The Czech Republic (officially known by its short name, Czechia) is a small landlocked country in Central Europe, situated southeast of Germany and bordering Austria to the south, Poland to the north and Slovakia to the southeast.
As the country's primary city, Prague naturally dominates most visitors' itineraries, and for good reason. A mix of the Gothic, Renaissance, Baroque, Classical, Art Nouveau, Art Deco, Brutalist, and Socialist, the capital is arguably one of Europe's most photogenic cities. Visitors should enjoy the Old Town and gawk at its medieval buildings, stroll across the Charles Bridge, and make their way through the Malá Strana up to the dominating Prague Castle for fantastic views of the city. Outside of the capital, visitors can easily explore Kutná Hora, home to impressive churches like St. Barbara's, and the morbidly fascinating Sedlec Ossuary. In the northwest of the country is Karlovy Vary, a stately and imperial spa town on the banks of the Ohře and Teplá rivers, which conjures feelings of a narrow Paris or Vienna in miniature. The city's annual film festival, held normally at the beginning of July, draws in actors, directors, papparazzi, fans and film enthusiasts alike.
The city of Pilsen, home to its famous style of beer, is a blue-collar city, although its city centre is a mix of old and new, pleasant and unpretentious. Pilsen's Gothic St. Bartholomew Cathedral presents fantastic views of the entire city and surrounding countryside. Following the Vltava south is the beautiful town of Český Krumlov, whose impressive castle dominates the Gothic and Renaissance river valley town below. Largely overlooked by tourists, nearby České Budějovice presents an enjoyable old town with its Ottokar II Square a centrepoint, surrounded by buildings from the last 600 years. Fiercely proud Brno, the country's second largest city, often culturally and economically competes with Prague in a rivalry spanning centuries. Home to many students and with an active nightlife, Brno presents a compact and explorable old city centre, overlooked by both its impressive Špilberk Castle and the Gothic St. Peter and Paul Cathedral. Despite being metropolitan, Brno possesses a more relaxed atmosphere than Prague does, and is known throughout the republic for its high quality of life.
Olomouc, the historical capital of Moravia, remains as one of the Czech Republic's best kept secrets, site of one of the largest old towns outside of Prague and the Holy Trinity Column, a UNESCO World Heritage Site in its own right. The city's medieval astronomical clock, destroyed by the Germans in World War II, was remade as a Socialist Realist clock during communism; instead of parading saints and religious allegories are peasants, scientists and workers. Olomouc's impressive medieval walls mixed with parkland also makes for a pleasant trip. The city of Ostrava in Czech Silesia, often characterized as working-class, to the point, and industrial, is home to Lower Vítkovice, a massive former steel mill that now functions as a popular museum. The city also hosts the Colours of Ostrava, one of the country's largest music festivals.
The Czech Republic is a treasure trove of castles, palaces, monasteries, and other places of historical significance. A complete listing of the country's castles and palaces is simply impossible. Karlštejn Castle, just outside of Prague, is a huge pull for curious tourists, attracted by its Gothic architecture perched above the banks of the Vltava River. The Lednice-Valtice palaces and gardens near the Slovak and Austrian borders are the massive former residences of the princes of Liechtenstein, and is today a combined UNESCO World Heritage Site. Lednice is known for its especially massive English gardens, while Valtice, for its fanciful faux-Roman architecture. Not far from these palaces in the town of Slavkov u Brna is the Austerlitz Battlefield, where Napoleon decidedly crushed the Austrian and Russian armies in 1805. To the west in South Bohemia near the town of Jindřichův Hradec is the Červená Lhota château, an iconic Renaissance palace starkly painted red, standing in the middle of a pond and linked only by a stone bridge. Hluboká Castle, not far from České Budějovice, is another massive palace, dating from the Middle Ages but heavily redesigned in the 19th century. To the very north of the country are the impressive ruins of Trosky Castle, whose Gothic ruins give dramatic vistas to the Bohemian Paradise. Kašperk Castle, located near the Bohemian Forest, is another Gothic legacy of Emperor Charles IV's reign.