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Tours in Karlovy Vary

Tour of the Historical Centre

While walking through the spa centre, tourists will visit the warmest, the most renowned, and the most productive spring, the Hot Spring, which issues from a depth of 2000 m. The guide will also point out to the tourists the rest of the thermal springs, which are especially beneficial when used to treat diseases of the digestive tract, and metabolic disorders. Tourists will surely stop with admiration in front of the many dominants of Karlovy Vary – the grandiose Imperial Spa, Grandhotel Pupp, the Municipal Theatre, the Baroque Church of St. Mary Magdalene, or by the impressive Mill Colonnade.

A regular tour with a guide takes place every Saturday from 3.00 p.m.

Length of tour: ca. 1.5 – 2 hours It is necessary to book the tour at least 1 hour beforehand in the TIC. Price: 200 CZK / person.

Start: TIC Karlovy Vary, Lázeňská 14 The Tourist Information Centre (TIC) will gladly set up a time that is more suitable for you, for the number of people on the tour, as well as for the starting point. The route can be enriched by a guided tour of the Municipal Theatre, by a trip on the Funicular up to the Diana Observation Tower, by field trips…

We will also gladly plan trips into the surroundings of the spa town for you.

The city of Karlovy Vary offers guides whose knowledge is tested by the Information Centre of Karlovy Vary, and so they meet the requirements of the level of knowledge necessary to give you the best services.

Jméno Příjmení 00. 0. 0000

Does your guide belong among them? Ask us…

Mobile Applications

and let‘s play Pojďte,Come budeme si hrát

Karlovy Vary by Game – Geo Fun

App Store

Google Play

This game based on geocaching is available to the visitors of Karlovy Vary.

There are a total of 5 GeoSrandas (GeoFunnies), each with a different difficulty level, in Karlovy Vary. They are interesting and educational, and after you have finished all tasks, you can also win a prize. The best participants will be evaluated and awarded every half-year.

As the name of each of the GeoSranda suggests, the game will definitely not be boring – players will get to know the springs of Karlovy Vary (“The Mill Colonnade”), the mysterious sites of Karlovy Vary (“Immortal Karlovy Vary”), they will walk through spa forests (“A Tour Like a Cure”), they will see the town from observation towers and lookouts (“Karlovy Vary with Ease”), and of course, we cannot forget to mention the fact that the city is the site of the annual International Film Festival and has served as the set for many films (“Karlovy Vary, the Promised City of Film”).

Mobile Guidebook of Karlovy Vary

App Store

Google Play

You don’t like to tie yourself down, but you also like to discover monuments? Then this guidebook is just the thing for you, and it will take you to the TOP sites in Karlovy Vary.

In the Footsteps of the Famous

The Bayers

Thanks to Barbora Bayer, the inexpensive, fragrant delicacy of spa wafers became a hit amongst the spa guests. Even the Prussian Emperor Wilhelm I favoured them, and he had a box of spa wafers sent to his court every month. In 1884, Barbora Bayer received the title of “Royal Supplier”. In 1887, her son Karel took over the family bakery and expanded into Spain, Russia, Holland, Serbia, Romania, Bavaria, and into the rest of Austria-Hungary.

The other son of Barbora and Michael Bayer, Alfred Bayer, was a well-known architect who co-operated with the studio of Fellner and Helmer.

In Karlovy Vary, he designed, for instance, the Quisisana-Palace or the Festive Hall of Grandhotel Pupp. He contributed to the construction of the Municipal Theatre. He also designed and constructed such buildings as Stadt Gotha, Stadt Neapol, Stadt Moskau, Quirinal, and Rudolfsho (today the Carlsbad Plaza complex).

He was also responsible for the Savoy Westend Hotel, the Fink Villa in Krále Jiřího (King George) Street, the Anglický dvůr (English Court) Hotel in Sadová (Orchard) Street, the Pasteur House in Vřídelní (Hot Spring) Street, the excursion Myslivna (Hunter’s Lodge) Restaurant in the spa forests on Sova’s Trail, and the horse-racing tracks located in Dvory. These and other unmentioned constructions were excellent examples of the Late Historicism Style.

The Pupps The mayor and pharmacist Andreas Wenzel Becher had a Czech Hall built next to the Saxony Hall by the Teplá River. The buildings flourished with the efforts of Johann Georg Pupp, a confectioner. He started working at the local confectioner’s shop U melounu (At the Melon) owned by Jan Mitterbacher in 1767, located in Stará Louka No. 332. In 1775, he married Mitterbacher’s daughter, Franciska, and purchased one third of the Czech Hall with her dowry. Later, he bought the rest. In 1810, their sons Josef, Heinrich, and Johann took over the family business. The entrepreneurial Johann became the owner of Mitterbacher’s café in the U melounu House in 1828. Johann’s son from his first marriage - Heinrich Josef Wilhelm Pupp – made large investments to again unite all of the Pupp family’s properties that were sold by Josef’s widow during a financial crisis in 1828.

