Need help with Czech itinerary

We did the southern route by public transportation in 2024. You will need to plan carefully because your options are limited. From Olomouc, we went to Jihlava, by train. There were track works near Brno, do this took all day. We then took the train to Slavonice which we liked very much. We stayed there 2 nights. Then we took the train back to Telc for one night. Then we took the bus, connecting to another bus to Cesky Kromlov. If you plan to spend a week in one location, I think you will want a car, so you can do day trips. One half day in Telc was plenty for us. Jihlava is not a tourist town, but it does have a quirky Mahler museum. Slavonice is small but has nice walking and biking.

Thanks for the replies. I do agree that renting a car sounds better for that southern region. But I can only find an option to pick up/drop off a car in Prague and Brno, which leaves me with an unwanted car in Cesky Krumlov for a week. I have tried nearby Ceske Budjovice without any luck. I'm glad to hear that the route was possible by public transit. Thanks for the suggestion to make a couple nights stop in Slavonice and perhaps to not stay in Telc for a few nights. Has anyone else stayed in Trebon? Might that be another option for a few nights' stay if we break this week up? (Trebon - Slavonice - Brno as a possibility?) I haven't checked the train/bus connections between these yet - just looking for good spots to try to link up. We really don't like staying for just a few nights in one place, but maybe we can make an exception for this stretch.

I have tried nearby Ceske Budjovice without any luck.

Just for my own curiosity... I see that Hertz has a location there. Did they not have a car available or would they not let you pick up there and drop off somewhere else?

Hmmm... I did a dummy booking on the Hertz website for pick up at České Budějovice and drop off at Prague, and it was the same price as pick up/drop off at České Budějovice.

We spent a few days in the Mikulov area a couple of years ago. Its in the heart of the Moravian wine country if your are interested in that, and tired of beer.

Dave, thanks for looking into Hertz. For some reason, we were everywhere but Hertz. They do have a pick up at Ceske Budejovice and drop off in Brno! It isn't as cheap as I'd like, but it is an option. And the side trip to Mikulov wine country sounds like exactly what we'd want the car for. I appreciate the input from everyone.

If you haven't found the Honest Guide video for Olomouc, here it is: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pFEkqBibUPQ, packed with off-the-beaten-path sites and places to eat/drink. There are some additional recommendations in the comments.

I'll be in Moravia for about 10 days in October, mostly in Brno, but three days in Olomouc and environs.

I live in Olomouc 😊

Trains are quite nice and convenient. You can check out Brno, the second largest city - actually between Olomouc and Brno, the best option is Regiojet bus, it takes one hour. Otherwise if you really like off the beaten path, you can explore Ostrava! An easy train ride to there, about an hour from Olomouc too. Otherwise, since you've mentioned Mikulov - also Znojmo is worth looking into, it's easy to get to from Brno (by train) - it's surrounded by vineyards and the city is lovely.

Btw. near Český Krumlov, you can find České Budějovice, the birthplace of Budweiser beer and another beautiful city.

I have a few guides on my travel blog, including Olomouc, Znojmo, České Budějovice and Ostrava (still working on Brno 🙈): https://www.travelgeekery.com/category/destinations/europe/czech-republic/

Let me know if you have more questions, I should be quite knowledgeable. 😃

Oh, and as for rentals - Hertz sounded good, and then there's e.g. DayTrip (.com) - a Czech company, now a global startup, offering transport from place to place, with optional interesting stops along the way. You could combine sth like DayTrip with train / bus, if you decide not to rent.

The southern stretch you mention - it might be fastest to return to Prague from Český Krumlov and then take a train to Olomouc and explore from there. It's true that Telč and Třebíč are lovely, especially Telč, but yes... a bit out there. The main highway crossing the country is the D1 between Prague and Brno and onwards and the roads more to the south are just smaller roads. To find all possible local connections, you can check out https://idos.cz/en/vlakyautobusymhdvse/spojeni/ .

I've just double-checked and you could go from Český Krumlov to České Budějovice by train, then from there a direct bus to Telč. Then there's a direct bus to Třebíč. From Třebíč, you could easily go to Brno by bus (transfer in Jihlava), from there a direct train to Znojmo. Back to Brno and there's a direct bus to Olomouc. 😁

Ok, plenty for you to digest, hit me up if you'd like any further guidance.

Thank you so much, Veronika and Dave! This part of our trip is for exploring smaller places, so the slow pace of the southern highway should be OK. I think that we will attempt the car rental out of Ceske Budejovice and make our way across to Brno. You have given a lot of ideas for where to stop/visit on the way to and near Brno. We just need to figure out how much time to dedicate to that before returning the car and then to Olomouc where we obviously need to spend more time. For a preliminary plan, how does this sound? (I am suspicious of the driving times suggested by Google.)

Ceske Budejovice to Telc (1.5 hr. drive) - 2 nights with one day trip to Slavonice - is that REALLY a 25 minute drive?

Telc to Mikulov (a stop in Znojmo) (2 hrs. drive) - 2 nights (This route means we missed Trebic - how bad is that?)

Mikulov to Brno (1 hr. drive) - 2 nights

Then public transit to Olomouc to stay for a week before returning to Prague on the train.
We can move nights out of Olomouc if either of you think something deserves more time, or if we have missed something significant. We are planning this trip in October, if that is relevant.

Hi Dani, Bryce here, I'm a local guide in Český Krumlov, originally from Florida. I've been living in the Czech Republic for over 30 years now. Pretty much everything big from Český Krumlov happens out of České Budějovice, including car rentals and train connections. Telč and Slavonice are indeed quite close to each other, although both places are visitable within a single day, you can probably even cover both places in one day with an overnight stay someplace in the area. If you're looking for things to do in Český Krumlov, I also work with the Castle as a professional guide, so I'd be happy to show you around while you're here.

(This route means we missed Trebic - how bad is that?)

I have NOT been to Třebíč or Telč. I did look at them as stops on my upcoming trip, but they looked a lot alike to me. Maybe one of the Czech natives/residents can give more info on differentiating them. My sense is that Czechia has a lot of old Habsburg cities/towns with a beautiful town square, a big church and a gleaming white city hall. We all have different travel styles, but I personally don't need to see multiple versions of that.

I don't know what your plan is for Brno. Rick Steves ignores it, but everywhere else I read says it's a great place -- kind of like Prague without tourists. I read in one place that you don't have to worry about tourist traps there because there are no tourists to trap. I'm going to be there 7 nights to attend a classical music festival, to roam the city and to use it as a base for day trips to see Mucha's Slav Epic at Moravský Krumlov and to explore the Moravian Karst.

TELC is very small.. it will take minimal time to see the place. TREBIC if you are interested in Jewish history..it is on the UNESCO. list. The refurbished synagogue is impressive IMO

Cesky Krumlov include the Baroque theater tour.. English tour at 10am.

Hmmm. That sounds like something we don't want to miss. Perhaps we can stay in Telc for a couple nights and make a day trip to Trebic.

I find Třebíč and Telč very different 😃 I really like both... In Třebíč, apart of the main square and the Jewish area, there's also a cool rock to climb for beautiful views.. Very different from the mostly-flat Telč. I'd add a few photos but don't see that option here.

About Brno - it is amazing, but do not expect the city center to be empty. 😁 It is popular.

Otherwise your plan sounds good. And the driving times are correct. Apart from Google Maps, you can use the Mapy.cz map app, it's local and often even better than Google Maps. It's in English, too.