The next morning, a little groggy, we commence our meandering drive south following the Vltava River. Our first stop is Klet, the highest mountain in the foothills of Bohemian forest Šumava, where we take a cable car up to its newly renovated lookout tower at the summit offering panoramic views over it all. In clear weather you can see the outline of the Alps on the horizon.
The fun then properly commences if you take the mountain descent option of downhill scooters – zooming at often very high speeds down its winding roads and through stretches of woodland, although you can also take it slower if you want to enjoy the views a bit more.
And at the bottom of the mountain sits the medieval Cistercian monastery Zlatá Koruna deep in the valley of the Vltava River, boasting some of the finest gothic architecture in central Europe. As this is where the scooter run takes you, it all makes for a great day out in itself, centred on a mountain rarely heard of outside the country.
It then gets even better at our next stop, following our southerly route in our minibus: the picture-book pocket-sized Prague that is Český Krumlov: a preserved medieval city centred on an ancient square and crowned by a spectacular castle.
With its 300+ Renaissance and baroque buildings elegantly lining narrow cobbled lanes the whole place is a protected heritage site and is accordingly fairly busy with tourists in the daytime, but if you stay overnight you can experience it after the tour-buses have left and the streets quieten down for the evening.
That’s exactly what we did, staying at the impressive Hotel Růže which adheres to the city’s theme with its historical decor and furnishings, then dining at the equally impressive Restaurant Catacombs, an atmospheric subterranean venue deep in the heart of the city, all the while anticipating our visit to Český Krumlov’s main draw the next morning.
Known as ‘the Pearl of the Renaissance’, the State Castle is one of the most important historic sites in Central Europe, towering over Krumlov on a rock promontory sculpted by the Vltava River winding around it. Built from the 14th century onwards, the castle is well preserved in both layout and architectural detail, and even still keeps bears in its moat area which is a welcome diversion as you enter the gates.
Our penultimate destination takes things back into the countryside, with another enjoyable leisurely pursuit in the form of Lipno Treetop Walkway – the only attraction of its kind in the Czech Republic. With almost 400m of circular walkway winding to the top of its wooden structure, its apex views over the surrounding forest seem even more dizzying than that of Klet’s. After the similarly lofty panoramas enjoyed from the castle walls at Prague and Český Krumlov, this trip itinerary will use up a lot of your camera’s memory card!
There is also a lot of fun to be had in and around nearby Lipno Lake, from dragon boat racing to lakeside cycling. Unfortunately though our visit there was sullied by the same incessant rainfall that blighted our visit to final stop České Budějovice – another attractive medieval town with well-preserved period architecture and a huge town square.
There was room there for one final elevated view though, unexpectedly from my hotel bedroom window at the Clarion Hotel which soars above the town centre. If you had binoculars powerful enough you could see all the way back to Prague where our rewarding journey began.
It’s heartening though to see so much of this beautiful country outside of its capital city. From historical castles to mountain views and downhill scooters runs, Southern Bohemia offers a lot more than you will have expected, and all within such easy reach. An ideal ‘town and country’ vacation in the very heart of Europe.
Factbox info
Kris stayed at the following Hotels
Prague – Park Inn Hotel
Svobodova 1 – 128 00 – Prague – Czech Republic – +420 225 995 225
http://www.parkinn.com/hotel-prague
České Krumlov – Hotel Růže
www.janhotels.cz/hotel-ruze-cesky-krumlov-sluzby-volny-cas
České Budějovice – Clarion Congress Hotel České Budějovice
www.clarioncongresshotelceskebudejovice.com/cs/
Further reading on all the areas Kris visited is available on the following sites
www.czechtourism.com
www.lipno.cz
Prgue Boats www.prague-boats.cz
All photos by Kris Griffiths
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