties or trips. You will see there will be plenty of opportunities! 😉

* Bank Account and Bank Cards

If you have a VISA or Mastercard from your home country, you will have no problems paying in the Czech Republic!

If you want to open a Czech bank account, you might face complications. Banks are not always willing to open accounts for international students staying for just one semester, as it is not financially worth it for them. Additionally, students often forget to close their accounts before leaving, which creates issues.

If you need a card or don't have a Visa/Mastercard, we recommend Revolut. It's a virtual card which lets you pay with your phone — easy to set up and safe to use.

If you have a solid reason and plan to use the account regularly, your Buddy might know which branch to visit. However, it can be a difficult task, so please think twice and be responsible.

Bring your passport, confirmation of study, phone number, and address of your accommodation.

Note: To be fair, the stipend isn't a huge amount — about 2,000 CZK per period (see Incoming Student → Accommodation → Accommodation Stipend), so don't worry too much; you would not be missing out on a fortune!

Disclaimer: ESN and Buddies are not responsible for finding a bank that will allow you to open a Czech account. Buddies are primarily there to help as translators.

** SIM Cards

ESN has a partnership with Vodafone and offers discounts on SIM/eSIM cards! You can get them during Welcome Day or Welcome Week, which are always announced on our Instagram and in the event calendar.

During the first weeks, we also have a Vodafone Day, where a Vodafone employee comes to the ESN office to help with setup and payments.