BOHEMIAN SWITZERLAND AND BOHEMIAN MOUNTAINS

Day 1            

NP   Bohemian - Saxon Switzerland

Transfer Prague -  Hrensko   125 km / 75 miles / 1 H 50 minutes

Option A: Hrensko - Konigstein - Hrensko    38 km by bike / 23 miles

Option B: Hrensko - Pravcicka gate - Mezní louka - Hrensko    9 km by walk / 35 minutes by boat

After you have arrived in Hřensko, which is located in the national park Bohemian-Saxon Switzerland and also directly on the border with Germany, you will have two options how to spend a pleasant afternoon. First you will use a boat (near your hotel) on the left side of the River Elbe and following our marks you will get to the castle of Konigstein. Back to Hřensko you will drive along the right bank of the Elbe River through the spa town of Bad Schandau. Here you can visit for example Toscana swimming area or just sit in one of the many restaurants and cafés. As a second option you can visit on foot strange natural phenomenon Pravčická gate, which is located 3 km northeast of Hřensko. With a span of 26.5 m and height of 16 m it is the largest sandstone gate in Europe. You will get there along CT 21 and after you walk about 2 km you will turn left on the trail. After walking about 500 m you come to Pravčická gate. After you have seen the place you will get back to the CT 21 and continues towards Mezni Louka. From here you will follow the blue trail through the woods. After 2 km you will leave the blue trail and turn right until you come to the river Kamenice. The trip continues by boat through two gorges (Wild - 450 m - 15 min., And Edmund - 960 m - 20 min.). While sailing you will see the rock wall, often perpendicular, sometimes up to 150 m high artificial waterfall and other natural beauties. After this you will need to walk 1.5 km to Hřensko. The duration of this trip is about 5 hours. You walk 15 km and you will spend 1,5 km on the boat..

 Day 2

NP Bohemian Switzerland and Lusatian mountains

Hrensko - Hermanice

49 km / 29 miles

After leaving Hřensko you will still be in the National Park Bohemian-Saxon Switzerland. About 1.5 km north of Vysoka Lipa it is worth looking at the castle Šaunštein from the 14th century, is freely accessible all year round. Admission to the castle is through steep stairs in the rock.. Sometimes, the surface may be slippery, therefore caution is important. After climbing you will be rewarded with spectacular views of the Bohemian-Saxon Switzerland National Park and surrounding areas. Then you will continue through the village of Chřibská (here is the oldest recently working glassworks in Central Europe), Kytlice and then you will get to the Lusatian Mountains. A characteristic element of the Lusatian range is the variegated folk architecture which you can see everywhere.The original type is timbered house with small divided windows. After turning in CT 21 in the direction of Juliovka and the mountain Dry Hill (641 m above sea level), be sure to look at the only ice cave in the country. The second day of the trip you will finish in Heřmanice v Podještědí.

 Day 3

Lusatian and Jizera mountains

Hermanice - Liberec

48 km / 29 miles

 From Heřmanice you will be heading to the town of Jablonné v Podještědí. Here you can visit the Cathedral St. Vavrinec and St. Zdislava. Soon you will get to the castle Lemberk, where Zdislava lived in the 13th century. It is definitely worth visiting. It is open every day, except Monday, from 9 to 16 pm. From the castle you will continue through the village of Janovice and Krizany to natural park of Jested. Certainly you will be attracted by a TV tower on Jested (1012 meters), which is located near the city of Liberec. There is a well-known ski resort with several ski jumps and downhill courses. In 2009 there was the Nordic World Ski Championships. From the village Machnín you will go alongside the river Lusatian Nisa toLiberec, where your hotel is. In case you have some time left, we have some tips on how to spend it. For instance ZOO with their white tigers is really beautiful. A botanic garden is also not far away and is open every day from 8 to 18. 500 m from the hotel you will find Babylon, (street Nitranská 1) with its own entertainment center (aquapark, IQ park, IQ Landia science center with a 3D planetarium, wellness). In Liberec there are other points of interest, it's up to you what you choose.