His three sons – Anton, Julius a Heinrich – established the commercial business Gebrüder Pupp in 1872, and thus placed the foundation stones of the hotel project Etablissement Pupp. Anton had the exquisite Quisisana Palace built for his wife, who was of the Mattoni family. Karl Heinrich (one of Anton’s seven children) became the fourth president of the GH Pupp joint-stock company, and his three children became the owners of the Zlatá harfa (Golden Harp) House, the Poštovní dvůr (Postal Court), and the Margareta Villa. The offspring of Julius owned e.g. the Quirinal House in Karlovy Vary. Heinrich August Pupp, who established the fourth generation of Pupps, is buried in the cemetery in Drahovice.

The Bechers The most significant member of the Karlovy Vary Bechers is thought to be Dr. Med. David Becher, who was known as the Hippocrates of Karlovy Vary. He was born in 1725 in the U dvou řetězů (At the Two Chains) House, which stood in what is today’s Vřídelní (Hot Spring) Street across from the park below the Church of St. Mary Magdalene. He treated patients at the Vřídlo Hot Spring in the period of 1756-1792, and examined the properties of the Karlovy Vary mineral water at the same time. Some of his famous clients include Friedrich Schiller or Maria Theresa. He died without children in 1792 in the U otrokyně (At the Slave’s) House, which stood in what is currently Divadelní (Theatre) Square.

Jan Becher Museum – open daily from 9.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.

Becherovka, the world-renowned liquor – aside from the delicious spa wafers, petrified roses, Moser glass and porcelain – is one of the specialties of Karlovy Vary.

Josef Vitus Becher (the nephew of D. Becher) often debated with the English doctor Frolig about the strength of herbs in the pharmacy of his parents, known as the U tří skřivanů (At the Three Larks). As a token of gratitude, he gave him his recipe for a new type of liquor. J.V. Becher improved the recipe, and in 1807, guests tasted the first sips of this ­herbal liquor. The family liquor company was taken over by the son Johann Nepomuk Becher in 1838, and he constructed a new liquor works in Steinberky, today known as Becherplatz. After J. N. Becher, the company was managed by his eldest son Gustav Becher, who had the liquor trademarked. Gustav had a luxurious villa built in the Westend neighbourhood according to the designs of Karel Heller for his very beautiful and forty-year younger wife. Today, the villa is redesigned as an interactive gallery for young artists, with a focus on educational activities, exhibitions, artistic events, representative events, and accommodation facilities. The grave of the renowned spa doctor David Becher is located in the Ondřejský Cemetery in Karlovy Vary.

The Mosers Around 1800, David Moser operated a renowned Jewish ritual dining hall in the Zlatá váha (Golden Scale) House, which was even visited by, for example, the Rothschild family.

Grandson Ludwig Moser was an apprentice of glass engraving in the workshop of Karlovy Vary engraver Andreas Mattoni. In 1855, he opened his own shop in Stará Louka Street. In 1857, he established an engraving workshop with a glass shop at the rented Město Výmar (The City of Weimar) House on Zámecký (Chateau) Hill, and so placed the foundations of today’s world-renowned factory at not even Museum and glassworks - open daily except 24., 25.12. and 1.1.

Museum 9.00 a.m. - 5.00 p.m., glassworks 9.00 a.m. - 2.30 p.m.

Tickets are available in the Tourist Information Centre in Karlovy Vary.

24 years of age. He opened another shop in 1862 in the Zlatý klíč (The Golden Key) House at No. 21, and others in the Červené srdce (The Red Heart) House (Stará Louka No. 339) in 1866 and at the U Římana (At the Roman’s) House in Divadelní (Theatre) Street No. 501 in 1873. From 1874, the Moser family lived in the Columbus House, where later, the Spa Institute of Karl Moser, the spa doctor, was established. In 1892, Ludwig initiated the construction of his own glassworks.

During his career, he gained the reputation of being the most prestigious manufacturer of crystal in the entire Austro-Hungarian Empire.

The Springs and the Colonnades with a Guide

This unconventional tour specialises on the local colonnades, and it is possible to order it at the Správa přírodních zdrojů a kolonád (Natural Resources and Colonnades Authority) at www.splzak.cz.

You can also order an excursion into the underground area of the Hot Spring Colonnade here, and you will discover more about the history of the local springs and the tradition of “petrifying” objects, or you can take an excursion in the crypt of the Church of St. Mary Magdalene.

Tours take place from May to September.

