We will be in Prague for a few days before we join a Viking river cruise in Passau. We're thinking about hiring a driver to take us from Prague with a stop off in Cesky Krumlov. There are numerous options for this, one being mydaytrip.com. One of the cruise excursions from Linz is a full day trip to Cesky but we're leaning toward taking the express train to Salzburg that day as it is not offered as an excursion. Would 3 hours in Cesky be enough to hit the highlights of the town? The ship stays overnight in Passau so there isn't a huge rush to make it by a certain time.
Posted by
Duluth 🛶
8429 posts
I spent one night in Cesky Krumlov and would not have wanted to try and see it in 3 hours. It's a charming and walkable town and part of that charm is just wandering through and enjoying the scenery, stopping at a cafe for lunch, enjoying a beer in the local food hall. If you try and rush it, especially in 3 hours, I don't know that it would really be worth it. But that's just my opinion - YMMV.
Posted by
WA State
3961 posts
Sounds like you have a couple of options. When we were in Central Europe (2019) we spent two nights in Cesky Krumlov. It was a top highlight of our journey. We did a walking tour with Krumlov Tours. In my opinion it would make sense to spend the day. We hired CK shuttle that was door to door. https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwj29OOZw679AhW-IDQIHfNLBzIQFnoECBgQAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ckshuttle.cz%2F&usg=AOvVaw18Q7L_W0xhj0zsgdAjmgPi
Edited to add: take a look at earthtrekkers.com Their blog highlights Cesky Krumlov.
Posted by
Indiana
955 posts
I'm in the minority, but we were not huge fans of CK. Very touristy, tacky souvenir shops and subpar food options. Not sure, why RS promotes it so heavily. I would skip it all together, but with that said, if you really want to visit it then, 3 hours is not enough. CK Shuttle is a transportation option. Salzburg is a terrific option instead of CK while on the cruise.
Posted by
stevens point, wi, usa
1194 posts
Hi from Wisconsin,
Off season I would want two nights, so you have a full day to wander. CK probably has more shops than stores. What is the difference. A store has necessities like grocery or hardware.. A shop has T-shirts, cheap puppets, hats. When Shops > stores the local population no longer lives there. Still, CK is pretty darned neat.
Evenings, after the ranks of busses have left and the place settles down some, it can be very romantic.
i
A place that is worth a day trip is Konopiste Castle. You have heard of the Arch Duke Francis Ferdinand? His assassination tripped the trigger for WWI. This place has been carefully preserved from the day he left it. Going through the castle you get the feeling he might arrive for dinner. The Arch Duke modernized the place by adding electricity and plumbing. Your jaw will drop at what is inside. He inherited some nice family collections of art, armour, guns, and he has a few deer antlers about the house.
wayne iNWI
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
8072 posts
I liked Cesky Krumlov fine. Remember Yogi Berra, "Nobody goes there anymore, it's too crowded!" It takes more time to see Salzburg than Cesky Krumlov, but it's easy to make a full day at Cesky, especially if you will see the castle/chateau/mansion interior, or (much better) the Baroque Theater, very hard to get tickets for. We also hired (Rick's mentioned ... ) car service, it's a very long ride from Prague. But I guess you're not going back, which makes it a good deal - except for "paying" for the empty return of the car.
If you will never return, I accept your plan. Around 1991, we slept three nights in Innsbruck, three nights in Salzburg, three nights in Munich, four or five nights in Vienna, all by train. Had not yet heard of Cesky Krumlov. Austrian Airways into Innsbruck, out of Vienna. I see some risk in meeting the ship in Linz in time, and I'm sure Linz is nice enough (haven't been there.) A river cruise with walk-to ports is an opportunity not to be sneezed at. Are you going to Melk as well?
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
8072 posts
Month of year?
Sharon, it sounds stupid but all the replies here are reasonable points of view. The fact is that this is a large and unique case of "another antique town forgotten by time." And it's quite remote. When you add in the Adolf Hitler connection, the kayak/outdoorsy options, the "castle" (chateau) interior by tour only and one of the only three remaining intact Baroque Theaters in Europe (by tour only, very few in English), it's quite a place. You are doing yourself a disservice by trying to shoehorn it into a "If this is Tuesday, This Must be Belgium" time schedule.
In fairness to your travel style, WE slept three nights in Salzburg. I would worry about missing the ship with a self-run train outing. One evening we went to a professional (not "tourist") Mozart concert in the Marmoreansaale. (Too many hard surfaces, though.) You can't "do" Salzburg in six hours. For example, we were charmed to find the grave of the American occupation of Salzburg. He and his wife loved it so much they moved there. We actually left the famous Marionette Theater at intermission because of the canned opera music.