Hotel Dvořák ****

Hotel Dvořák is located directly on the square in České Budějovice, in the Dvořák Gallery. This Southern Bohemian metropolis was founded in 1265 at the junction of the Vltava and Malše Rivers by the Czech king Přemysl Otakar II. The historical centre of České Budějovice was declared a historical city reservation in 1980. The original layout was preserved, with Přemysl Otakar II Square measuring 133×133 m, one of the largest squares in Bohemia, and a series of Gothic, Renaissance and Baroque burgher houses. The important monuments include the original Renaissance Town Hall from the year 1555, Samson’s fountain with its allegorical steps on the square and the 72 m-high Gothic-Renaissance Black Tower from the years 549–78, which provides a view of the city and its surroundings and is an important landmark of the Southern Bohemian city.

It is also worth visiting the nearby historical sites – in particular the Hluboká Chateau and the zoo near the Ohrada Hunting Chateau. There are many ponds around the city that invite swimmers and hikers. South of the city is the protected landscape area Blanský Forest with the Kleť peak (1083 m, funicular). From the summit of the mountain, there is a lovely view of the Southern Bohemian landscape. You can also view the landscape of the ponds in the České Budějovice and Třeboň basins, the quaint valley of the rolling Vltava River above Český Krumlov, and the majestic mountains of Šumava and Nové Hrady. Interesting natural sites can also be found in the city itself: the Stromovka forest park and the Vrbenský ponds natural reservation.