Western Bohemia

Western Bohemia offers a number of attractive tourist sites: one can find beautiful nature there, where the southwest part of the Krusny Mountains continues to the Sumava mountain range, and one can discover folklore traditions in the district of Chodska. Those who love spas will get acquainted with the most famous Czech spas and beer lovers will be invited on a tour of the world renowned Plzen brewery.

If you would like to connect your trip to western Bohemia with the previous trip to northern Bohemia, we recommend you continue from Osek towards Most, Chomutov and Klášterec upon Ohře. This town with a famous tradition for the manufacturing of porcelain gets its name from the monastery, which was established here in around 1150. Although the monastery was destroyed in 1277, there is a beautiful castle in its place now, which offers visitors a tour of the expositions of porcelain and a walk through the English park with rare species of wood plants.

The renowned spas of the significant tourist centre Jáchymov are not far from Klášterce upon Ohře. What is interesting about the town is that it is connected from its centre to the highest mountain of the Krusny Mountains, Klínovec, by cable car. Since 1516, high quality silver coins were made here – talers, which were used for payment all over Europe. American dollars received their name from the word talers. Then later on, uranium replaced silver mining in Jáchymov and paradoxically due to this very radioactive waste we owe the establishment of its spas to. In 1906, the first radioactive spas in the world were established. The main treatment method is bathing in thermal waters with a high content of radon. The Radiumplace sanatorium is a dominant feature of the town dating back to 1910–12.

The aforementioned highest mountain of the Krušné Mountains, Klínovec (1244 m), offers excellent conditions for skiing. Boží Dar is a sought after tourist site all year round, located just a few steps away from the German borders. Not too far away, we also find the most valuable area of the Kršné Mountains, an extensive complex (930 hectares) of peat land, known as the Božídarské peat land. A nature trail leads through this fascinating area with 12 stops providing information boards. The entire walk starting in Boží Dar is 3.2 km long.

The most famous spas are located in western Bohemia - Carlsbad Carlsbad. The town was established around 1350, when a hunting lodge was built on the site of the current castle tower. According to legend, the hot spring was discovered by King Charles IV and his hunting party. Supposedly the hunters had chased a deer all the way up to the top of a steep rocky cliff. The brave deer plunged into a gorge ahead, the hunters descended into the valley where they found a hot spring spewing from the earth instead of the deer. The king decided to establish a town here. The cliff, from which the deer had jumped, is now called Deer’s jump (Jelení skok) and a statue of a deer is one of the symbols of Carlsbad. The first public spa building, Mlýnské spa, was not built until many years later in 1711. Ever since then, the Carlsbad spa life began to develop. The modernisation of treatment was taken care of by Carlsbad native David Becher, after whom the world famous Carlsbad herbal liqueur, Becherovka , was named. Nowadays, the treatment is mainly focussed on digestive tract system disorders and certain metabolic illnesses. Vřidlo is the most significant spring of the twelve mineral springs, shooting up to 12 metres high. You will find a number of spa colonnades, for example Vřídelní, Mlýskou or Tržní colonnade. Aside from treatment procedures and pleasant walks, the town offers a number of other activities. Inarguably, the most renowned cultural and social event is the Mezinárodní filmový festival Karlovy Vary .

Is there any other more suitable name for Plzeň other than the town of beer? The town brewery was established here in 1842 and it has managed to sustain its success and fame until now. You can sample this famous beverage and learn more about its making at the Museum of Brewery. Another interesting place to visit is the Skoda Museum Plzen, where you can learn more about the ironworks, which were bought by Ing. Emil Skoda in 1868. Furthermore, you can find the Museum of West Bohemia and Ethnical Museum in Plzen which offers access to the historical underground passages. Do not forget to also visit the historical centre of Plzen, which boasts the overwhelmingly beautiful Gothic Church of St. Bartholomew.

Photographs Western Bohemia