Karlštejn is very small town in the middle of nowhere. Okay, it is only about 30 kilometers / 18 miles southwest of Prague, but it seems much farther away. Karlštejn is not much more than one road – lined with tourist shops, restaurants, and hotels – leading from the train station up the valley to the impressive Karlštejn Castle.
Karlštejn Castle was built in the mid-1300s by Charles IV, King of Bohemia and Holy Roman Emperor, as a residence and fortress to hold the imperial crown jewels and royal treasures. The castle generally consists of four buildings (the Great Tower, Marian Tower, Imperial Palace, and Burgrave’s House), including several chapels (Chapel of the Holy Cross, St. Catherine Chapel, and Church of the Virgin Mary), and two encircling fortress walls, an interior wall around the Great Tower and a second wall around the entire castle.
Our journey began on the 9:28 AM České dráhy train from Praha-Smíchov to Karlštejn, paying 114 Kč (about $5) for two tickets. After a 30 minute train ride we found ourselves in Karlštejn, walking at the rear of a pack of about 25 tourists heading towards the castle. Phew. We knew then that the castle was not going to be crowded.
The first part of the walk is past some fields and over a river. From there it is all uphill. As long as you are walking uphill on an obvious tourist street, you are going the right way. It is impossible to get lost. Expect a 20 to 30 minute walk up a gradually sloping hill to reach the castle gate.
Upon arriving at the castle we followed the signs to the ticket office. At least we tried. The sign pointed to a set of stairs that went down to a small room with about a dozen chairs showing a film. Hmmm. A handful of people were milling around the area, somewhat confused, until someone opened a nondescript door halfway down the stairs. Behind the unmarked door we found a café, gift shop, and ticket window.
November is off-season for the castle, so our tour options were limited to exactly one, the Imperial Residence of Charles IV Tour for 260 Kč (about $12 each). Neither the Castle Chapels Tour (which would have been our preference if available) nor the Great Tower View Tour are available in the off-season. According to the sign, those two tours are set to resume on May 1 next year.
For some reason the daily tour schedule is not listed on the website, so we had no idea what to expect upon arriving. Fortunately for us the next scheduled tour was an English language one. All tours are guided tours. There is no self-guided option.
Tours start about every 20 minutes. Most are Czech language tours, but several are in English, with one in German later in the afternoon. Don’t worry too much about the language. An audioguide is available if you prefer a language other than what is used by the guide.
Each tour has a maximum of 45 people. There were about 30 on our late morning English language tour. Two in our group were using audioguides. Had we known about the audioguide option in advance, we probably would have taken the later Czech language tour as there were only nine people on it.
The Imperial Residence Tour lasts about an hour, going through numerous rooms in the Imperial Palace and Marian Tower. Several of the rooms are large halls easily able to accommodate a group of 45 people. A few of the rooms, however, are a little small and cramped even for a group of 30.
Incredibly, at the end of the tour we were able to exit without going through a café or gift shop. Karlštejn Castle is one of the few museums and tourist attractions where you actually have to seek out the café and gift shop rather than being forced through them.
Before leaving Karlštejn Castle we spent a few minutes in the courtyard and headed over to the Well Tower, which offers the best views of the castle from the inside the walls.
Shortly before 1:00 PM we strolled out of the castle ready for a downhill walk to the train station. Along the way we decided to stop for lunch. Rather than going to one of the tourist restaurants in town, we opted for sausages and beers sold at an outdoor grill on the street near the castle gate.
For 276 Kč, cash only, we got each got a large sausage, two pieces of bread, a dollop of mustard, and a beer. It was a nice day and outdoor seating was readily available as we were the only customers at the time.
On our way back through town we noticed that many of the restaurants and tourist shops were closed. I suppose during the off-season many places are only open on the weekends, if at all. Judging by what we could see in the shops that were open, and through the windows, I doubt that we would have stopped even if everything was open.
During our walk we opened the České dráhy app and bought two tickets on the next return train, again paying 114 Kč (about $5 for two). Trains run to and from Prague about every 30 minutes, so we did not concern ourselves with the train schedule while in Karlštejn.
Our disappointment in not being able to take the Castle Chapels Tour was more than offset by the fact that hardly any other tourists were visiting the castle at the time of our visit. Except when we were on the Imperial Residence Tour, it felt like we had the castle and town to ourselves.
We really enjoyed our visit to Karlštejn Castle and highly recommend it if you have a half-day and want to get out of Prague.
Garrett and Stephanie
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