Czech Republic Guide
South Bohemia
South Bohemia (Jižní Čechy), more than any other region, conforms to the popular myth of Bohemia as a bucolic backwater of rolling hills and endless forests. A century of conspicuous industrialization and destruction from two world wars have pretty much passed it by. The only city to speak of is the regional capital, České Budějovice, which makes up for its urban sprawl with a good-looking old town and a beer of no less standing. The rest of the countryside is dotted with a series of exceptionally beautiful medieval walled towns, known collectively as the Rose Towns after the emblems of the two most powerful families: the red rose of the Rožmberks and the black rose of the lords of Hradec. Both dynasties died out at the beginning of the seventeenth century, and many of their prize possessions, which have been in almost terminal decline ever since, ended up in the hands of the Bavarian-based Schwarzenberg family.
Highlights
1 Tábor Stroll through a labyrinth of medieval streets designed to confuse potential aggressors in this former Hussite headquarters.
2 Zámek, Jindřichův Hradec This chateau's forbidding exterior conceals one of the finest Italianate Renaissance interiors in the country.
3 Třeboň Perfectly preserved walled town and spa set amid the medieval carp ponds of Třeboňsko.
4 Český Krumlov South Bohemia's most picturesque medieval town is tucked into an S-bend of the River Vltava and overlooked by a Renaissance castle.
5 Hiking in the Šumava The most unspoilt mountain range in the Czech Republic is the perfect place to do some summer hiking.
6 Sgraffito in Prachatice This tiny walled town, on the edge of the Šumava mountains, boasts the finest sgraffito facades in Bohemia.
7 Kašperské Hory Pretty little town with a motorcycle museum and one of the most impressive glass museums in the Czech Republic.