Every traveler who decides to visit this country, unthinkable without castles and beer, thinks about the question: "What to see in the Czech Republic?"
Holiday season in the Czech Republic
Holidays in the Czech Republic should be planned for April-October. Do you want to spend time in the Czech Republic cognitively and profitably for the budget? Head there on vacation in the late fall and winter months.
You can go on a pilgrimage trip at any time, but the largest influx of pilgrims to the Czech Republic is observed on the eve of major Orthodox holidays.
At Czech ski resorts, active vacationers will be expected in December-April, and at health resorts - from mid-spring.
As for event tourism, a visit to the Czech Republic can be combined with the Karlovy Vary Opera and Operetta Festival (summer), the Vinobrani grape harvest festival (September), the Festival of Records and Curiosities (July).
Top 15 interesting places in the Czech Republic
Prague Castle
The Prague Castle complex (accessible by tram number 22) includes churches, buildings and fortifications. Near the entrance to the fortress there is Hradčanská Square with a medieval layout: you can enter Prague Castle from the square through the front gate with a guard of honor, the solemn change of which takes place daily at 12:00.
In Prague Castle, it is worth visiting the St. Vitus Cathedral, St. Wenceslas Chapel, several fountains, the Mihulka Powder Tower, the Holy Cross Chapel, Theresian Palace, Daliborka Tower, Old Royal Palace, St. George's Basilica.
Bohemian Switzerland National Park
The glory of Czech Switzerland was brought by castles, bridges and sandy rocks, which travelers prefer to admire from special viewing platforms (benches are installed on the peaks of Wilhelm's Wall, Rudolf's Stone and Mariana Rock, and the best view of Czech Switzerland opens from the observation tower on the Decinsky Sneznik mountain).
In the park, you will be able to go rafting (the Elbe River) and mountaineering, join walking and cycling, go on a boat trip along the Wild and Quiet Canyons on the Kamenitsa River (a gondolier will ride between the steep cliffs of everyone), spend the night in campsites.
Strahov Monastery
The Strahov Monastery is a landmark in Prague, which was originally built in the Romanesque style, then rebuilt in the early Gothic and finally in the Baroque style. The equipment of the Strahov Monastery is represented by the Museum of Miniatures, the Church of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, the Strahov Art Gallery (here you will be able to admire the works of the 14-19 centuries), the library (there are books written in the middle of the 12th century; the Philosophical and Theological Halls store 2,500 manuscripts, 130,000 books and 1,500 first printed editions), the Museum of National Literature, the Questenberk Hotel, the Strahov Garden, a brewery and a beer restaurant (it is advisable to reserve a table before the tour of the monastery begins, which runs daily from 9 am to 5 pm).
Karlštejn Castle
The Gothic castle Karlštejn was built in the 14th century on a 72-meter cliff at a distance of 28 km from the Czech capital (from Prague to the castle it takes 45 minutes by trains, leaving there every 30 minutes; the last train leaves at about 10 pm). The castle consists of the Palace of the Emperor, the Burggrave and the Great Tower with the Chapel of the Holy Cross.
On a sightseeing tour, tourists are shown the main objects and relics of the Treasury collected by Charles IV, and on a more detailed tour, they are invited to visit the chapel of the Holy Cross and see the collection of easel paintings.
In the outer courtyard, you can see servants engaged in forging weapons, making bread and washing clothes, in the Manskoy Hall - a wooden ceiling and a 14th century fireplace, in the Luxembourg Hall - portraits of Czech rulers.
Konopiste castle
Konopiste Castle is located near the town of Benesov. In the castle, you will be able to view exhibits in the form of historical combat and hunting weapons, works of art, armor, and hunting trophies.
The best time to visit the castle is May-August, when all exhibitions are available for inspection. In April-October, the castle is open on Tuesdays-Sundays from 9 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. (in November - until 3:00 p.m.).
Those who wish will be offered to walk through the library, chapel, guest rooms, the Hunting Corridor, the Armory, the living rooms of the Franz Ferdinand family, walk in the garden and around the pond, and also take part in the falconry in front of the castle.
Loket castle
Loket Castle can be found near Karlovy Vary. Tourists should pay attention to the armory and archaeological halls, prison cells, wedding and ceremonial halls (where you can see paintings and frescoes), the Margrave's house (the porcelain collection is subject to inspection), a Romanesque corner tower, a 16th century palace, a rotunda with a diameter of 3.6 m (Romanesque style), the captain's and the house of the burgrave.
Guests are told legends related to the gnome statues and mythical characters on the castle grounds, and they are invited to the castle courtyard to show them a performance imitating the death penalty. And those who visit the Loket castle in July will be able to attend the opera festival.
Observation tower on the Lipno lake
To find yourself on the 40-meter observation tower, you need to hit the road along the ecological trail “Treetop Walk” (length - about 400 m; ticket price - $ 8, 30). The trail starts on the ground, and, rising upward, reaches a height of 24 m. From the tower you will be able to admire the Alps, Lake Lipno and the Šumava region. And you can go down from the observation tower in several ways - using the services of a funicular, shuttle bus or stairs. But more interesting is to descend through the toboggan pipe.
In summer, the tower beckons with concerts taking place there and the opportunity to arrange a wedding ceremony there. This territory will delight vacationers with the presence of a cafe, a playground, a scooter rental point.
