OUR FAVOURITES
We know every corner of the Český les and the Bavarian borderland like the back of our hand, but there are places we have fallen head over heels for. These are our personal favourites: spots we escape to for silence and nature, places where the turbulent history sends a shiver down our spine, and others where we have as much fun as children. We have put together a selection of the best the area has to offer: places with a soul of their own and an atmosphere you will not find anywhere else, places you simply have to experience for yourself.
ERLEBNISHOLZKUGEL AM STEINBERGER SEE
An adventure viewpoint in the treetops. The Erlebnisholzkugel by the Steinberger See is the largest walk-in wooden sphere in the world and offers an exciting adventure for visitors of every age. Standing 40 metres high and measuring 50 metres across, the structure offers a 700 metre long barrier-free ascent with a maximum gradient of 6 %, which makes it accessible for prams and wheelchairs.
The Erlebnisholzkugel is part of the inMotion PARK, which also includes a climbing trail, a playground and a bouldering wall. It is an ideal destination for families, couples and adventurers who want to combine exercise, nature and relaxation in beautiful surroundings by the lake. Bicycles can be hired, so you can spend the whole day riding around the lake and unwinding on its beaches. On top of that, you can try wakeboarding or paddle boarding, go fishing or dive.
THE LOST VILLAGE OF LUČINA
Lučina, called Grafenried in German, used to be a Sudeten village in the Domažlice district. It lay on what is now the Czech-Bavarian border west of Nemanice, but it disappeared in the 1950s, when the impenetrable Iron Curtain was being built here. Today only a few ruins are left of the former village. Of most of the villages and settlements in the Český les little has remained, and in many places you will find only faint traces, memorials or small crosses. People have not forgotten them, though – as in the former village of Lučina/Grafenried near Nemanice. The demolished walls are being cleared of the soil that covered them, and old staircases, paving and gravestones are gradually coming to light. Vanished paths are being replaced by new ones, you can once again see the remains of the brewery, the parsonage, the pub and the glassworks, and the original cemetery is accessible as well.
The real gem is the church of St George, the building with which the restoration of Lučina began years ago. Rising from the ground are the perimeter walls, partly uncovered and partly newly rebuilt, the presbytery with its altar mensa, the sacristy and the remains of the tower, in the corner of which the foundation stone bearing the year 1775 is set. Mass is celebrated once a year in the reconsecrated church, and from the niche above the former altar the Beautiful Mary, or the Grafenried Madonna, once again looks down on "her" Lučina. For Germans the site of the vanished village is a frequent destination for outings; after all, from the pedestrian border crossing at Untergrafenried it is only about a kilometre to the former village green. Czechs are only now discovering Lučina, as the approach from our side is a little more complicated. We recommend coming from the German side, where you can park right at the start of the memorial trail.
By way of the hamlet of Mýtnice it is roughly five kilometres to the destination, on foot or by bike. Along the way, though, you can call in at a few other places of interest, such as the remains of the water mill by the former settlement of Pila or the vanished village of Úpor. It lay within sight of Lučina and, like Lučina, came to Bohemia only with the border adjustments of the 18th century. All that recalls it is a small cast-iron cross on a stone plinth beside the road to Grafenried.
MONTE KAOLINO NEAR HIRSCHAU
A world-class rarity and an experience you will not forget in a hurry! Monte Kaolino is a giant white mountain made up of 35 million tonnes of quartz sand, left behind by kaolin mining and today serving as one of the most unusual sport and leisure centres in Europe. The great attraction of this 120-metre-high sand hill is the unique chance to ski, sandboard or ride a toboggan down the sand, with a special ski lift carrying you comfortably to the top.
The complex at the foot of the mountain offers endless fun for the whole family. You will find a modern summer toboggan run (the Monte Coaster) with plenty of bends and jumps, an excellent pool complex (the Dune Baths) with a water slide and heated water, a large children's playground, minigolf and a rope park. For those who are simply looking for rest, the climb to the summit of the sand mountain comes with a wonderful view over the surrounding countryside and a unique atmosphere reminiscent of a desert dune in the heart of Bavaria.
FLOSSENBÜRG CONCENTRATION CAMP MEMORIAL
The Flossenbürg concentration camp, established in 1938 by SS units, lay in a remote part of Bavaria near the Czech border. At first it was used for the forced labour of prisoners in granite quarrying, but later it became an important site for the production of aircraft and weapons during the Second World War. During the years it was in operation, approximately 100,000 prisoners passed through Flossenbürg and its satellite camps, of whom about 30,000 died as a result of the harsh conditions, malnutrition and executions.
Today Flossenbürg serves as a memorial and museum that honours the victims and teaches visitors about the horrors that took place there. The town itself is captivating for its old castle ruins, with their magical view over Český les and its peaks.
GESCHICHTSPARK BÄRNAU-TACHOV
A fascinating journey through time that carries you hundreds of years back into the history of our shared border country. The historical park in Bärnau is the largest living open-air museum of the Middle Ages in Germany and an absolute favourite of ours, both for a family outing and for lovers of history. Here you can walk through faithfully reconstructed Slavic farmsteads from the 9th century, a medieval village and an imposing wooden motte-and-bailey castle on the top of a hillock, all of them built from original materials using traditional historical techniques.
The park's great strength is its authentic, living atmosphere. Instead of ordinary exhibits behind glass, here you meet craftsmen and inhabitants in period dress who have devoted their lives to the old trades – you can watch the blacksmith at his forge or the carpenter working the wood, or taste dishes cooked to historical recipes. The grounds also include the Button Museum and the unique project of the Czech-Bavarian medieval road. The path leading out of the park passes pleasant educational trails and places to sit, which makes it a perfect destination where learning goes hand in hand with an unforgettable experience.
https://www.baernau-entdecken.de/cs/kultura-a-zivot/historicky-park-baernau-tachov
NATURAL MONUMENTS VESKÝ MLÝN AND NA POŽÁRECH
Veský Mlýn 8 km / Na Požárech 18 km, a half-day trip. These two natural monuments open up a unique world of raised bogs, heathland, waterlogged spruce woods and meandering brooks that will enchant you at once with their raw, compelling atmosphere. It is a place where the bustle of everyday life falls away and where you can soak up the pure energy of an untouched landscape.
Pleasant educational trails run through the Na Požárech locality and around Veský Mlýn (which lies only a few minutes from us in the direction of Pleš). Along boardwalks and forest tracks I will lead you past rare flora and fauna – here you will come across the carnivorous round-leaved sundew, carpets of heather or protected species of butterflies and birds. Both places also carry a quiet historical trace of the former life on the border. It is a perfect destination for lovers of hiking, for photographers and for anyone in search of deep calm and the touch of nature in its purest form.
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