Are you planning to go to Prague - the capital of the Czech Republic?

You should surely go! Prague is famous for its rich history, Prague Castle, Charles Bridge, buildings with red roofs and other beautiful sights. But we won't tell you about those; we are going to tell you about not that well-known spots.

 

Only 30 minutes from Prague by train, you can find a picturesque town called Karlštejn. The village of Karlštejn bears the name of its castle from the 14th century, and you can visit it. The castle was built by the Czech king and Roman Emperor Charles IV. (surely you know him thanks to the Charles Bridge in Prague) as a place for storing royal treasures, especially collections of holy relics and imperial crown jewels.

Castle attractions:

Unique original wall decoration from the 14th century is to be found there. Kříže, the largest portrait gallery of Czech rulers in the Czech Republic (and also largest in the world), exhibited replicas of St. Wenceslas Crown of Czech kings, or a unique castle well.

The castle is also famous thanks to the Czech comedy Night at Karlštejn, which deals with the fact that no woman could come to the Karlštejn Castle area! Yet, despite the strict royal prohibition, two ladies - one of which was the queen - spent one night in disguise at the castle.

 

Do you want to look inside? You will surely be pleased with one of three tour trails that are offered at the castle. We recommend visiting the castle from 1st May to the end of October because it is an opportunity to visit the precious chapel of St. Crisis.

 

But what kind of a trip would it be without the beautiful landscape around the castle, or also a little further away. If you walk out of the castle in the right direction, you will find yourself in 40 minutes at Little America & Big America, which is nicknamed the "Czech Grand Canyon".

We recommend reaching these quarries on foot. The round journey from the castle around the quarries back to the castle takes approximately 2,5 hours. It depends on how much time you want to spend at the quarry or if you take lunch in a forest opening with beautiful views of meadows and forests.

 

TIPS: 

In Czechia, we have a tradition that when we go hiking, we take "Tatranka" for a snack with us. And if we go on a trip or vacation, we often take a fried schnitzel between two slices of bread - make a sandwich. That's a typical lunch of Czech people on trips.