Lednice–Valtice Cultural Landscape

Lednice-Valtice Cultural Landscape (Lednicko-valtický areál) is in South Moravia, Czech Republic, near the Austrian and Slovakian border. It is truly a cultural landscape - you can find numerous historical and natural sights here. The areal somehow resembles a very large garden with numerous decorations (including two large chateaux) build mostly in Romanticism architecture style.

Understand

The Ledice Valtice Cultural Landscape is inscribed on the UNESCO World heritage List: Between the 17th and 20th centuries, the ruling dukes of Liechtenstein transformed their domains in southern Moravia into a striking landscape. It married Baroque architecture (mainly the work of Johann Bernhard Fischer von Erlach) and the classical and neo-Gothic style of the chateaux of Lednice and Valtice with countryside fashioned according to English romantic principles of landscape architecture. At 200 sq. km, it is one of the largest artificial landscapes in Europe.

The area is situated mainly between towns Lednice and Valtice (both of them featuring a huge chateau), which are located around 7 km from each other. As such, it is possible to see most of the sights in one day, but some of them are a bit farther, stretching almost to vicinity of Břeclav.

Get in

Břeclav can be viewed as a gateway to the areal, as it is located around 10 km away from both Lednice and Valtice. Břeclav is a bigger city and has a very good connection to the rest of Czech Republic.

By train

Břeclav has an excellent rail connection. There is at least one hourly train from Brno and Prague, and two-hourly connections from Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest and Ostrava (some of the trains continue to Warsaw). There is also a regional train to Znojmo and Mikulov. From Břeclav, you can continue by train to Valtice, which is located on the regional railway to Znojmo. There are also some infrequent trains to Lednice, which run only on summer Saturdays. These are however run by historical trains, sometimes even steam engines, so using them might be an enjoyment by itself.

The journey to Břeclav from Brno, Bratislava or Vienna takes about 50 minutes and cost 100 Kč (Brno), 200 Kč (Bratislava) or 370 Kč (Vienna) if bought on the last minute. From Břeclav to Valtice, it is another 10 minutes and 25 Kč, with train running every hour. The town center in Valtice is about 10 mins walking from the station, and there is a big map showing the area once you get down there. From Břeclav to Lednice, it takes 30 minutes and cost 30 Kč if diesel train is running or 60 Kč if a steam train is running. Again, please note that trains to Lednice run only on Saturdays between 1st May and 15th September. You can find the timetable for trains to Lednice here, for all the other trains use Czech Railways website to find the timetable and to buy a ticket.

If you have to stay longer in Břeclav while waiting for connecting train, you can use very good restaurant located directly in the station building.

By car

Břeclav is served by D2 motorway between Vienna and Brno. From Břeclav, there is a main road to Valtice or a regional road in good shape to Lednice. Parking on the street is free in both towns, but in case there is no free space or you want to park right next to the chateaux, you will have to pay 20 Kč per hour on paid parking lot.

By bus

There are also buses roughly every 30 minutes from near Břeclav station to both towns. The bus station in Břeclav is located just next to the railway station. The fare is cheap - 20Kč, payable to the driver. (as of November 2018). Getting to Břeclav by bus makes almost no sense, as there are frequent trains from everywhere. See IDOS for full transport details.

Get around

The center of each town is small and easy to walk around. There is a tourist information desk in each of the centers. Sometimes English is not spoken very well, depending on who is working that day.

By bus

There are buses that run between the two towns. The fare will be about 16Kč one way.

By bicycle

The area is great to visit on bicycle. There are numerous marked biking trails around the area, and you can also bike around nearby Protected Landscape Area Pálava. With bike, you could also sleep in Břeclav, which would be probably much cheaper than staying in Lednice or Valtice. For planning, use OsmAnd or mapy.cz, or any other OpenStreetMap based mapping system. Bicycles can be hired in Lednice and Břeclav:

  • České dráhy rent cycles at the train station in Břeclav.
  • Bikes can be rented from půjčovnakol.cz in Lednice

On foot

The area is rather small, so you can walk around the sights. To see most of them, you would have to walk around 20 km if starting from Lednice and finishing in Valtice. You could easily split this in two days, if this is too much for you or if you want to spend more time at the sights. For planning, use OsmAnd or mapy.cz, or any other OpenStreetMap based mapping system.

See

Most of the sights listed are closed during winter, while these are overcrowded during July and August, so June and September might be the best months to visit. Aside from these, you will find numerous small bunkers from the year 1938, build in expectation of Second World War.