The date and time will be detailed in the Tourist Information Centre.

Museums, Galleries, Exhibitions

Choose a museum, gallery, or exhibition according to your interests and moods. They are open year-round.

Aside from the Jan Becher or Moser museums, the history and present of Karlovy Vary are presented to visitors also in the Museum of Karlovy Vary, the Becher Villa Interactive Gallery, the Municipal Gallery of Karlovy Vary, the Karlovy Vary Gallery of Art, the Christmas House, the Wax Figure Museum, the Supermarket WC Gallery, or, for example, the history exhibition on the production of Absinthe.

You will also have a lot of fun at the local astronomical observatory, which offers regular activities for both children and adults. The Lázně I (Spa I), which is worth visiting in itself, offers interesting exhibitions.

You can find the current offer of cultural events at www.karlovyvary. cz, or contact the Tourist Information Centre. Admissions to some ­museums and galleries can be purchased at vstupenky.karlovyvary.cz.

Take a Ride

Take the opportunity of admiring the spa from the tourist train, which can carry up to 36 passengers at once. It travels on the route from the Main Post Office to Březová, and you can see many interesting buildings along the way.

May - Sept. daily (in case of good weather) April and Oct. every FRI, SAT, and SUN + holidays The tourist train (line A) leaves every hour from 10.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m.

The popular funicular will safely transport you from Mírové (Peace) Square to the Diana Observation Tower, where you can enjoy the breath-taking scenery of Karlovy Vary.

IV, V, IX 9.00-18.00 I, II, III, XI, XII 9.00-17.00 Enjoy a romantic ride in a horse-drawn carriage. You can find them parked near the Main Post Office and in Divadelní (Theatre) Square.

Spa Forests and Parks

Spa Forests have more than 120 km of marked hiking trails and invite you to relax by taking walks, including Nordic walking. The trails are intertwined with gazebos, simple cabins or with lookouts, inviting you to visit and rest during long hikes. The trails will lead you to, for example, the Diana Observation Tower, the favourite place of the writer Vladimír Páral – the Rusalka Cabin, or to the St. Linhart natural high-ropes centre. The St. Linhart Game Enclosure is also worth seeing, where you can observe many types of forest game from suspension bridges.

The oldest religious building – the Church of St. Linhart (St. Leonard) – was built by early settlers in the forests of the royal game enclosure.

The oldest gazebo – the Dorothea Gazebo, 1791, built in the honour of the Duchess of Courland. The most-visited lookout – 1804, Mayer’s Gloriette, is located on the rocky promontory jetting out above the city.

The St. Linhart High-Ropes Centre is open from May to September.

The oldest cross – dating back to 1561, a so-called reconciliation cross.

It was built at the site of the tragic death of a butcher’s apprentice.

The educational dendrology trail focused on the history and the botanical aspects of the spa parks begins in the centre of Karlovy Vary in Smetanovy sady (Smetana Park) and ends after 4.5 km in the park next to the Poštovní Dvůr (Postal Court) Restaurant.

Smetanovy sady (Smetana Park) Dvořákovy sady (Dvořák Park) - Skalníkovy sady (Skalník Park) - Divadelní náměstí (Theatre Square) - Sady Karla IV. (Charles IV Park) - Goethova stezka (Goethe Trail) - Japonská zahrada (Japanese Garden) - Sady u Poštovního dvora (Postal Court Park) – Park za letním kinem (Park behind the Open-Air Cinema).

SPECIAL Tours

The Information Centre will gladly provide you with special tours; timely reservations made in the Tourist Information Centre are necessary:

The Karlovy Vary Municipal Theatre This guided tour of the Municipal Theatre, constructed by the famous ­architects Fellner and Helmer, is possible to reserve in the TIC Karlovy Vary.

Minimum number of participants: 25

Cinematic KARLOVY VARY The genius loci of Karlovy Vary has made this famous spa an attractive place for filmmakers, and the incredible scenery has served as the sets for many famous films, such as Casino Royale, La Vie en Rose, Hostel: Part II, Last Holiday, Shanghai Knights.

This unique opportunity to become a part of this dramatized tour based on the themes of famous films can be reserved in the TIC Karlovy Vary.

Minimum number of participants: 20

Mysterious KARLOVY VARY You can discover the serious events in the history of Karlovy Vary in a less serious manner in this special dramatized tour. Accompanied by an experienced tour guide, you can visit some of the most iconic sites of Karlovy Vary and discover their history.

Tours for Students The Tourist Information Centre can arrange for school tours based on your requirements.

Tourist Information Centre (TIC) Lázeňská 14, CZ - 360 01 Karlovy Vary T +420 355 321 176, infocentrum@karlovyvary.cz

www.karlovyvary.cz