 Day 4

Jizera mountains

Liberec - Horní Polubny

38 km / 23 miles

From Liberec you will begin this stage with probably an unpleasant climbing to the famous tourist center of the Jizerské Mountains - Bedřichova. It might happen that you will need to push the wheel. But then you will ride downhill and you will see the natural beauty of the Czech mountains. 1 km from Bedřichov Královka tower is. There is the most beautiful panoramas of the Jizera Mountains. Then you certainly deserve some snacks at a nearby restaurant. Continue along our marked CT around Lake Joseph Mine through Smědava, mountain village Jizerka (in winter one of the coldest in the country) and you finish in the large village Polubný top. There you will be accommodated in a mountain house. In good weather, you can use the outdoor pool or perhaps make a few photos of local natural beauty.

 Day 5

Jizera and Giant Mountains

Horni Polubny - Harrachov

36 km / 22 miles

From Horni Polubne following our trails you will get to oldest lookout tower of Jizera Mountains Štěpánka (958 m). From there after about 9 km you will come to town Vysoke nad Jizerou, which is already in the Giant Mountains National Park. You can visit the local history museum which was founded in 1930. Among others, there can be seen the figure of the ruler of the Giant Mountains – Krakonoš in various possible sizes. This town is also famous for the unique plastic surgery and clinic but hopefully it will not be needed Than you will go down to the town of Jablonec nad Jizerou, you will use the CT 22 and along the Jizera River you will get to the train station Kořenov. There is the only rack railway in the Czech Republic older than 100 years. For a few bucks you can buy a ticket for you and your bike. The destination is Harrachov. This steepest railway in the Czech Republic has become a popular tourist attraction. While waiting for the train, you can visit the museum, which is in a railway station. Here you will learn about the history of the cog railway, you will be told about the peculiarities of this unique technical work. After boarding the train that is pushed by historical geared locomotive, you can indulge yourselves in the views of the local countryside. This part of your journey takes about 10 minutes and is not as steep, but it is worth it. You will get some more info about this on www.zubacka.cz. After you have arrived at the station Harrachov you will ride about 5 km to get your hotel. Harrachov is one of the most famous ski centers in the country. There are several ski slopes, lifts and jumps. There are some other tips on how to spend a time in Harrachov. How do you feel about beer bath? 30 minutes bathing in beer, 30 minutes of relaxation and two beers to drink. It is not bad, is it? In this area there is also a microbrewery and restaurant, glass museum, ski museum and one of the oldest functioning glassworks in the world. The resort is located at Harrachov 95. And if you just do not want to bathe in beer and you still want to see more nature, you can visit Mumlavské Falls on the mountain river Mumlava. There are 2 km away from the center of Harrachov. You need to go around the bus station and follow a blue trail.

 Day 6

Giant mountains

Harrachov - Rokytnice nad Jizerou - Harrachov

24 km / 14 miles 

On a tour of the Glass Museum and Glassworks it is best to go this afternoon (open until 15 pm oo.). The previous day you probably wouldn’t make in in time and today you spend just 31 km on bike. Although it is always up and down you should still make it in about 4 hours. Excursion also takes place in English and we advise you to make a booking on tel. +420 733 512 956 or +420 481 529 157 or turistik@sklarnaharrachov.cz. The last day of your bike tour you will spend in the Giant Mountains National Park. Go up the hill following a CT 1A until you get to the mountain hotel Štumpovka and mountain cottage Dvoračky (1140 m). You can visit the renowned restaurant of home cuisine and own bakery. You will surely enjoy a blueberry pie and cup of coffee. After that you will go downhill through the woods. You will take on CT 22 and you will get in the town Rokytnice nad Jizerou, which was founded in 1574. Right through the town of Studenov using CT 7 you will get back to Harrachov. After a good lunch, which you can surely enjoy in some local restaurants, you can visit the glassworks that we already mentioned. Very attractive is also a local mining museum near the bus station. You will get a helmet and then you will enjoy a one-hour guided underground tour. Do not forget to put on some real clothes as it is just about 7 degrees Celsius. This is the end of your bike tour. We believe you were not disappointed and you will always remember you visit in the Czech Republic.

Transfer to Prague   145 km / 87 miles / 2 hours