Telč - introduction

Welcome in Telč, in a region which in the 15th century saw the military activities of the Hussites and of King Jiří of Poděbrady, and in the 17th century the war ravage carried out by Albrecht von Wallenstein and the Swedish mercenaries, and finally in early 19th century the March of Napoleon’s army. Coming to Telč, you will be a region where, as the locals say, “bread ends and stones in the fields begin“, but which has been so cultivated by the people who have lived that we can hardly find other regions which would be so ingeniously improved in its appearance by human efforts.

The dominant feature of the region, the highest mountain (Javořina, 837 metres) of the Vysočina Hills (“Highlands”) and the Roštejn castle will strike you from afar. It will take a much more stubborn effort to look for the 700-year old lime-tree in the nearby village of Praskolesy, but when you find it, you are sure to be astounded by its size.

The ruin of the castle of Štamberk can be reached on an asphalt road, but we recommend you to approach it on foot as this will give you far more satisfaction.

Not far from Štamberk you can find a granite quarry, a source of high quality stone used in the 1920s by the famous Slovenian architect Josip Plečnik for the decoration of the Prague castle.

The country is literally studded with innumerable ponds and lakes used for fish farming and for retaining water used for the propulsion of mills. After the arrival of electricity the mills have stopped, many of them disappeared, but the largest mill in the region has been converted into a luxury hotel and a golfing centre.

The lush woods, whose rise goes back to economic considerations, are now a tourist magnet, inviting to recreation walks, bicycle rides or gathering mushrooms (a widespread Czech hobby), raspberries, blackberries and bilberries.

The country roads limed by crane-trees and well-marked footpaths for pedestrians and cyclists will guide you through an unostentatiously beautiful landscape where being alone does not mean loneliness, but rather respite and serenity.

Last but not least you will also find here a number of remarkable craftsmen who turn metals, wood or stone into artifacts of sheer beauty. And should you feel like it, in some places you can join them in their creative work.

Welcome in the Telč region!