Near Lednice
  • 🌍 Lednice Castle, Zámek 1, ☏ +420 519 340 128, . 10ː00-16ː00, only weekend during winter. Large chateau in Lednice. Entry only with a guide included in the entrance fee. 170-190 Kč. (updated Nov 2018)
  • 🌍 Jan's Castle (Janův Hrad), ☏ +420 519 355 134, . 9ː00-17ː00, closed on Mondays and during winter. An interesting sight, as this is a large fake castle ruin build around the year 1805 in romantic architecture style. 100 Kč. (updated Nov 2018)
  • 🌍 Minaret. 9ː00-17ː00. 60 metres tall minaret (without mosque though) surrounded by water, build as a decoration in 18th century. You can climb to the top, from which offers a nice view. 80 Kč. (updated Nov 2018)
  • 🌍 Temple of Appolon. A small chateau build to resemble Temple of Greek God Appolon. (updated Nov 2018)

Near Valtice
  • 🌍 Valtice Castle, Zámek 1, ☏ +420 778 743 754, . 9ː00-16ː00, closed during winter. A large baroque chateau. 90-180 Kč, 320 Kč if you want English speaking guide. (updated Nov 2018)
  • 🌍 Rendezvous, Rendez-vous 361. Large Triumphal arch from the year 1812. (updated Nov 2018)
  • 🌍 Raistna Colonnade (Kolonáda na Reistně). A large gloriette (updated Nov 2018)
  • 🌍 Iron Curtain Museum, . 10ː00 - 17ː00. This is not related to the historical landscape, but still interesting. A museum about the Iron Curtain which used to divide Czechs and Austrians only 30 years ago. 100 Kč. (updated Nov 2018)

Further away
  • 🌍 Pohansko chateau, ☏ +420 519 374 248, . 10ː00 - 18ː00 Closed on Mondays and during winter. Another large castle, featuring a museum about early-medieval history of the area. Located in the easternmost part of the Cultural Landscape - 3km south of Břeclav train station, 10 km east of Valtice 50 Kč. (updated Nov 2018)
  • 🌍 Ancient fortified settlement Pohansko. Located just next to the Pohansko chateau, there are some remnants of fortification from 9th century. Features some buildings build in 9th century style. (updated Nov 2018)

Itineraries

Visit one of the impressive palaces and spend some time walking through the large parkland and in the lanes of the towns

Do
  • Hike. There are numerous marked tourist trails connecting all the sights.
  • Bike. The area is not so small and flat, making bike the best way to explore it. Bike can be rented at the railway station in Břeclav or at many hotels.
  • Swim. Some of the fishponds present a good chance to relax a bit and swim in them. 🌍 Mlýnský rybník. located near Lednice is probably the most suitable for this. (updated Nov 2018)

Drink

This area of the Czech Republic is renowned for its wines and there are many wine cellars dotted around the towns and countryside. Some guesthouses or even hotels offer vine tasting at their own premises.

Sleep

Both Lednice and Valtice are quite touristy towns, so the accommodation options here might be full or overpriced. To solve this, you can sleep in nearby Břeclav, which is not that interesting, but cheaper and with smaller crowd. There are also numerous guesthouses in Lednice, Valtice and basically every village in the area. If staying in a guesthouse, you can check if they have a vine cellar. If so, you can reserve a vine tasting, but be prepared to pay relatively more money for staying there.

Camping

Guesthouses
  • 🌍 Černý jezdec (Black Rider), Mikulovská 690 Lednice 691 44 (From Lednice square about 100 m in Mikulov direction), ☏ +420 519 340 236, . Offers comfortable and calm lodging right in the centre of Lednice near the castle park. The accommodation is spacious and is set in an original rustic style. 800- 1,900Kč (5 bed). (updated Nov 2018)

Hotels
  • 🌍 Garni Hotel, 21. dubna 3, 691 44 Lednice, ☏ +420 519 340 619, . The hotel has rooms over looking a central swimming pool. It is situated in the Chateau Park at the beginning of Lednice on the road from Podivín (D2 motorway – Exit 41), about 0.7 km from the center of the town. The hotel is found in the reconstructed buildings of the former Liechtenstein forester’s house in the Chateau Park. (updated Nov 2018)
  • 🌍 Hraniční zámeček, Hlohovec u Břeclavi č. 16, ☏ +420 519 354353-4, fax: +420 519 354353, . This is significant architectural monument of the Lednice - Valtice area built by the Liechtenstein family in the years 1816 - 1819 at the village of Hlohovec near the Hlohovec pond and is registered with UNESCO. 1,300 - 1,850Kč. (updated Nov 2018)
  • 🌍 Hotel Galant, 21.dubna 657, ☏ +420 519 340 130, . My hotel is situated in Lednice na Moravě, in the heart of the Lednice-Valtice grounds. 1,490 - 2,790Kč. (updated Nov 2018)

Valtice
  • 🌍 Hotel Hubertus, Zámek 1, ☏ +420 519352537, fax: +420 519352538, . The hotel can be found in the premises of the Valtice Castle, a part of the Lednice and Valtice Complex, registered in the global list of historical monuments UNESCO. 980 - 1,290Kč. (updated Nov 2018)

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