The Charles Bridge
Charles Bridge (width - 9.5 m, length - 520 m) in the Czech capital was thrown across the Vltava in order to connect the districts of Staro Mesto and Mala Strana. As a decoration of the Charles Bridge, 30 sculptures are used, and most of them have a religious content (the Virgin Mary and St. Thomas Aquinas, the Crucifixion Groups, the Vision of St. Luitgarda and others deserve attention).
The architectural complex of Charles Bridge includes the Old Town (the Gothic bridge tower is equipped at the top with an observation deck, open to the public from 10 a.m. to 17: 00-22: 00) and the Lesser Town Bridge towers (the Low Tower from the Romanesque style was rebuilt in the spirit of the Renaissance, and the High Tower - an example of the Gothic style), as well as a neo-Gothic staircase, along which you can get to the island of Kampa from the bridge.
Konepruska caves
Tourists are offered to overcome a 600-meter trail: an almost 2-hour walk underground (do not forget to put on warm clothes, because you will descend 70 m down, where it is not warmer than + 10˚C) will allow them to see the Konepruska caves, consisting of several tiers, where beautiful rock formations in the form of flowers and mushrooms, as well as stalactites and stalagmites deserve their attention. Of particular interest is the stone organ, which consists of stalactite pipes: if you knock skillfully on them, the “organ” will make amazing music. Tourists will also be shown the workshop of counterfeiters of the 15th century (1st tier of the cave).
The caves are open to tourists from April to November from 8 am to 15: 00-17: 00 (ticket price - $ 5, 40).
Historical village Holašovice
The village of Holašovice is 15 km away from České Budějovice. It is famous for 28 rural buildings of the 18-19 centuries: they are decorated with unusual stucco molding and pediments (style - South Bohemian folk baroque). 5% of buildings in the form of mini-hotels, taverns and information centers are modern, and some houses have undergone interior changes (in house 26 you can visit a ceramic workshop, and in estate 6 - a museum).
In the village of Holašovice there is a square, about 200 m long, in the center of which there is a small pond, not far from which you can see a one-story smithy of the 18th century and a chapel in honor of St. John of Nepomuk (famous for its unique bell, spire and wooden crucifix from 1935). Tourists can also visit the Golashovitsky circle, which has an energetic power (25 megaliths are located in a circle on the outskirts of the village).
Moravian Karst
Moravian Karst - one of the largest karst massifs, 1100 caves are interesting (only 5 caves are subject to inspection, in some of which you can see drawings of ancient people and bats), the underground Punkva River (you can swim along it) and helictites (are formations growing parallel to the ground).
Using the services of the cable car, those wishing to climb the Macocha abyss, and admire the panorama that opens from there. You can relax and warm up after visiting the cool caves in Skalny Mlyn, which has a parking lot, a guesthouse and restaurants.
Brewery Krusovice
A tour of the Krusovice factory will begin with a visit to a company store (they sell beer, souvenirs in the form of bottle openers, glasses, T-shirts, spoons for cutting beer and other things at attractive prices). At the end of the excursion (cost - 25 euros), during which tourists will walk through some of the workshops, visit the illuminated chapel and go up to the balcony overlooking the production process, they will be offered to taste 6 types of beer (200 visitors can fit in the tasting room).
Olomouc Aquapark
The water park is divided into two parts:
- The indoor complex has Slide, Space Bowl, Yellow Water Slide, recreational (+ 28˚C) and children's (+ 32˚C) pools, jacuzzi, sauna, tepidarium. A ticket for an adult costs $ 14.30, and for a child 7-15 years old - $ 10.25.
- The summer water park pleases guests with the presence of Aquawide 3m and Blue Water Slide slides, children's and outdoor multifunctional pools, children's and volleyball grounds. The cost of an adult ticket is $ 6.50, and a child ticket is $ 4.50.
The water park hosts various events: “Water World without Barriers” (on Tuesdays), “Children's playground on land and in the water” (every Wednesday), “Fitness programs for the elderly” (on Fridays).
Telč Museum Town
Telč was founded in 1099: tourists should pay attention there to the Renaissance-style Telč castle (inside there is a Treasury, the Blue, Knight's and Golden Halls, an art gallery and a museum, which displays paintings, weapons, documents, household items) and the castle park (English style), Zachariashe Square (the houses located there unite common arcade galleries; houses No. 61 and 15 are decorated with valuable frescoes using the graffito technique), the 49-meter Church of the Holy Spirit (8th century), fountains in the square, the ruins of the fortress wall, the Mariana the column, the Town Hall (today a travel agency is open there), the Church of St. James (the 60-meter bell tower with two bells brought him fame), the churches of St. Anne (baroque style) and the Holy Name of Christ (1669).
Panchavsky waterfall
The stream of the 4-step Panchavsky waterfall in the Giant Mountains "rushes" from a height of 148 m (during the period of ice melting - from a 162-meter height).
It is advisable to start the journey to the Panchavsky waterfall, located 10 km from the town of Spindleruv Mlyn, from the Labska base along a kilometer hiking trail (red). Above the waterfall, there is an observation deck for tourists, where they go in order to see not only an impressive water stream, but also Bald Mountain and the entire valley.
