The best city hikes and walks around Jihočeský kraj

A real eye-catcher on the market square

You can stroll wonderfully along the old town wall on the banks of the Malše (Maltsch).

The monument to Vojtěch Lanna is considered the oldest monument in České Budějovice. It was created between 1866 and 1879 and was financed by public collection. Miraculously, it survived the metal collections during World War II, but was damaged and hidden in 1945. It was only restored and unveiled in 1993. The 6.64-meter-high monument is the work of Franz Pönninger and is adorned with reliefs depicting Lanna's trade and industrial activities. The statue shows Vojtěch Lanna with the attributes of a shipmaster.

The modern sculpture shows a group of humanoids, i.e. human-like beings, rushing somewhere. According to the artist Michal Trpák, it depicts our society, where many people rush from nowhere to nowhere.

The founding of the Dominican monastery with its still-preserved Gothic cloister is inextricably linked with the founding of the city. Like the city, the monastery was founded by the Bohemian King Přemysl Otakar II. Since the city was founded in 1265, the monastery must have been established a few years earlier. The monastery, which - as was customary at the time - was part of the city fortifications, was managed by the Dominican Order from the outset. In 1785, it was dissolved by Emperor Joseph II and taken over by the Piarists, who founded a college and a Latin school there. In 1885, the Piarists were replaced by the Redemptorists. The Neo-Gothic reconstruction dates from their time. The monastery buildings were abandoned in 1949. Today, the former monastery is used by the elementary school for art.

At the confluence of the Malše and the Vltava lies the four-star hotel "Budweis". There are 59 double rooms and one suite available for overnight stays. In the 14th century, the city's first mill stood at this location. Its successor building from 1872, the new mill (Přední mlýn), became the basis of today's hotel. During the socialist era, the mill, which closed in 1926, had served as a warehouse for household goods. The conversion into the "Budweis" hotel took place in 2009.

Practical use and adornment of the square: The fountain, the construction of which was decided by the city council in 1716, should fulfill both functions. On the one hand, it should supply households, craft businesses, and hospitality establishments with water, and on the other hand, it should impress visually through exquisite stonework (by Zachariáš Horn) and sculptural decorations (by Josef Dietrich). Between 1721 and 1727, the fountain was built, its water pumped from the Vltava. The sculpture, depicting the biblical Samson taming a lion, is considered a landmark of České Budějovice. Samson looks north towards Prague.

The Church of the Presentation of Mary on Piaristenplatz is – together with the former Dominican monastery to which it belonged – the oldest building in České Budějovice. The foundation stone was laid in 1265, the year the city was founded. The Gothic church is considered the city's most valuable historical and artistic monument and one of the most important monuments in South Bohemia. The oldest part of the church, the presbytery, was completed in 1274, while the basic structure was not finished until around 1300. Later, the three-nave church was extended and partially rebuilt, especially in the 14th, 17th, and 19th centuries. The church's exterior facade has, despite numerous renovations of the church, monastery buildings, and cloister, retained its early Gothic appearance. The early Gothic elements have also been largely preserved inside, interrupted only by smaller Baroque additions in the western part.