Czech Republic Guide
West Bohemia
Domažlice
Just 15km from the German border, DOMAŽLICE (Taus) is an attractive little town in one of the few border areas that has always been predominantly Czech-speaking. For centuries the town was the local customs house, and the Chodové, as the folk round here are known, were given the task of guarding the border with Bavaria, but in 1707 the town lost much of its former importance when the border was fixed.
The town's main train station, called simply Domažlice, is 1km east of town; the Domažlice město station, five-minutes' walk south of the old town down Jiráskova, is served only by slow trains to Bor and Tachov. The main bus terminal lies just north of the main square, on Poděbradova.
There are plenty of simple family-run pensions in the old town. Café-Pension Tiffany ( 
379 725 591, 
www.tiffany.wz.cz ; Price: 501-1000Kč) offers brightly coloured rooms beside the church at Kostelní 102, while Hotel Sokolský dům ( 379 720 084, www.sokolskydum.cz ; Price: 1001-1500Kč) on the west side of the main square is tastefully furnished with a decent restaurant. Also good is the snug Penzion Konšelský šenk ( 379 720 200, www.konselskysenk.cz ; Price: 501-1000Kč), at Vodní 33, in the backstreets just south of the square, with pleasant en-suite rooms and an excellent pizzeria. The riverside Babyloncampsite (mid-May to Sept), 6km south, is accessible by bus or train.
Like many small Bohemian towns, Domažlice starts and ends at its main square, náměstí Míru, a long, thin affair, positioned along an exact east– west axis. Flanked by uninterrupted arcades under every possible style of colourful gable, the pretty, elongated cobbled square seems like a perfect setting for a Bohemian-Bavarian skirmish. Halfway down one side, the thirteenth-century church tower or věž (April– Sept daily 9am– noon & 1–5pm; 30Kč), now leaning to one side quite noticeably, used to double as a lookout post; ascending its 196 steps provides a bird's-eye view of the whole area.
The fascinating Muzeum Jindřicha Jindřicha, east of the old town just beyond the medieval gateway (mid-April to mid-Oct Tues– Sun 9am– noon & 1–4pm; rest of the year Mon– Fri 9am– noon; 15Kč), was founded by local composer Jindřich Jindřich. The extensive collection includes Chod folk costumes, ceramics and other regional items, displayed in a mocked-up cottage interior, along with a room devoted to the prolific Chod writer Jan Vrba.
The straightforward Ural (closed Sun), on the north side of the main square, is a typical Czech pub-restaurant serving the local, dark beer, Purkmistr 11. Much more memorable, though, is the friendly, medieval-styled 
U Meluzinn, which serves creative takes on hearty Czech food one block south of the square at Vodní 19. Domažlice has its own brewery by the bus station, though no brewery tap; head for the Štika, a real drinkers' pub serving the local brew, on the road out to Plzeň.